After training as an accountant, Ken Hanna held a series of finance roles, with Black & Decker, Avis Europe and Guinness, before joining Dalgety – a rag-bag of food businesses – in 1997.

Within a few months of arriving, Mr Hanna was propelled into the chief executive’s job after its occupant left in the wake of sizeable losses. Mr Hanna spent the next two years breaking up Dalgety and won plaudits for achieving good prices for the businesses, paying down debt and returning cash to shareholders.