Professor Julian Franks, H.E Juma Al Majid, Indra K. Nooyi, Dame Mary Marsh and Laurence Boone are recognised at the School’s annual Congregation celebration
London Business School (LBS) has recognised leading figures from the worlds of business, the third sector and academia at its annual Congregation celebrations, which took place from 2-4 July. The celebratory event saw more than 1,600 Degree Education and PhD students formally mark their achievements at Royal Festival Hall in London.
H.E Juma Al Majid, Founder and Chairman of Juma Al Majid Holding Group and Indra K. Nooyi, former CEO of PepsiCo received Honorary Fellowships, which are awarded for exceptional service to LBS and/or outstanding distinction in business.
LBS alumnae Dame Mary Marsh MBA26(1989) and Laurence Boone PhD1992 were both awarded Fellowships, which are reserved for present or former members of LBS staff and alumni for their outstanding achievement and service to the School. Dame Mary is Non-Executive Director of the London Symphony Orchestra; Chair, MEMO Portland; and a Trustee of the British Spanish Society. Laurence is Head of Corporate and Investment Banking France and Ireland, Santander.
Julian Franks, Alexander M. Knaster Chair and Professor of Finance at LBS, was recognised with Emeritus Professor status, for his exceptional contributions to the School and to generations of students. The former Academic Director of London Business School’s Centre for Corporate Governance, he is an expert in corporate finance. His research focuses on bankruptcy and financial distress, corporate ownership and control, shareholder activism by both hedge funds and active asset managers, cost of capital and regulation. He is currently an advisor to the Competition Market Authority and a Fellow of the British Academy.
Honorary Fellows
H.E Juma Al Majid is a prominent Emirati businessman, philanthropist, and founder of the Juma Al Majid Holding Group, one of the UAE’s most diversified and respected business conglomerates. He is well known for his philanthropic efforts, particularly in education and cultural preservation, including founding the Juma Al Majid Center for Culture and Heritage. His vision and contributions have played a significant role in the development of the UAE’s economy and society.
Indra K. Nooyi served as CEO and chairman of PepsiCo from 2006 to 2019 and was a PepsiCo Board member from 2001 to February 2019. Today, she is on the boards of Amazon and the Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, and the supervisory board of Philips. She also serves on the International Advisory Council of Temasek, the Advisory Board of Apollo Investment, Deutsche Bank, and the Dean’s Advisory council at MIT’s School of Engineering.
Fellows
Dame Mary Marsh, former CEO of the NSPCC and a former member of LBS’s Governing Body, is a cross-sector leader and non-executive director/trustee with engagement and achievements in a diversity of contexts.
Recalling the robust leadership development that she acquired from studying at LBS, Dame Mary advised the School’s newest MBA and PhD graduates to “look at the world with a wide lens” and to engage in self-reflection by getting to know themselves, be themselves and look after themselves. She also encouraged them to sustain lifelong learning and to be true to the LBS alumni pledge to remain “rigorous, open, curious and inspiring”.
Laurence Boone has an extensive track record in both the private and public sectors, including serving as Secretary of State for European Affairs for the French Republic from 2022 to 2024 and holding the position of Chief Economist and Deputy Secretary General for the OECD.
Addressing Masters in Management, Masters in Financial Analysis and Masters in Analytics and Management graduates, she stressed that the most important thing for graduates to do is to dare to do the things that might seem scary, to seize opportunities and to work hard. She underscored the importance of serving others and emphasised that failure is an important part of the learning process and a fundamental part of life.
“If you never fail then you’re not daring and if you’re not daring, you’re not really living. Failure will teach you things about yourself and it will teach you resilience and make each subsequent step to success much more significant,” she said.
