MCO Board of Directors
Christian Rochat
Chairman
Christian started his career as a member of the Bar of the Canton of Vaud (Switzerland) before joining Morgan Stanley’s Mergers and Acquisitions department in New York, then London. Since 1996, he has been managing private capital - first as a Director at Schroder Ventures (now Permira), then as a Managing Director at Morgan Stanley Capital Partners and, from 2004, as a Partner of Clayton, Dubilier & Rice. In this capacity, he has led investments in a number of companies across Europe and served on their boards, both private and public.
Christian holds a BA and a Ph.D in Law from the Université de Lausanne, as well as an MBA from the Stanford Graduate School of Business, having also studied at Munich University and at the Freie Universitaet Berlin. He was a Trustee of the Stanford GSB Trust and served on the Board of the Latymer Foundation’s Inspiring Minds Campaign. Christian and his family live in London, where they cultivate their shared passion for classical music, history, arts and culture. Christian joined the Board in March 2023 and was appointed Deputy Chairman in November 2023. He was appointed Chairman in October 2025.
Sir Stephen Gomersall
Stephen Gomersall is a former British Ambassador to Japan and to the United Nations in New York, with a career centred on investment promotion and international security. Since 2004 he has held a number of executive positions and was a Board member of the Japanese engineering firm Hitachi. He also served on the Board of the JP Morgan Japanese Investment Trust.
Born in Yorkshire, Stephen graduated in modern languages from Cambridge and international studies from Stanford University, California. He is a keen amateur musician, having sung in CUMS, the Bach Choir and several chamber choirs. He also enjoys playing the bassoon and is a member of the Advisory Council of the London Symphony Orchestra. He lives in London and Oxfordshire. Stephen joined the Board in March 2019.
Francis Norton
Francis Norton is one of the 4th generation directors of S. J. Phillips Ltd – a family business founded in 1871, and worked there for over 55 years. He is married with three children. Music has been a passion throughout his life, and as an amateur cellist, he joined the Royal Amateur Orchestra – now the Royal Orchestral Society – in 1976, where he still plays, and has been chairman for over 10 years. He is an active supporter of the Mehli Mehta Music Foundation, and is a Freeman of the Goldsmiths Company. Francis joined the Board in June 2020.
Caz Weller Knight
Caz read Anglo-Saxon, Norse & Celtic at Trinity College, Cambridge where she was a Choral Scholar under Richard Marlow, followed by post-graduate vocal study at the Royal Academy of Music. She trained in interior design at Chelsea College of Art and at the New York School of Interior Design and set up her design practice in 2004 on her return from living overseas in Japan and the USA.
In 2015 Caz became a Trustee of the Tetbury Music Festival and in 2018 became the Festival Director, responsible for producing the festival.
Caz lives in Gloucestershire and London. She joined the board in January 2025.
Diana Houghton
Diana is a strategist and M&A practitioner with broad international experience in corporate and advisory roles. She currently serves as a non-executive director for Marshalls plc and is the Group Head of Strategy & Communications for Smiths Group plc. Diana divides her time between the Peak District and London and is a keen amateur singer and hopeful gardener. She joined the Board in April 2025.
Nicholas Eldred
Nicholas is an experienced solicitor and governance advisor who spent a significant amount of his career in-house, in both public and private sectors. He's been general counsel and secretary of O2uk, the BBC and Christie’s. More recently he's been running his own legal and governance consultancy providing consultant general counsel and/or company secretary services to a number of different organisations including English National Ballet, Royal Ballet School and Trinity House. He advises on and project manages organisational governance change and acts as mentor to general counsel and company secretaries. Nicholas lives in St Albans and loves music, literature and cycling. He joined the Board in April 2025.
Barra Little
Barra Little is Deputy General Counsel of Morgan Stanley Investment Management. He joined the firm in 2006 and was previously International Head of Legal for the Fixed Income Division.
Barra started his career at Allen & Overy in London. He is a graduate of The Johns Hopkins University and Harvard Law School. Barra joined the Board in November 2025.