500 Years a Livery Company
The Company of Watermen and Lightermen are celebrating their Quincentennial! This is half a Millennium. Now that is organisational longevity!
OK, so there are older Companies, but marking such an anniversary brings home the achievement. Livery Companies and Guilds do seem to have staying power. These days we do not expect bodies to last long. Usually organisations end up taken over, bankrupt, etc. Even the mighty East India Company only survived 258 years! Any bets on Facebook? In today’s world it is quite awesome that we may be part of an organisation that could (should!) will be able to celebrate 100 years of existence.
Maybe the Companies last a long time because they are associated with a profession, trade or craft, rather than subject to a short term objective of current Directors, as presented to current shareholders. Whilst many of the older trades may have been overtaken by technology and the benefits of international trade, that sense of standing for the best in trade gives Livery Companies and Guilds resilience. The Watermen are still an active Guild engaged in the River.
Current members will not be here to celebrate the 100 years, but that prospect creates a sense of custodianship – that we are nurturing the Company so that it can be passed on, still active, still relevant, still interesting and a privilege to be part of.
London - The International Centre for Management Consultancy
I was invited by the Master of the Chartered Architects to their Milo Lecture. It was given by the President of the Royal Institute of British Architects. Building on the fact that British architects are in demand across the world, the President described London as a tremendous hub for procuring the best architectural services.
A large part of the UK’s overseas earnings for architectural services comes to London.
He pointed out that apart from the top technical service, London offers excellent design abilities, and also has a geographical advantage, a good legal system, a great engineering resource, competition, international experience, and the list went on.
Do we trumpet enough that London is the greatest centre of advisory, consultancy and implementation capability with international experience in any city, backed by a full range of top notch related services such as accountancy? Should we in London focus much more on global excellence, constantly developing techniques, backed by constant personal professional development, rather than Me Too? Should we do more to promote the quality of UK expertise rather than accept we have to compete with commodity consultancy services provided from other countries? Shouldn’t we seek to justify premium prices?
And Finally!
“I love deadlines. I like the whooshing sound they make as they fly by.” Douglas Adams, of Hitchhiker’s Guide fame!
Edward
11/2/14