Vital Topics

Alliance MBS’ Vital Topics series attracts leading figures to share their expertise on business and management issues

Vital Topics is our series of prestigious business lectures, bringing powerful ideas and original thinking to audiences from the Manchester city-region and beyond.

Speakers

Over almost half a century Alliance MBS has played host to the great and good of industry and commerce since it first launched its Vital Topics lecture series in 1972. The roll-call of business leaders reads like a ‘who’s who’ of British industry. Sir Stuart Hampson (John Lewis), Dame Anita Roddick (The Body Shop), Lord Digby Jones (CBI), Baroness Hogg (London Economics), Carolyn McCall (The Guardian) and Stephen Hester (Royal Bank of Scotland) being just a handful of the names who have graced our stage.

But it isn’t just leading business figures who have spoken at Vital Topics. AMBS has also hosted leading politicians including a future Prime Minister (Gordon Brown), and once had a speech from the then Archbishop of Canterbury (Dr George Carey). We have also welcomed MPs Gillian Shepherd, Michael Portillo and Sir Vince Cable, as well as Ambassador Susan Schwab (US Trade Representative) and Angela Knight CBE (Energy UK).

Vital Topics has hosted some of the biggest names in Manchester business, including Joanne Roney (Chief Executive of Manchester City Council), Dave Moutrey (Director & Chief Executive at HOME and Director of Culture for Manchester City Council) and Sacha Lord (Night Time Economy Advisor for Greater Manchester).

After almost 50 years the Vital Topics series was not halted by the global pandemic in 2020. The lectures moved online, allowing for an even greater range of speakers and a global audience. The series continued to address the most pressing issues of the day, including Sarah Walker (Director, Corporate & Public Sector, BT) discussing what 5G will mean for industry in the future, and Sherry Coutu (entrepreneur and angel investor) explaining how small businesses could succeed in the wake of Covid-19.

Most recently speakers have included Tom Beahon (co-founder and co-CEO of Castore Sportswear), Becky Speight (CEO of the RSPB), and renowned economist Paul Ormerod, who have shared their expertise and insights on business and management issues.

Vital Topics Global

In 2024 AMBS has partnered with the city’s leading property developer Renaker to take the Vital Topics lecture series global.

This will see Vital Topics events take place in four international centres: Dubai, Hong Kong, Shanghai, and Singapore. Vital Topics Global is the first element of AMBS's 60th anniversary celebrations in 2025.

About Renaker

Established in 2006, Renaker is Manchester’s leading property developer renowned for delivering the city centre’s most iconic developments, and transforming Manchester’s skyline.

With a strong reputation for in-house design, build capability, and quality of delivery, Renaker has a proven track record of delivering spacious, high-quality homes with desirable amenities and creating aspirational new neighbourhoods where communities can thrive long term.

Renaker have successfully delivered over 7,000 homes to date and is currently developing three major new neighbourhoods located at key strategic gateways across Manchester and Salford; New Jackson near Deansgate, Colliers Yard in Greengate and Trinity Island on the bank of the River Irwell.