adrian wilson

Making crunch decisions at the world’s top tennis games. That’s exceptional.

As the person responsible for running Knight Frank’s West End Commercial Development team, Adrian Wilson is used to making tough judgement calls. He’s helped by his background as a top-flight tennis umpire, working with international superstars.

He’s risen through the ranks to become one of only 25 Gold Badge Chief Umpires in the world and holds the title of Assistant Chief Umpire at Wimbledon.

It’s a remarkable challenge, but made all the more impressive by the fact that Adrian combines it with his demanding role at Knight Frank. “My role in tennis has certainly helped me with people management and the evaluation of performance and skills. It’s also given me an insight into different cultures.”

atty beor-roberts

Raising millions of pounds for charity? That’s exceptional.

Selling properties to celebrities is all in a day’s work for Atty Beor-Roberts, Head of Knight Frank’s Cirencester Office and our wider Central Region. But his influence goes way beyond the property market. As Chairman of Maggie’s Cancer Caring Centre in Cheltenham, he has helped raise over £2.75m locally – and has contributed to generating around £15m for the charity nationally.

Over the course of a remarkable 27-year career with Knight Frank, Atty has come to see the firm’s people as its real and enduring strength. “We speak frankly and openly. So it’s hardly surprising that we also care about making a tangible and positive difference to the communities we live and work in.”

caroline foord

Nuturing the cultural life of the local community. That's exceptional.

Teamwork is vitally important to Caroline Foord who in 2000 set up Knight Frank's office in Notting Hill, west London. Caroline and her team have not only delivered great business results for the firm, but also established real roots in the local community through a long-standing involvement with W11 Opera for Young People.

There’s certainly an exciting and diverse array of property in an area which Caroline describes as being ‘bohemian meets cool’. At the same time as establishing its strong reputation in the market place, Knight Frank has been instrumental in supporting the cultural life of the area.

douglas garden

Breaking your back, but still riding? That’s exceptional.

All motorbike enthusiasts know the potential dangers. It’s something that three-time Scottish Champion Douglas Garden – Partner in Knight Frank’s Aberdeen Building Surveying practice – knows only too well. By 18 he’d spent three months in rehabilitation having broken his back.

Motocross took Douglas around Scotland and northern England and he represented his home country in an international event in the Netherlands. This year he also took part in a reunion event to raise thousands of pounds on behalf of Help for Heroes.

Inner drive and good discipline are critical to the work that Douglas does. And there’s no doubt that his experience on the racing circuit has given him a unique perspective on his business challenges.

Thomas Conneely

Outstanding commitment to a great cause. That’s exceptional.

Having started his surveying career in a local firm in the North East, Thomas Conneely – a Valuations Surveyor for Funds and Portfolios in the Commercial Valuations Department – was determined to progress and make his mark. Having graduated top of his year with first class honours, Thomas became a fully-fledged member of the RICS and as a natural leader and keen networker, he took a very active role in organising and supporting events for young members.

His hard work paid off and subsequently he was asked to run the RICS matrics branch in the North East, which looks after the interests of young members who have recently entered the surveying profession. In this role he arranged training for RICS final assessment candidates and organised an interprofessional black tie summer ball with all proceeds raised going to the charity Shelter. The event was a great success with over 300 attendees and raised over £5K.

Shortly after Thomas joined Knight Frank in September 2013, as a result of his ongoing enthusiasm and tireless efforts for the RICS, in December 2013 he was nominated for, and won, two awards industry awards - Constructing Excellence’s National Young Achiever of the Year and Best UK matrics Branch from the RICS 1913 Wilderness Club. He managed to raise attendance to matrics’ events by over 60% and greatly improved networking and relations with other professional groups in the North East.

Thomas brings his knowledge of the wider built environment, related disciplines and contacts gained through networking at RICS events and initiatives, to his role at Knight Frank and has become a valued member of the team.

Yaman Keung

Beat box performances at over 100 shows. That’s exceptional.

Yaman Keung, a programmer in the Greater China IT team, is a talented amateur musician with exceptional beat boxing skills. Yaman and his band have won several awards in the local music scene and impressed audiences at over 100 shows during the past four years. They have performed at universities, promotional events, on television game shows and even at a Knight Frank annual dinner.

Beat box performance involves instantaneous composition and live interaction with the audience and Yaman explains that it sharpens his creativity, execution skills and the ability to think on his feet, all of which are applicable to programme design and script writing. He comments, “My beat boxer mind set helps me to think outside the box when encountering tricky situations at work.”

joanna lee

A real talent for performance? That’s exceptional.

Payroll Assistant Joanna Lee knows all about the pressures to perform with payroll deadlines. She also knows the pressures of competition and performance, thanks to her role as a talented musician, playing the baritone horn in a brass band.

Joanna manages to balance her music and her role in payroll. “There’s a lot going on throughout the month. It’s my job to communicate sensitively to people the things they need to know. ”

Joanna’s diligence and attention to detail over what are often complex issues have won her respect in the business. In fact, the knowledge that she’s dealing with any problems comes as music to their ears.

julian evans

Coping at minus 63 with a bear roaming outside? That’s exceptional.

