Mark Gregory
PROFESSOR KEITH MCLAY: And now we come to our honorary award. These are awarded by the University in recognition of somebody who has made a very significant contribution in their particular field. And I now have the great pleasure in inviting Alexandra Charles, Director of Derby International Business School, to give the commendation for the conferment of an Honorary Doctor of the University to Mark Gregory. Alexandra Charles.
ALEXANDRA CHARLES: Chancellor, Vice-Chancellor, His Majesty's Deputy Lieutenant of the County of Derbyshire, Honoured guests, Graduands of 2026, and all our guests here today. It gives me great pleasure to be presenting Mark Gregory for the award of Honorary Doctor of the University.
Mark is outstanding legal leader who is deeply committed to the economic and cultural vitality of Derby and the wider Derbyshire region. Until recently, Mark held the role of General Counsel and Executive Team member at Rolls-Royce Holdings plc. During a distinguished 21-year career with the Derby-based engineering firm, he played a pivotal role in shaping the governance and integrity of one of the city's most significant global employers.
Mark was born and grew up in Hertfordshire. He studied English and German Laws at the University of Liverpool and Humboldt University, Berlin, and trained and practiced at Lovell White Durrant in London and Hong Kong before joining Rolls-Royce in 2005.
In 2015, Mark was appointed one of the youngest General Counsels in the FTSE 100 at just 39. He went on to lead a global team of 450 and provided strategic leadership across legal, governance, compliance and regulatory functions in highly complex international markets. Mark was a director of Rolls-Royce plc and of its German headquartered Power Systems business.
Through his work, he has made a significant contribution to strengthening the region's economic resilience and global reputation. He has passionately supported Rolls-Royce in leading the transition to net zero, and is driving change throughout the wider legal ecosystem to challenge old school attitudes and structural conventions. He was executive sponsor for its diversity and inclusion initiatives and, with his colleagues, led the company's cultural change programme.
Mark's professional distinction extends far beyond his corporate role. He has served as President of the European General Counsel Association, Executive Committee member of the GC100, and Trustee of the British Institute of International and Comparative Law. All these roles reflect his influence in shaping legal thought and practice at national and international level. His contribution has been marked by many awards; most recently, he was recognised in the GC Powerlist Hall of Fame 2026, and in 2025 he was named Legal Business GC of the Year.
Since 2022, Mark has also chaired the Board of Trustees at QUAD, Derby's cultural hub for art, film and digital creativity. Here, he has given his time and leadership to supporting inclusive access to contemporary arts, creative learning and community engagement. Under his stewardship, and through challenging post-Covid times, QUAD continues to play a vital role in providing inclusive cultural opportunities for residents, families and young people across Derbyshire. Mark also sits on the advisory board of Down to Earth Derby, a pioneering urban, nature focused regeneration project in the city.
Mark exemplifies the values of leadership, integrity and civic responsibility. The University has greatly valued his contribution to our long-standing partnership with Rolls-Royce, and we are delighted to be able to recognise his distinguished career and commitment to Derby's prosperity and vibrancy.
Mark is joined today by his wife Jo, father-in-law Alan, and children Samuel, Noah and Charlie.
Chancellor, in recognition of his significant contribution to the legal profession and the wider Derbyshire region, we are delighted to award Mark Gregory the honorary degree of Doctor of the University.
MARK GREGORY: Chancellor, Vice-Chancellor, His Majesty's Deputy Lieutenant of the County of Derbyshire, Honoured guests, graduands and I think now graduates of 2026, and all of our guests here today. Really humbling words. I can't believe you were talking about me, if I'm completely honest with you.
But as you said, through my work with Rolls-Royce and beyond, I've seen the positive impact that the University has had, not just on its students, but on Derby and the region generally. So it's really special to get this recognition from you. Thank you so much, it's such a privilege. Be warned, I might be taking this hat with me to watch the football this evening.
So look, when stealing myself for today, I've spent quite a lot of time reflecting on how I actually got here, how I physically got on this stage. I must say, I certainly wouldn't be standing here today without the support of Jo and my family. And yes, even you boys. So, thank you so much.
I also want to make clear that this honour really recognises all those people that I've worked with at Rolls-Royce and beyond over all the years. All of whom continue to strive to do the right thing and to make a difference.
Beyond that, though, what actually got me on this stage? There was a lot of hard work. Some of it was good timing. Some of it was quite a lot of bluff, and importantly, a fair bit of it was luck.
So in a couple of minutes I've got (I've only got a couple of minutes, so I'm not going to keep you too long), I want to share a thought about luck with the people who really deserve to be celebrated today. You, the class of 2026. I mean, I've just heard half of you come out now. You're all rock stars, right? You've done some incredible things. You've worked incredibly hard to get to this point. And I'm sure you know that this is only the beginning. It doesn't get any easier from here. Sorry to say. It can be really hard out there, and you're definitely going to need some of the luck that I had that I've just been talking about.
So, here's what I think about luck. Forgive me. Samuel, Noah, Charlie, pay attention to this bit. It's important to you as well.
So people often say that you create your own luck. I'm not sure that's entirely true, but I do think that you can work to create the conditions in which luck is more likely to find you. Looking back over my career so far, I can point to a few things that made those lucky breaks more likely for me.
So first, as I mentioned earlier, I worked really hard throughout my working life. You will learn that although hard work alone won't get you where you want to be, you definitely won't get there without it. Next. Looking back, I've achieved what I have in my career so far because I connected strongly with the values and the purpose of the organisations I worked for. It's so much easier to perform and achieve when you're doing something that you have a passion for. That means something to you. So please find your purpose, whatever that might be, and follow that.
Next, you're not going to want to hear this based on what you've just gone through today. But even today, I remind myself that learning never stops. Sorry. You look miserable there, sorry! Learning never stops. And I force myself to stay on the steep bit of the learning curve throughout my career. Your degrees? Your degrees mark a milestone, not an end point. If you stop learning, you're going to stop growing. And I've found that the quickest way to keep learning is to regularly force myself outside of my comfort zone.
How do I hold myself accountable to that? I have what I call an imaginary CV. It doesn't measure job titles. It measures growth. It asks three questions: What am I learning? What new experiences am I collecting? How am I growing? And if I check in on my imaginary CV and it's feeling a bit stale, if I don't feel as though I'm making the progress, I know it's time to stretch myself again. It was that imaginary CV, by the way, that led us to move from London to Derby all those years ago. So it does work, trust me.
Finally, when I, as was mentioned kindly earlier, when I became General Counsel at the ripe old age of 39, I made a promise to myself at that point that I was always show up. I would always support. I would always lead as my own authentic self. Authentic leadership works. You should definitely do that. It's hard enough finding your way in this world. Don't do it whilst all the time trying to pretend to be somebody else.
So put all of that together and you start creating the conditions for luck to find you.
But one last thing. Once you get some way towards where you want to be, start thinking about giving back. You will have gained so much from your time in Derby, through your time at the University, from people who you surround yourself with. But there are many people out there who haven't had that support and who aren't getting the luck that I've been talking about. And there are many, many challenges out there in the world that can only be solved by people like you with your talent, your energy, and your opportunity.
So work hard. Find your purpose. Keep learning. Stay out of your comfort zone. Be yourself. And when success does come your way, help somebody else find theirs.
Thank you and congratulations Class of 2026.
PROFESSOR KEITH MCLAY: Thank you very much for those wise and inspiring words. I'm sure our graduates and graduands will reflect upon it wisely.
Mark Gregory's commendation video
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