Mr Phillips has a long career in the running of several businesses, with an intuitive understanding of how institutions perform their work.

As a member of the WWF South Africa Board, he chairs the Finance Committee and sits on the Board’s Audit and Risk Committee and Remuneration and HR Committee.

Graduating with a civil engineering degree in 1967, Mr Phillips began working with Thos. Barlow and Sons in 1968 and spent over 20 years of his career in the Caterpillar division across South Africa before becoming managing director in 1988.

In 1992, he left South African shores to take up the helm as CEO of Finanzauto SA in Madrid, Spain.

It would be four years until he returned to South Africa as CEO of Barlow Ltd, also serving as chairperson of PPC Ltd, before retiring in 2007. He also chairs Mpact Ltd and is vice-chairperson of Kansai Plascon. He also serves as an independent non-executive director of enX Group Ltd.