Directors Dinner: Leadership, Legacy and the Future of Ownership

Date and Time

Thursday May 7, 2026
5:30 PM - 9:00 PM BST

Location

Hilton Garden Inn
Leger Way
Doncaster
DN2 6BB

Fees/Admission

Members Only
£65+VAT (2x complimentary tickets for Gold and Silver members if allocation hasn't be used)

Gold members get a 10% discount for paid tickets
Charity Members get 25% discount for a paid-for ticket.

Contact Information

Events Team
Send Email

Description

Proudly Sponsored by:

Doncaster Chamber's Director's Dinners welcome together the region?s most influential business leaders for an evening of collaboration, insight, and opportunity. This exclusive event offers a unique chance to be part of a dynamic in-conversation panel, where top industry experts share their experiences, challenges, and vision for the future. As you enjoy a refined two-course dinner, you?ll also have the opportunity to engage with fellow senior business leaders.

The Conversation

Senior leaders are increasingly being asked to balance growth, succession, culture, and long-term resilience in an uncertain economic environment. This exclusive Directors Dinner brings together business owners, CEOs, Managing Directors, and senior decision-makers for an evening of insight, discussion, and peer-level networking over a two-course dinner.

The evening will centre on a facilitated, in-conversation discussion with business leaders who have navigated significant ownership and leadership transitions, using Employee Ownership Trusts (EOTs) as a lens through which to explore wider strategic challenges faced by modern businesses.

Rather than a technical or prescriptive session, the discussion will focus on the human, cultural, and strategic dimensions of leadership decisions, including:

how leaders think about legacy, succession, and long-term value,
balancing commercial performance with culture and engagement,
leading organisations through complex change,
future-proofing businesses in evolving markets,
the realities, trade-offs, and unintended consequences of major structural decisions.

While employee ownership will form part of the conversation, this event is designed to be relevant to any senior leader, regardless of current ownership structure or future plans. Attendees will gain practical insight into decision-making at the highest level, learn from peers who have faced pivotal moments in their leadership journey, and engage in open, honest discussion in a trusted, senior environment.

The Panellists

Nik Pratap
Managing Partner & Founder - Pratap Partnership

Nik Pratap is the founder of Pratap Partnership, which successfully transitioned to an Employee Ownership Trust (EOT) in 2023. This strategic move was rooted in his belief that the firm?s most valuable asset is its people ? and that shared ownership would strengthen resilience, deepen engagement, and support long-term value creation for clients, candidates and colleagues alike. Reflecting on the transition, Nik described it as one of the most rewarding and purposeful chapters in the company?s journey, enabling a legacy-focused future where employees directly benefit from the success they help to build.

With over 25 years? experience in executive recruitment, he combines a deep regional knowledge of the North and Midlands with a passion for building exceptional leadership teams and influencing meaningful career decisions.

Nik also serves on the Remuneration & Appointments Committee of the Recruitment & Employment Confederation (REC), reinforcing his influence in shaping recruitment best practice and leadership standards across the sector, and is a trustee of Make-A-Wish UK.

Joe Ridgeway
Construction Director - Pacy & Wheatley
Joe is a highly experienced construction professional with nearly two decades of industry expertise across healthcare, residential, education and commercial sectors. He joined Pacy & Wheatley in 2006 and has progressed through the business to his current role as Construction Director, reflecting both his technical capability and leadership qualities.

Joe currently leads delivery teams comprising Contract and Site Managers, overseeing multiple live projects with values ranging from £2.5m to £12m and a combined project portfolio in excess of £12m.

He is proficient in delivering projects under design and build and other contractual arrangements, with a strong focus on quality, safety and collaborative working. Joe is known for his positive, ?can-do? attitude and his ability to manage complex projects within live environments, particularly within the care and healthcare sector.

Joe is nearing completion of his MCIOB accreditation and was proudly recognised as CIOB Student of the Year in 2018, underlining his commitment to professional development and excellence.

What to expect

Two course meal provided

Build your network - exchange ideas, share experiences & create new partnerships.

Inspiring conversation, stories & experience from industry leaders.

Meet the Doncaster Chamber Team. Book events and membership reviews or ask any questions you might have

Smart business dress code

Experience a local venue

Director’s Dinners are exclusively for director and C-suite level decision makers from organisations within the membership of Doncaster Chamber. Attendees may bring a +1, including a junior member of staff, but +1s are not permitted to attend without an eligible decision maker present.
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Sponsorship
Sponsoring the Director's Dinners is a strategic way to connect with and support the most senior business leaders driving Doncaster's Economy.
Download the sponsorship brochure here.

Contact Us
For more information, please contact the events team:
Email: events@doncaster-chamber.co.uk
Phone: 01302 640100