David Thorp studied at the London Business School in 1969 and has maintained a lifelong relationship with the school. He interviewed with Nina Bohn about his experience at the school in the late 1960s, staying connected over the years through teaching, advising, and chairing the Sussex Place Ventures fund. Thorp is also a major philanthropic supporter of the school and believes that alumni gifts can make a big difference, helping the school continue to innovate, grow its influence, and shape the future of business.

1. ISSUE 132
2014 AlumniNews
A GIFT
FOR
GIVING
In this special edition of
AlumniNews, a longstanding
Advancement staff member, NINA
BOHN, interviews DAVID THORP, a
member of MSc04(1971) class at
London Business School, about his
lifetime relationship with the School
and philanthropic support.

2. AlumniNews Why did you come to
study at London Business School in
1969?
David Thorp I was a scientist from
Cambridge who worked on the Alcan
shop floor as a production engineer.
One of my contemporaries at university,
Derek Lewis MSc01(1968), had been in
the first year at London Business
School and I wondered, when he left
the School, “Why is he earning three
times as much as me?” Naturally I was
curious, so I applied and happily I got in.
I was two days late for the start of the
course as I was returning from my
honeymoon. My wife financed me
through the two years – she’s never let
me forget about the investment she
made!
AN What was life at the School like in
the early years?
DT There were 41 students in my year.
Over 60% of them were science and
engineering graduates. We really did
learn a lot. We worked very hard, and
for those who were not used to group
working, it was a really big curve. It’s
not coincidental that the nature of the
work that I have been involved in since
the School, which is private equity and
venture capital at 3i and ISIS Equity
Partners, is all about creating great
teams, we learned that here.
We started out in the office block in
Northumberland Avenue and after the
first year we moved to the main
campus. It was fantastic – lots of royals
came to see us and say hello…that was
stimulating.
AN You’re still connected with your
classmates…
DT It was and is a very close group,
every time we have a Reunion – 60%
come from around the world.
This may be a bit heretical, but in many
ways I think we learned more from each
other than anyone else. We obviously
had some great lecturers, but we really
learned a lot from each other. There’s no
pretence, there’s no one you can hide
from because we all know each other
extremely well.
And the alumni community in general is
great – you can send an email around
the world and invariably you get a
response. No one says go away,
everyone is happy to share.
AN How else have you stayed
connected with the School over the
years?
DT I joined private equity straight after
School after an internship in between
the two years of my degree. Private
equity was very nascent at the time and
I would come back to the School and
give lectures about it and recruit
graduates into the industry. Later I
became involved in the UK Regional
Advisory Board and over ten years ago I
became chairman of Sussex Place
Ventures, which is owned by the
“Innovation has always been
part of my life and, because
that’s what the School helps
achieve through its research and
teaching, I am very happy to help
it do more of that”
 In Touch/Volunteer spotlight

3.  In Touch/Volunteer spotlight
School. It’s an early stage venture
capital fund management company with
approximately 100 high net worth
investors, of which 50 are School
alumni. When the funds do well, we’ll be
able to contribute profits to the School’s
endowment.
I also still attend lots of events. The last
was this year’s Global Leadership
Summit with some outstanding talks by
the School’s Professors. It was
fantastic. So that stimulus, that
intellectual curiosity has stayed with me
and kept me coming back over the
years.
AN Not only do you give your time,
you’re also a great supporter of the
School philanthropically...
DT Yes I am, and others in my class are
too. We’ve contributed to several
scholarships in memory of our
classmate Maurice Forshaw. As an
individual, I gave a gift in January 2011
to help get the Campaign under way,
and joined the Campaign Committee. I
was very pleased to do that because I
have knowledge about the School’s
efforts through listening to Andrew
Likierman and the Advancement team.
The strategy is very coherent, and more
importantly it’s really coming together.
It’s terrific to see so many gifts in the frst
year.
I support academic research in private
equity. The research – which is so
properly done here – supports
innovation and enables teams and
companies to get things done by
pushing the boundaries…getting things
done differently. Innovation has always
been part of my life and because that’s
what the School helps achieve through
its research and teaching, I am very
happy to help.
AN So you’ve seen the difference a
gift can make?
DT It’s a joy to give if you can. Most
alumni have benefited from the School
at some point. The School gave me a
tremendous sense of direction and the
ability to build my career. I’m grateful
and wanted to recognise this. I think
you’re always making a diference when
you give; I suggest you give to a cause
you have an interest in. We’re all
different, and the School’s current
Campaign is spread over a spectrum of
needs so you’re able to give to an area
that you believe in.
AN And your final comments?
DT I’m a great believer in innovation, it’s
always been in my life as a way to solve
problems: do it differently, and believe
you can do it differently. I encourage
young people to do that, to be
entrepreneurial business people and to
control their own destiny.
I also want the School to be able to do
that. No organisation can stand still and,
as the School continues to grow in
numbers and diversity of faculty and
students, its global influence is clearly
on the rise. It needs investment to
innovate, to grow, and to control its own
destiny. As alumni we want the School
to push out the boundaries of business
and business thinking, to create growth,
impart knowledge and have massive
infuence. We can help drive that with
our support.