Iain Conn
Iain Cameron Conn | |
|---|---|
| Born | October 22, 1962 Edinburgh, Scotland |
| Occupation | Corporate executive |
| Years active | 1985–present |
| Known for | CEO of Centrica (2015–2020), BP executive |
Iain Cameron Conn (born 22 October 1962) is a British corporate executive who served as the CEO of Centrica between 2015 and 2020.
Early life
Conn was born in Edinburgh and grew up in Galashiels. He experienced the loss of his father when he was 12 years old. In 1985, he earned a degree in chemical engineering and management from Imperial College London.
Career
Conn dedicated 29 years to BP, where he was chief executive of the Downstream division from 2007 until 2014 and held a position on the main board from 2004 to 2014. The BP Downstream segment included customer-facing operations, manufacturing, and supply activities across more than 70 countries under brands such as BP, Castrol, and Aral. Additionally, he oversaw regional group responsibilities covering Europe, Asia, and Southern Africa. His previous roles at BP included group executive officer for strategic resources (2004–2007) and chief executive of the petrochemicals unit (2002–2004). His expertise spanned oil trading, marketing, refining, petrochemicals, as well as exploration and production.
From January 2015 through March 2020, Conn led Centrica as CEO, taking over from Sam Laidlaw. During his leadership, he directed the company’s strategic shift toward customer-centric energy supply, services, distributed energy solutions, power generation, and energy trading amidst a period of depressed oil and gas prices. He implemented cost-saving measures, drove cultural transformation, enhanced organizational capabilities, and realigned the portfolio to support the energy transition. His term also involved managing regulatory challenges such as the UK energy market investigation by the Competition and Markets Authority and opposing the retail energy price cap due to concerns about its effects on market competition.
Conn’s governance experience includes serving as a BP director (2004–2014), senior independent director at Rolls-Royce Holdings (2005–2014), and non-executive director and senior independent director at BT Group. He contributed to academic governance as a council member at Imperial College (2010–2019) and chaired the advisory board of Imperial College Business School from 2004 to 2020. Furthermore, he participated on the advisory board of the Centre for European Reform.
Presently, Conn holds the position of Senior Advisor at Blackstone and chairs EngineeringUK, focusing on advancing energy transition initiatives, technology innovation, engineering disciplines, and developing UK capabilities. He is a member of the STOP Multiple Sclerosis Appeal Board and has previously supported programs such as Movement to Work. His former engagements include membership on the Confederation of British Industry president’s committee and advisory roles at Tsinghua University’s Centre for China in the World Economy as well as its Schwarzman School.
He is recognized as a fellow by several prestigious institutions: the Royal Academy of Engineering, Royal Society of Edinburgh, Institution of Chemical Engineers, and City and Guilds of London Institute.
In July 2019, Centrica announced that Conn would retire from both his CEO position and board membership in 2020, facilitating a planned leadership transition aligned with the company’s strategic evolution within the UK energy sector.
External links
- 1962 births
- Living people
- People from Musselburgh
- People educated at St Mary's School, Melrose
- People educated at Loretto School, Musselburgh
- Alumni of Imperial College London
- Scottish chief executives
- British chief executives in the energy industry
- British corporate directors
- BT Group people
- Directors of BP
- Rolls-Royce people
- Centrica people
- Fellows of the Royal Academy of Engineering