Sir George Adrian Hayhurst Cadbury, (15 April 1929 – 3 September 2015) was an English businessman who served as the chairman of Cadbury and Cadbury Schweppes for 24 years. He was also a British Olympic

rower Rowing, sometimes called crew in the United States, is the sport of racing boats using oars. It differs from paddling sports in that rowing oars are attached to the boat using oarlocks, while paddles are not connected to the boat. Rowing is ...

. Cadbury was a pioneer in raising the awareness and stimulating the debate on

corporate governance Corporate governance is defined, described or delineated in diverse ways, depending on the writer's purpose. Writers focused on a disciplinary interest or context (such as accounting, finance, law, or management) often adopt narrow definitions ...

and, via the Cadbury committee set up by the

London Stock Exchange London Stock Exchange (LSE) is a stock exchange in the City of London, England, United Kingdom. , the total market value of all companies trading on LSE was £3.9 trillion. Its current premises are situated in Paternoster Square close to St Pau ...

, produced the

Cadbury Report The Cadbury Report, titled ''Financial Aspects of Corporate Governance'', is a report issued by "The Committee on the Financial Aspects of Corporate Governance" chaired by Sir Adrian Cadbury, chairman of Cadbury, that sets out recommendations on ...

, a code of best practice which served as a basis for reform of corporate governance around the world.

Early life, education and rowing

Cadbury was born on 15 April 1929, a member of the Cadbury family, which is known for its

Quaker Quakers are people who belong to a historically Protestant Christian set of denominations known formally as the Religious Society of Friends. Members of these movements ("theFriends") are generally united by a belief in each human's abili ...

philosophy and for the chocolate conglomerate that it founded. He was educated at Eton and

King's College, Cambridge King's College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge. Formally The King's College of Our Lady and Saint Nicholas in Cambridge, the college lies beside the River Cam and faces out onto King's Parade in the centre of the cit ...

. At Cambridge, he rowed in the losing

Cambridge Cambridge ( ) is a university city and the county town in Cambridgeshire, England. It is located on the River Cam approximately north of London. As of the 2021 United Kingdom census, the population of Cambridge was 145,700. Cambridge bec ...

boat in the 1952

Boat Race Boat racing is a sport in which boats, or other types of watercraft, race on water. Boat racing powered by oars is recorded as having occurred in ancient Egypt, and it is likely that people have engaged in races involving boats and other w ...

. He also rowed in the Great Britain

coxless four A coxless four is a rowing boat used in the sport of competitive rowing. It is designed for four persons who propel the boat with sweep oars, without a coxswain. The crew consists of four rowers, each having one oar. There are two rowers on th ...

in the

1952 Summer Olympics The 1952 Summer Olympics ( fi, Kesäolympialaiset 1952; sv, Olympiska sommarspelen 1952), officially known as the Games of the XV Olympiad ( fi, XV olympiadin kisat; sv, Den XV olympiadens spel) and commonly known as Helsinki 1952 ( sv, Helsin ...

in Helsinki.

Later years

Cadbury had two marriages – in 1956, he married Gillian Skepper, who died in 1992, and with whom he had two sons and a daughter. In 1994, he was married for the second time, to Susan Sinclair.

Life in business

He joined the

Cadbury Cadbury, formerly Cadbury's and Cadbury Schweppes, is a British multinational confectionery company fully owned by Mondelez International (originally Kraft Foods) since 2010. It is the second largest confectionery brand in the world after Mar ...

business in 1958, and became chairman of Cadbury Ltd in 1965. He retired as chairman of Cadbury Schweppes in 1989. He was a director of the

Bank of England The Bank of England is the central bank of the United Kingdom and the model on which most modern central banks have been based. Established in 1694 to act as the English Government's banker, and still one of the bankers for the Government o ...

from 1970 to 1994, and of IBM from 1975 to 1994. He was chairman of the UK Committee on the Financial Aspects of Corporate Governance which published its Report and Code of Best Practice ("

and Code") in December 1992. Cadbury's report advocated a clear division of responsibilities at the head of a company so that no one individual had too much power. He was a member of the

OECD The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD; french: Organisation de coopération et de développement économiques, ''OCDE'') is an intergovernmental organisation with 38 member countries, founded in 1961 to stimulate ...

Business Sector Advisory Group on Corporate Governance. His publications include: ''Ethical Managers Make Their Own Rules''; ''The Company chairman''; ''Corporate Governance and Chairmanship: A Personal View''. He was appointed

High Sheriff of the West Midlands The Office of High Sheriff of the West Midlands is the ceremonial position of High Sheriff appointed to the West Midlands, a metropolitan county in central England. The appointment is made by the British monarch by Pricking the Lists. Created in ...

for 1994–95.

Support of Aston University

Sir Adrian had a long-standing relationship with

Aston University Aston University (abbreviated as ''Aston''. for post-nominals) is a public research university situated in the city centre of Birmingham, England. Aston began as the Birmingham Municipal Technical School in 1895, evolving into the UK's first ...

