The dinner was preceded by a Ceremonial Court where the Company admitted seven new Freemen and where I was pleased to recognise Harpreet Sethi of Cass Business school for his dissertation on smartphone apps, particularly related to near field communications--a subject on which I am sure we will progressively hear more.
My, by now well known, theme of innovation was more than adequately addressed by the after dinner speaker Syl Saller. Syl has had a glittering career culminating in her present position as Global Innovation Director at Diageo the global drinks organisation. She gave an impassioned speech relating her company's modus operandi to a single brand --Johnny Walker and its innovative evolution over time as both a brand and a product. It was a pleasure to talk with her over dinner, it was an even greater pleasure to hear her speech--and to judge by the applause the room found it a great pleasure as well. Like Mark Price the MD of Waitrose who spoke on innovation at the Installation Dinner the issue of courage was very much at the forefront of Syl's talk. In today's world you cannot stand still you have to have the courage to take the risks that innovation involves. It's a message that needs to be more widely recognised.
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