Sir David Bell

Sir David Bell     (businessman)
Born	30 September 1946
Nationality	UK
Alma mater	Worth School, University of Pennsylvania, Cambridge University
Member of	Institute for War and Peace Reporting/Board
Former Chairman of the Financial Times  Chairman In office 1996 - 2009 Employer Financial Times

Not to be confused with Dr. David Bell the whistleblower, or David E. Bell, the USAID Administrator who attended the 1966 Bilderberg.

Sir David Charles Maurice Bell is a British businessman and publisher who sits on a large number of boards.

He is former Director for People at Pearson plc and a former Chairman of the Financial Times (1996 to 2009) and non-executive Director of the Economist. In November 2012 he became Chair of the Syndicate of Cambridge University Press.

Background and personal life

Born in Henfield, Sir David was educated at Worth School. He is an alumnus of the University of Pennsylvania and Cambridge University.

He is married to Primrose, with three children.

Career

Bell was Chairman of the Financial Times from 1996 until his retirement at the end of 2009 and served on the board of Pearson Plc for thirteen years until May 2009. Until his retirement Bell was also Chairman of Pearson Inc and as Pearson's Director for People with responsibility for the company's 36,000 people in 61 countries.

He was also Chair of the Millennium Bridge Trust (1995-2002), responsible for conceiving the first new bridge across Thames in the centre of London for 100 years."

He is Chair of the Media Standards Trust, which helps to administer the Orwell Prize.

He is a director of ImagineNations, where he is also Secretary and Treasurer.

He is a Governor at Worth School, a Catholic independent school in Sussex.

Sir David is Chair of Council at Roehampton University.

Sir David is International Chair of the Institute for War & Peace Reporting.

Sir David is also Chairman of Sadler's Wells.

Sir David is a trustee of Common Purpose UK.

Sir David was chairman of Crisis UK for 10 years until 2012.

Sir David is an assessor on the Leveson Inquiry.

Sir David Bell has been appointed as the non-executive chair of the steering committee driving the development of the National Equality Standard.

He is also on the Royal National Theatre Honorary Council.

He is a Director at Universities UK

Bell is also a trustee of the Centre for the Study of Financial Innovation and Zen Research

As Chairman of the UK's Millennium Bridge Trust (1995 to 2002) David Bell signed off London's Millennium Bridge, which he could see from his office window at the FT.

Vitec plc

Bell was a non-executive director for Vitec plc (before standing down in May 2007) whose subsidiary brand Clear-Com® provide the technology for Outside Broadcast Trucks. Their website notes of their surveillance equipment that: "Law enforcement groups have their own specialized version of the trucks". Clear-Com showcase "a variety of real-world applications" including:

"Military, Aerospace and Government (MAG): How systems are used in target ranges, between military units, and at NASA testing and simulation environments. International customers include Boeing, Raytheon, the US Army, US Navy, police departments, mass transit authorities, and port authorities."

Clear-Com provides the technology for live audio communication systems for broadcast, studio, public safety, military, government, air traffic control, business, and event professionals.

Bexel (a Vitec subsiduary) help media standards by facilitating some of the ever increasing number of 'reality shows'. Examples are Survivor, American Idol, Brat Camp, The Osbournes and The Apprentice.

As Pearson's 'Director for People' with responsibility for the 'recruitment, motivation, development and reward of employees across the Pearson Group'. Pearson is involved in the production and distribution of television programmes through three subsidiary companies Thames Television, Grundy and ACI. It also has stakes in two satellite television channels UK Gold and UK Living.

Another Vitec subsiduary, Drake Electronics Ltd is engaged in Defence Communications: Operations Centres, Air Defence Centres, Command Posts, Mobile/Tactical. Prime Contractors are: Alenia Marconi Systems, Raytheon, British Aerospace, IBM, Vickers and 'Others'. According to their presentation they operate in Israal. They provide command & control for the US Department of Defense's Global Hawk, that's the Remotely Piloted Vehicle (RPV) in the picture. It spots the targets for the US military in Iraq and Afghanistan — aiding their renowned pin-point accuracy. Bell is Chair of the Trustees of the Europe branch of the Institute for War and Peace Reporting.

Bell is part of the ImagineNations™ Group headed by Jacob Schimmel, chairman of UKI Investments, the Schimmel family’s (one of the UK's largest) private real estate companies with interests in real estate, financial services, technology, aviation, tourism and telecommunications. The family’s business interests are centered in the United Kingdom, France and Israel with growing involvement in Eastern Europe and the United States. Recently, Schimmel has been involved in the purchase of IDB Holding Corporation Ltd., one of the largest business enterprises in Israel.

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