Virgin employees were given the chance to meet Group CEO Stephen Murphy at Richard Branson’s house - here's what happened...

Inspiring, awesome, motivating and of course great fun! Those are just some of the feedback comments that we got from our lovely employees who were lucky enough to have breakfast with Stephen Murphy, our Group CEO, at Richard Branson’s house in Oxford.  Following the breakfast, the group were then very privileged to join the Sunday Times Fast Track event, which was being hosted by Richard Branson for the rest of the day.

At Virgin we host a lunch or breakfast meeting about three times a year in the UK and once a year in the USA, Australia and South Africa, where a small group of employees from all Virgin businesses have the opportunity to speak to the main man himself, Stephen Murphy.

In a relaxed and intimate environment with the maximum group of 20 people, employees have the chance to hear first-hand what is happening within the Virgin group; whether that is Virgin business strategy, charity and volunteering initiatives led by Virgin Unite or Group employee initiatives such as employee recognition awards. Each employee has the opportunity to ask their ‘killer question’ to Stephen and you are always guaranteed to get a candid and thought provoking answer from him.  Not only do these events give everyone a fantastic opportunity to hear first-hand from the leader of Virgin on where the Group is going, but it gives employees from around the Virgin Group a chance to meet, network and share ideas from the various Virgin companies.

The rest of the day was a real treat for the group as they had the opportunity to attend a small Q and A session with Richard Branson and hear about his thoughts on what has made him a successful entrepreneur. The group also attended the main Fast Track Q and A session and heard from some really inspiring stories from other great entrepreneurs such as Mike Clare, Keith Abel, & Nick Jenkins.

An unforgettable and cherished experience for all those employees. They will be writing their own blogs on what the experience meant for them very shortly but in the meantime let’s hear a few words from them…

“A fantastic opportunity to get up and close to Stephen. A once in a career opportunity! Stephen spoke very openly about where we are and where were going, what a privilege to spend time in his very valuable company.

“It clearly exceeded my expectations, far and beyond. I met some great people and shared a coffee or two with some inspirational leaders from various companies in the Virgin group and outside of our family.

“It offers a real feeling of worth and reinforced my huge pride in my company.” Johnhenry Williamson, Virgin Media

“It really gave the breakfast a personal touch, showing that management is keen to talk to employees about what’s going on and values their feedback too. It’s a rare opportunity to have a small catch-up with a Group CEO and a fantastic way to bring the businesses together.” Natalie Fris, Virgin Management Ltd

“The breakfast created incredible passion, creativity and energy.” Charlotte Goodman, Virgin Unite

“Wow! What a day! Saying that the whole experience was inspirational seems a little bit of an understatement I feel!” Mathew Beattie, Assura Medical

Who came along:
Jennifer Blake - Virgin Trains
Mark Salt - Virgin Trains
Paul McDonald - Virgin Atlantic
Charles Vine - Virgin Atlantic
Jenny Bongard - Virgin Active
Jez Tidman - Virgin Active
Sarah Plaskett - Virgin Holidays
Munya Vengesa - Virgin Money UK
Mathew Beattie - Assura Medical
Phil Dennis - Virgin Media
Heather Thompson - Virgin Media
Melanie Green - Virgin Media
Johnhenry Williamson - Virgin Media
Natalie Fris - Virgin Management Ltd
Charlotte Goodman - Virgin Unite

Hosts:
Sarah Duquesne - Group People Manager
Anna Henderson - Group Projects Officer
Angela Smith - Group People Director
Stephen Murphy - Group CEO