CHARLES MORGAN

Former CEO of the Morgan Motor Company, Presenter at @Carfection.com and @Roadshow.com for CBSInteractive, Director of Innovation at Alcraft Motor Company Limited and research assistant at Birmingham City University

After joining the Morgan Motor Company, Charles Morgan spent three years completing a part time MBA in manufacturing management at Coventry University. Broadly, his work at the Morgan Motor Company involved initiating quality improvements to the range of products and the services the company provides. The addition of new technology and of new models, notably the Aero 8, was essential to this process as well as the successful development and training of the workforce. Charles is also keen to establish links with the best universities and technological suppliers to maintain the process of continuous improvement in SME’s. Morgan Motor Company benefitted from six Knowledge Transfer Partnerships with UK universities supported by the UK Department of Business Innovation and Skills. Charles Morgan led the team that developed the first AIV (aluminium intensive vehicle) and designed a chassis that met world safety standards but was 20% lighter than comparable steel production monocoques. He also pioneered bodywork of superformed aluminium and Morgan were the first automotive manufacturer to assimilate this technology from the aircraft industry. In 2000 Morgan Motor Company was voted Specialist Manufacturer of the Year by Autocar magazine and won the Guild of Coachmakers annual motor industry award. In 2001 Morgan collected the Sir Henry Royce Award from the Guild of Carmen. In 2002, the Morgan Motor Company was voted one of the UKʼs 100 most visionary organisations by British Telecom. In 2007 the company won the Lord Stafford Award for the best example of collaboration and Knowledge Transfer Partnerships between business and the Universities. In 2009 Morgan Motor Company was voted car manufacturer of the year by the Manufacturer magazine and Charles received the annual Presidentʼs Trophy from the Guild of Motoring Writers. In 2012 Charles Morgan received the award for the best example of Business Thinking in the West Midlands from HSBC. In 2015 Charles Morgan embarked on a PhD with Birmingham City University on the subject of the future of design and manufacturing. In 2015 Charles Morgan was honoured with a Lifetime Achievement Award by Birmingham City University for contribution to design. Charles is currently researching a PhD with Birmingham City University on the subject of the Future of Craftsmanship in a Digital Age.