Our Governance and structure

The Company is governed by a Court consisting of a Master, a Senior and a Junior Warden who are elected from the Court and between fifteen and twenty four Assistants. All members of the Court are elected from the Livery. The majority of the Court of Assistants must be engaged in the farming industry. Past Master Assistants, in descending order of time since passing the chair, leave the Court in turn.

Richard joined the Farmers’ Company in 1999 and the Court in 2016 as Chairman of the Communications Committee and then in 2019, Chairman of the Education Committee. He also sits on the management committee of the Company’s Alumni Association, an organisation he was instrumental in setting up.

Richard has a degree in economics and a background in FMCG advertising. He was CEO of one of the Saatchi & Saatchi Advertising networks before leaving to set up his own agency RDP Ltd. Quite by chance, the agency grew a substantial portfolio of major agricultural clients and as a consequence, Richard developed an abiding interest in, and passion for, the farming and food industry. In 2007 he sold the agency to its management, but still works all around the globe, as an independent strategic consultant for large agri-industry multi-nationals.

Richard is passionate about helping to enhance and develop the essential management and leadership skills needed for a modern agricultural sector to thrive in today’s tough global environment, and committed to ensuring the ongoing excellence of the Worshipful Company of Farmers’ highly regarded leadership and management education portfolio.