Richard Haythornthwaite
{{Short description|British business executive and Chairman of Mastercard (born 1956)}}
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| name = Richard Haythornthwaite
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| birth_name = Richard Neil Haythornthwaite
| birth_date = {{birth-date and age|December 1956}}
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| known_for = Chairman of MasterCard, Centrica and Creative Industries Federation
| education =
| alma mater = The Queen's College, Oxford
MIT Sloan School of Management
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| occupation = Business executive
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Richard Neil "Rick" Haythornthwaite (born December 1956) is a British business executive. He has led several companies including being the chairman of MasterCard and the Creative Industries Federation. He has been appointed as the independent non-executive chairman of Ocado Group, stepping in by the time of the company's May 2021 annual general meeting to replace previous Ocado chairman Stuart Rose.{{cite web |title=Mastercard's Richard Haythornthwaite to become Ocado Group's chairman |url=https://uk.reuters.com/article/us-ocado-group-chairman/mastercards-richard-haythornthwaite-to-become-ocado-groups-chairman-idUKKBN28S2SG |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201219120100/https://uk.reuters.com/article/us-ocado-group-chairman/mastercards-richard-haythornthwaite-to-become-ocado-groups-chairman-idUKKBN28S2SG |url-status=dead |archive-date=December 19, 2020 |website=Reuters |access-date=21 December 2020}}
Early life
Richard Neil Haythornthwaite was born in December 1956.{{cite web|title=Centrica plc|url=https://beta.companieshouse.gov.uk/company/03033654/officers|website=Companies House|accessdate=22 October 2015}}{{cite web |url=http://investor.mastercard.com/investor-relations/corporate-goverance/board-of-directors/default.aspx |title=Board of Directors |website=MasterCard |access-date=October 21, 2015 |archive-date=July 23, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170723174124/http://investor.mastercard.com/investor-relations/corporate-goverance/board-of-directors/default.aspx |url-status=dead }} He graduated from The Queen's College, Oxford, where he received a bachelor of arts degree in geology.{{cite web |url=https://www.bloomberg.com/research/stocks/private/person.asp?personId=1492981&privcapId=1086143 |title=Company Overview of STAR Capital Partners Limited: Richard N. Haythornthwaite |website=Bloomberg Business |access-date=October 21, 2015 }} He earned a master's degree from the MIT Sloan School of Management as a Sloan Fellow.{{cite web|title=Richard Haythornthwaite profile at World Economic Forum|url=https://www.weforum.org/people/richard-haythornthwaite|website=WEForum.org|accessdate=31 October 2016}}
Career
Haythornthwaite was an executive for BP from 1978 to 1995.{{cite web|url=https://www.centrica.com/about-us/governance/our-board-members/rick-haythornthwaite|title=Governance|website=Centrica|access-date=October 21, 2015}} He worked as General Manager of the Magnus oilfield, operated by BP Exploration, and later worked as the president of BP Venezuela.
Haythornthwaite worked as the chief executive for Europe and Asia and group chief executive of Blue Circle Industries from 1997 to 2001, preparing it for its sale to Lafarge for £3.1 billion in cash.{{cite news|url=http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/36b10d5e-2d1d-11e3-8281-00144feab7de.html#axzz3p69oCVaD|title=Centrica appoints Rick Haythornthwaite as chairman|last1=Kavanagh|first1=Michael|date=October 4, 2013|work=Financial Times|accessdate=October 21, 2015}} He worked as the chief executive officer of Invensys from 2001 to 2005. He was a partner at Star Capital Partners from 2006 to 2008. He also worked as the chairman of Network Rail.{{cite news|url=https://www.theguardian.com/business/2013/oct/04/network-rail-boss-head-centrica|title=Ex-Network Rail boss to head Centrica|last1=Macalister|first1=Terry|date=October 4, 2013|work=The Guardian|accessdate=October 21, 2015}}
Haythornthwaite became chairman of MasterCard in May 2006 and of the Creative Industries Federation in 2017.{{Cite web|url=https://www.designweek.co.uk/issues/6-12-march-2017/creative-industries-federation-announces-new-chair-taking-over-from-sir-john-sorrell/|title=Creative Industries Federation announces new chair taking over from Sir John Sorrell|date=7 March 2017|website=Design Week}} He stepped down as chairman at Mastercard with effect from January 2021, to assume the role of independent non-executive chairman for Ocado Group, after Ocado's AGM in May 2021. From 2008 to 2016, he was employed in an advisory role by PetroSaudi International (UK) Ltd.{{cite web |title=Richard Haythornthwaite to succeed Sir Howard Davies as NatWest Group Chair |url=https://www.natwestgroup.com/news-and-insights/news-room/press-releases/our-updates/2023/sep/richard-haythornthwaite-to-succeed-sir-howard-davies-as-natwest-.html |website=NatWest Group |publisher=NatWest Group |access-date=2023-10-13 |ref=Richard Haythornthwaite to succeed Sir Howard Davies as NatWest Group Chair}}
Haythornthwaite has served on the boards of directors of the Imperial Chemical Industries, Lafarge, Premier Oil and Land Securities. On 6 March 2018 he joined the global independent investment bank, Moelis & Company, as an advisory partner in the U.K.{{Cite news|url=https://www.reuters.com/article/moves-moelis-expands-energy-practice/moves-moelis-expands-energy-practice-idUSL5N1QO32Q|title=MOVES-Moelis expands energy practice|last=Spink|first=Christopher|work=U.S.|access-date=2018-07-06|language=en-US}} He was chairman of Centrica from January 2014 to February 2019.{{Cite web|url=https://www.centrica.com/news/centrica-appoints-new-non-executive-director-and-chairman-designate|title=Centrica appoints a new Non-Executive Director and Chairman Designate|date=31 October 2018|website=Centrica|language=en|access-date=3 April 2019}} Haythornthwaite was selected as chairman of NatWest in September 2023, to take up his post in January 2024.
Philanthropy
Haythornthwaite served as the chairman of the board of governors of the Southbank Centre for seven years, standing down in January 2015.{{cite web |url=http://www.southbankcentre.co.uk/about-us/board-of-governors |title=Board of Governors |website=Southbank Centre |access-date=October 21, 2015 }} He also served as the chairman of the board of the World Wide Web Foundation.{{cite web |title=Rick Haythornthwaite Elected as Interim Board Chair |url=https://webfoundation.org/2012/03/rick-haythornthwaite-elected-as-interim-board-chair/ |website=World Wide Web Foundation |publisher=World Wide Web Foundation |access-date=2023-10-13 |ref=Rick Haythornthwaite Elected as Interim Board Chair}} He is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts.{{cite web |url=http://www.weforum.org/contributors/richard-haythornthwaite |title=Richard Haythornthwaite |website=World Economic Forum |access-date=October 21, 2015 }} In April 2022 it was announced that the UK prime minister had approved the appointment of Haythornthwaite to chair an independent review of the terms and conditions of service of the UK Armed Forces.{{cite web |last1=Haythornthwaite |first1=Rick |title=Agency and Agility: Incentivising people in a new era - a review of UK Armed Forces incentivisation |url=https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/agency-and-agility-incentivising-people-in-a-new-era-a-review-of-uk-armed-forces-incentivisation |website=Gov.uk |publisher=Ministry of Defence |access-date=2023-10-13 |ref=Agency and Agility: Incentivising people in a new era - a review of UK Armed Forces incentivisation}}
References
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Category:Alumni of the Queen's College, Oxford
Category:British chief executives in the energy industry
Category:MIT Sloan School of Management alumni
Category:British business executives