Birmingham Birmingham ( ) is a city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands in England. It is the second-largest city in the United Kingdom with a population of 1.145 million in the city proper, 2.92 million in the We ...

. He served as Aston chancellor between 1979 and 2004, later chaired the University's Development Board, and was one of the University's most generous supporters. As chancellor emeritus, Sir Adrian contributed to undergraduate and postgraduate courses, speaking in particular on governance, business ethics and corporate social responsibility. He was also a patron of Aston Raise and Give Society, which is the fundraising body of Aston University. As part of the 60th anniversary celebrations of

Aston Business School Aston Business School (ABS), part of Aston University in Birmingham, England, is an international business school A business school is a university-level institution that confers degrees in business administration or management. A busi ...

in 2008, Sir Adrian was awarded a rare

Beta Gamma Sigma Beta Gamma Sigma () is the International Business Honor Society. Founded in 1913 at the University of Wisconsin, University of Illinois and the University of California, it has over 980,000 members, selected from more than 600 collegiate chapters ...

Business Achievement Award. Aston Business School's MBA lecture theatres were also named after Sir Adrian and Lady Susan Cadbury, in recognition of their long association with Aston University.

Honours and awards

He was made a

Knight Bachelor The title of Knight Bachelor is the basic rank granted to a man who has been knighted by the monarch but not inducted as a member of one of the organised orders of chivalry; it is a part of the British honours system. Knights Bachelor are ...

in 1977, thereafter becoming Sir Adrian Cadbury. He was given the

Freedom of the City The Freedom of the City (or Borough in some parts of the UK) is an honour bestowed by a municipality upon a valued member of the community, or upon a visiting celebrity or dignitary. Arising from the medieval practice of granting respected ...

in 1982. He was appointed as a deputy lieutenant (DL) of the West Midlands in 1995. In recognition of his contribution to commerce, corporate governance and public life, Sir Adrian has received honorary degrees from many universities (including Aston University, the

University of Birmingham , mottoeng = Through efforts to heights , established = 1825 – Birmingham School of Medicine and Surgery1836 – Birmingham Royal School of Medicine and Surgery1843 – Queen's College1875 – Mason Science College1898 – Mason Univers ...

Birmingham City University , mottoeng = "Do what you are doing; attend to your business" , established = 1992—gained university status1971—City of Birmingham Polytechnic1843—Birmingham College of Art , type = Public , affiliation = ...

, the

University of Cambridge , mottoeng = Literal: From here, light and sacred draughts. Non literal: From this place, we gain enlightenment and precious knowledge. , established = , other_name = The Chancellor, Masters and Schola ...

, and the

University of Bristol , mottoeng = earningpromotes one's innate power (from Horace, ''Ode 4.4'') , established = 1595 – Merchant Venturers School1876 – University College, Bristol1909 – received royal charter , type ...

). The Royal Society of Arts awarded Sir Adrian its Albert Medal in 1995, and he received one of the International Corporate Governance Network's inaugural awards in 2001. In early 2008, Sir Adrian was made an honorary fellow of the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales (ICAEW). Sir Adrian was a steward of

Henley Royal Regatta Henley Royal Regatta (or Henley Regatta, its original name pre-dating Royal patronage) is a rowing event held annually on the River Thames by the town of Henley-on-Thames, England. It was established on 26 March 1839. It differs from the thr ...

and the president of

Birmingham Rowing Club Birmingham Rowing Club is an amateur rowing club, based at Birmingham in England. It is situated on Edgbaston Reservoir in the centre of Birmingham. The club was founded in 1873 although there is reference to a 'Birmingham Soho Club' using the re ...

. Sir Adrian was appointed Member of the Order of the Companions of Honour (CH) in the 2015 New Year Honours for services to business and the community, especially in Birmingham.2015 New Year Honours List

Death

He died on 3 September 2015, aged 86.

Publications

*Cadbury, A. (1992) ''Report and Code of Best Practice'' (

and Code), The Committee on the Financial Aspects of Corporate Governance, London: Gee and Company *Cadbury, Adrian (1995) ''The Company chairman (2nd Ed)'', NJ: Prentice Hall, *Cadbury, Adrian (2002) ''Corporate Governance and Chairmanship: A Personal View'', Oxford: Oxford University Press,

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Cadbury, Adrian 1929 births 2015 deaths People educated at Eton College Alumni of King's College, Cambridge British male rowers Cambridge University Boat Club rowers Olympic rowers of Great Britain Rowers at the 1952 Summer Olympics British businesspeople Cadbury People associated with Aston University Knights Bachelor Stewards of Henley Royal Regatta Deputy Lieutenants of the West Midlands (county) High Sheriffs of the West Midlands Members of the Order of the Companions of Honour Businesspeople awarded knighthoods 20th-century British businesspeople