Bob Reid (businessman) facts for kids

Sir Robert Paul Reid (born May 1, 1934 – died May 28, 2025) was an important British businessman. He led a big energy company called Shell as its chief executive from 1985 to 1990. After that, he became the boss of the British Railways Board, which ran the railways in Britain, from 1990 to 1995.

Robert Reid's Early Life and Schooling

Sir Robert Paul Reid was born in Cupar, Scotland, on May 1, 1934. His father, William Reid, was a butcher.

When Robert was nine years old, he had an accident in his father's shop. He lost his right hand in a mincing machine.

He went to St Andrews University. There, he studied subjects like political economy and modern history. He finished his studies in 1956.

Robert Reid's Career Journey

In 1956, after university, Robert Reid joined Shell. This was a very large energy company. He started as a management trainee, learning how the company worked.

He worked for Shell in many different countries. These included Malaysia, Nigeria, and Kenya. From 1970 to 1974, he was the managing director for Shell in Nigeria. He also worked in Thailand and Australia.

In 1983, he moved to London. He became the company's coordinator for supply and marketing. From 1985 to 1990, he was the chairman and chief executive of Shell UK. This meant he was in charge of Shell's operations in the United Kingdom.

Leading British Rail

In 1990, Sir Robert became the chairman of British Rail. This was the company that ran all the trains in Britain. He took over from another person named Sir Robert Reid, but they were not related. He held this important job until 1995.

His time at British Rail was mostly about the privatisation of the railways. This meant changing the railways from being run by the government to being run by private companies. Sir Robert believed that privatisation could be a good idea. However, he thought it should be done differently.

He wanted the new private railway companies to work together as one system. He later said that separating Railtrack (which owned the tracks) from the train operating companies was a big mistake.

Later Work and Retirement

After leaving British Rail, Sir Robert continued to work in business. He became the chairman of the International Petroleum Exchange. This is a place where oil and gas are traded.

He also served as the deputy governor of the Bank of Scotland. He was also the chairman of several other companies. These included London Electricity, Avis Europe (a car rental company), and Sears Holdings (a retail company).

Sir Robert Reid's Passing

Sir Robert Paul Reid passed away on May 28, 2025. He was 91 years old. His wife, Joan, had passed away earlier in 2017. They had three sons: Paul, Michael, and Douglas.

External links

• Portraits of Bob Reid at the National Portrait Gallery, LondonLua error in Module:WikidataCheck at line 22: attempt to index field 'wikibase' (a nil value).