Few people get to experience the extremes the natural world has to offer, but Julian Evans – Head of Healthcare in Knight Frank’s Commercial Division – actively seeks out adventure. The chartered surveyor, who joined the firm in 2005, has trekked in the Arctic and run a six-day endurance race across the North African desert, but has no intention of sitting back. His next project is to retrace the steps of Shackleton in the Antarctic at an altitude of over 10,000 feet. “It got to the point when I was a bit long in the tooth for rugby and I started marathon running instead,” reveals Julian. “After a number of years of participating in regular events, I took part in the Marathon des Sables which is essentially five and a half marathons in six days across the Sahara. It spurred me on to investigate other opportunities. The next year, I was part of a 750km race to the magnetic north pole. It took six weeks in total with the arctic training. You have to learn how to use a gun because polar bears are a real danger. They can smell a seal nine miles away.”

It all seems a world removed from Julian’s family home in Leicestershire, but that’s where much of his training and preparation takes place. He’s up as early as 3.30am to yomp or run before he embarks on his commute to Knight Frank’s offices in London. And although Julian admits that it’s the challenge and satisfaction that motivate him, he’s delighted to have raised significant amounts of money for good causes too.

“A friend of mine played professional rugby,” says Julian, “but he had an accident and is now severely disabled. When I returned from an expedition and let friends and colleagues know what I’d managed to achieve, they pledged money to support his care and rehabilitation. In fact, thousands of pounds were promised within a matter of hours.”

Julian’s adventurous spirit translates directly back into his working life at Knight Frank. He has built up the company’s one-stop-shop healthcare consultancy from a single desk to the point at which it’s a leading player within the market, handling the entire property portfolio of a major private medical insurer and the business of other key companies in residential care and rehabilitation.

“What I’ve learned from my running and trekking in extreme conditions,” says Julian, “is that 99% of the time, there’s a way around a problem if you look for it. It’s built a mental toughness. As well as strong belief in trust and team spirit.”

Tom O'Driscoll

Setting up a charity. That’s exceptional.

As founder of the Hannah’s Chance Foundation, Tom’s commitment to the charity has been combined with his full time job as an Office Leasing Manager in Australia’s Knight Frank Brisbane.

After surviving an aggressive form of cancer at age 18, and losing his wife to the same cancer at age 20, Tom went on to set up the foundation in 2007. The Foundation aims to raise awareness of sarcoma, that has only a 50% survival rate that predominantly affects 12-25 year olds.

Since the Foundation’s inception, Tom has been actively involved in raising money and awareness for the Foundation - as a Board Member and motivational speaker. “Hannah’s Chance Foundation is a tribute to Hannah and her journey and fight against sarcoma. Starting the Foundation was driven by my want to do something in her name and raising awareness and funds to help fight against this aggressive cancer. It has without a doubt been a comfort to know that we have achieved many goals, such as the funding of several research projects around the globe. Unfortunately this disease does get overlooked, despite its terrible statistics but the establishment of this charity is the first step of many and with the support of the community it could make a difference to many sufferers lives.”

On top of Tom’s efforts to support the Charity, and perform within his role at Knight Frank, he somehow finds the time to complete his university studies, which were put on hold during his treatment.

George Chan

As Associate Director of Building Consultancy, Hong Kong, George Chan is familiar with managing multiple building projects. But his skills and pursuit of excellence have been enhanced through his love of music.

A keen musician and bass guitarist, George volunteered to be the band leader for the Hong Kong Institute of Surveyors. A challenging role, George is responsible for uniting a group of people from different backgrounds and companies. But it is one that George finds very rewarding, as he can apply his management skills from his building projects.

The band has proved to be a blast, performing at many industry events including a fundraiser organised by Construction Industry Council of HKSAR. “Initially we formed a band just for fun.” says George “We never thought that we are able to contribute something to the industry through our music. I hope the band will keep on engaging in meaningful events and continue to contribute to the community.”

Henry Lam

Staying at the top of his game with praying mantis martial arts. That’s exceptional.

With a proven track record in handling multimillion dollar transactions, Henry Lam, Executive Director and Head of Investment in Hong Kong, is one of our top fee earners in Greater China. His great success is enhanced by his passion for Chow Gar Mantis, a style of praying mantis boxing. Harry has been practising the martial art for more than a decade. Founded by Master Chow Ah Nam, who was inspired by a praying mantis’ fighting techniques, Chow Gar Mantis originated from Shaolin Monastery in Fujian Province two centuries ago. Emphasising speed and power, it is a highly combative style of Chinese martial arts.

Henry comments, ”At first, I started practising Chow Gar Mantis for health reasons. Subsequently I began to recognise the similarity with my role as a property investment broker. Whilst the main aim of Chow Gar Mantis is to strategically and precisely attack the opponent’s vital points, the key to closing a multimillion dollar deal is in identifying rare investment opportunities and matching them to potential investors’ requirements, providing them with extraordinary value and it can take many attempts before you achieve success. Both require strategic thinking, resilience and persistence.”

stuart bailey

Raising £5,000 by trekking across the Hindu Kush? That’s exceptional.

The mountains of northern Pakistan may have little in common with Belgravia, but not to Stuart Bailey. As Office Head for Belgravia Sales he traversed glaciers and crossed two of the world’s highest mountain passes to raise money for a local school in the Hushe Valley.

Knight Frank partly sponsored the trek, and the remaining money was raised from generous Knight Frank clients. “I think my varied travels have given me an opportunity to connect with my clients’ says Stuart. “ They showed real interest in what I was aiming to achieve.” Stuart believes that his independent spirit sits comfortably within the Knight Frank environment. “Individuality matters here, and we attract people with interesting backgrounds. ”