What is the secret of WL Gore’s success? The high-tech materials company, creator of Gore-Tex fabric, sophisticated surgical products, cables and more besides, is committed to manufacturing leading-edge products through advanced engineering.

You would think it is a pretty tight ship. But no. “It’s a very chaotic environment,” declares Terri Kelly (pictured below), the company’s chief executive officer, with obvious pride. And there’s more. “For some reason, management just never took hold in our company ... we don’t like the ‘manager’ word ... we get very angry when people call [the staff] employees ...”