About Schroder UK Public Private Trust plc

Schroder UK Public Private Trust plc is a closed-ended investment company with a market cap of c.£275m (as of September 2020). The Company was incorporated in 2015 as Woodford Patient Capital Trust plc, with Schroders assuming responsibility for the management of the portfolio in December 2019, following the resignation of Woodford Investment Management.

The investment objective of Schroder UK Public Private Trust plc (SUPP or the Company) is to achieve long-term capital growth through investing in a diversified portfolio with a focus on UK companies, both quoted and unquoted. The Company's portfolio is diversified across various sectors, which include healthcare, financials, industrials, technology, consumer goods and telecommunication industries.

Role specification

The Board currently comprises five Non-Executive Directors and the current Chair, Susan Searle, has indicated that she will retire from the Board at the annual general meeting to be held in 2021.

The Company has three committees in operation: the Audit, Risk and Valuation Committee (chaired by Stephen Cohen); the Management Engagement Committee and the Nomination Committee (both chaired by Jane Tufnell, the Senior Independent Director). All Directors serve on the three Board committees, given its size.

The Director will have the overall fiduciary duties and responsibilities of a director of a high-profile investment trust listed on the London Stock Exchange. As an externally managed investment company, the Company has no employees and has delegated its significant functions to service providers. The Board acts to provide independent oversight of the activities of these service providers.

Key functions of the Chair include:

The Board

• Chairing the Board in a manner that supports the objectives of the Trust, while keeping the implementation of the agreed strategy and the performance of the business under constant review
• Creating the dynamics for an effective Board, by promoting a culture of openness, trust and constructive debate between Directors and the Trust’s manager and encouraging active engagement in an objective and balanced way
• Chairing Board meetings, setting the agenda for such meetings, with the assistance of the manager, and ensuring that adequate time is available for discussion of all agenda items
• Ensuring the long-term, sustainable health of the Trust including investment performance, brand and reputation
• Leading the evaluation of the performance of the Board, its committees and individual Directors
• Ensuring that the Board comprises individuals with an appropriate mixture of skills, experience and knowledge, and that the company has appropriate management succession

Working with the investment manager

• Establishing an effective working relationship with the fund manager, providing support and advice while respecting executive responsibility and providing “friendly firmness” when required
• Acting as a sounding board and partner to the fund manager, striking the right balance between detachment - thereby avoiding interference - and being sufficiently informed to know when to engage more closely
• Holding the investment manager to account for investment performance, the smooth running of operations and the effective marketing of the Trust to potential clients

Relations with shareholders

• Ensuring that the Group maintains effective communication with shareholders and that their views and any concerns are understood by the Board
• Meeting and engaging with major shareholders
• Providing feedback to the Board on any matters raised by major shareholders

Person specification

The successful candidate will bring recent venture capital or private equity investor experience in the unquoted UK technology sector and will have a corporate finance background and experience in fundraising, structuring transactions, and asking tough questions around valuations. They will be an excellent coordinator and leader, and be able to demonstrate their readiness to succeed as the Chair of a listed board. They must also have the stature, knowledge and experience to engage effectively with shareholders, the manager, the investment manager and fellow Board members.

Candidates should disclose any connections with Schroders, the current manager, or with Woodford, the previous manger.

Required for this role

• Board Chair ready Chairing a board involves responsibilities beyond the advisory aspects of being a non-executive director. If you have not previously chaired a board, please demonstrate your chair-readiness by listing the different boards, panels or committees that you have sat on, including details of whether you have either directly chaired or else deputised for the existing chair. If you already have significant chair experience, please detail this.
• UK technology sector investment expertise Demonstrate recent (within the past 5 years) in-depth knowledge and experience of the issues and challenges that are faced by venture capital and private equity-backed businesses in the UK technology sector to be able to successfully identify and appraise investment targets. Experience could be either as a professional investor or as a serial CEO, Chair or Founder of growth businesses in the technology sector.
• Corporate advisory best practice Experience gained of corporate advisory best practice. Candidates should have a strong background in advising corporate clients on financial transactions and structuring, including a rigorous approach to analysis and due diligence.

Board composition

Susan Searle, Chair
Raymond Abbott
Stephen Cohen
Jane Tufnell
Scott Brown

Process

This process is being run by Nurole on behalf of the organisation, who will view the applications without edits. We therefore advise applicants to avoid using ‘see CV’ or ‘please call me to discuss further’ in your application as it may restrict your chances of progressing to the next round.

Connected Parties

This organisation has requested that candidates do not contact them directly. Instead, if you know someone at the organisation, please mention it in your Reason for Application. Members who do not respect this may risk having their membership terminated.

Role timetable

Deadline for applications: 16th November

Candidates can expect to be contacted by: 30th November

Candidates can expect the process to be completed by: 18th December