Committed to adding value to organisations through the development of compliance and ESG programmes that will enhance performance and reputation.

We hope you will like our refreshed website! Janice Dean Consulting Ltd is a specialist bespoke advisory service specialising in good governance.   Janice works with the boards and senior management of public bodies, companies and not-for-profit organisations to improve decision making, organisational structures and relationships, assuring compliance as an integral part of organisational delivery and quality. Corporate governance covers every aspect of an organisation from top to bottom, starting with clarity of cultural values through to implementing processes that ensure that all stakeholders interests are addressed in a responsible manner. In a fast-moving world, organisational success or failure depends on good governance: take actionable, affordable advice when you need it.

OUR SERVICES

Company Secretarial

Support with Companies Act and regulatory compliance. from year to year and as business grows and develops.

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Corporate Governance

Support and advice on the duties of company directors, building a top team and ensuring the right processes for regulatory compliance and business success.

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Environmental, Social and Governance issues

Assessment and improvement of company policies, working methods and reporting, to cut risk and enhance reputation for the benefit of business.

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Company Secretarial

From formation of a company to management of complex group structures, from the owner’s responsibilities in a ‘one-person’ business run through a private limited company to shareholders’ rights in a quoted public limited company, company law often appears forbiddingly complex.  Properly managed compliance systems are indispensable for business to manage risk and assure sustainable ongoing activity.

Janice Dean can provide expertise on:

Introductory Governance Work

  • Review of company records and systems to ensure compliance with statutory requirements.
  • Remedial work to rectify anomalies and remedy compliance failings identified during the review.
  • Company secretarial alert/ diary – setting up corporate calendar.
  • Support with internal systems.

Ongoing Company Secretarial Support

  • Convening and minuting regular board and general meetings.
  • Drafting notices and resolutions.
  • Approval of annual accounts, appointment of auditor etc.
  • Companies House filings to meet annual statutory obligations.
  • Maintenance of statutory registers and Companies House notifications.

Corporate Life Events

  • Convening and minuting board and general meetings in connection with non-routine transactions.
  • Company changes, e.g. to name, registered office, financial year, increase/ decrease of registered share capital.
  • Amendments to company Articles (constitution).
  • Changes to management e.g. removal/ appointment of directors.
  • Share issues and transfers.

Corporate Governance

Good corporate governance is about putting in place the right processes and people to ensure a business has strong direction from the top and sound management throughout the organisation.  A clear and consistent vision, understood by all concerned, needs to be supported by effective systems for accountability.

Janice Dean can provide expert bespoke advice on:

Directors’ duties.
The role carries increasingly complex responsibilities.
Take advice to put the right procedures in place and ensure all fully understand relevant requirements to protect their positions.

Building the right team.
It is crucial for the board and senior leadership team to have the right balance of technical knowledge and strategic insight.
Take advice on executive recruitment and board development to maximise business performance.

Board procedures.
Good decisions come from accurate, sufficient, well-presented information and well-structured, inclusive, challenging discussion.
Take advice on preparation for and conduct of meetings to get the best outcomes.

Corporate communication and information.
Investors, employees, customers and public authorities each have distinct rights and interests in how your company is run.
Take advice on effective engagement with, and accountability to, all of these groups as you build your business.

Environmental, Social and Governance issues

From ‘High Street’ retailers accused of selling clothing produced by child labour, to oil companies faced with clean-up costs following devastating pollution, incidents of ‘irresponsible’ corporate behaviour are all too often in the news.   As civil society, represented by NGOs, presses business to be more accountable and regulatory pressure increases, all leaders need to manage ESG challenges effectively in a dynamic environment.

Janice Dean can provide expertise on:

ESG Policies and processes
Are you meeting best practice in environmental, employment, customer and community standards?  Complex issues from global supply chains to local social impact will affect reputations today.
Take advice to make sure you don’t miss anything you need to consider.

ESG Indicators and reporting
Are you measuring and publishing the right information to boost your business and your brand?  There is a wide range of potential measures (UK, European, Global…).  
Take advice so you can cut through confusion and focus on key pointers for you.

ESG Engagement
Do you know how major stakeholders (workforce, customers, neighbours, regulators) view you and what their expectations are?  Demands and requirements are constantly evolving.
Take advice so you can get independently facilitated honest feedback and improve key relationships.

SECTORS

Public

Public services today need to meet the highest standards of corporate and contacting practice to deliver best value

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Private

Private companies today need to build trust in the brand through consistent compliance that enhances quality

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Third

Third sector organisations are delivering their varied and vital missions in a fast-changing world of heightened expectations and financial pressures

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Public

As service provision evolves, clear guidance is essential on leadership and legal implications of service reorganisations, new companies and joint ventures, transition between commissioning and delivery and more.

Janice Dean can provide expertise in:

  • Working alongside leaders of local authorities,, central Government Departments and publicly-funded companies and agencies, at times of transformation
  • Streamlining contracts and procedures to ensure compliance while meeting needs as efficiently as possible
  • Engaging expertise across sectors to strengthen leadership teams

Private

To ensure business sustainability, clear guidance is essential on customer, employee and public rights and relationships.

Janice Dean can provide expertise in:

  • Working alongside leaders of commercial providers to put in place efficient and effective policies to cover compliance requirements in a way that reflects the organisation’s values
  • Delivering strong results and relationships through transparent and trustworthy processes so that service consistency is assured
  • Engaging with key stakeholders, understanding and responding to their issues

Third

For non-profit organisations of all kinds, clear guidance is essential on meeting ever-growing regulatory requirements and adapting delivery methods for new demands

Janice Dean can provide expertise in:

  • Working alongside leaders of charities and community groups, developing and delivering their visions with stakeholders
  • Advising on trustees’ and employees’ responsibilities to service users, volunteers, funders and the community
  • Putting in place fit-for-purpose, modern, governance and contractual documents and systems to support high-quality, professional-level services that meet current needs

Supporting and developing excellent practice in compliance and sustainability

ABOUT JANICE

Janice grew up in Hull, East Yorkshire, which she was delighted to see receiving recognition as UK City of Culture for its poetic, theatrical and musical traditions and its independent spirit.  She gained her first degree in law from Oxford and subsequently qualified as a Solicitor, training with Sills & Betteridge, Lincoln.  With the firm Janice gained experience in company law and contractual advice for SMEs.  This insight in to commercial practice led her to a Masters degree in International Business Law at Manchester.

Janice then embarked on an academic career.  Her PhD focused on the duties of UK company directors and the place of key stakeholders.  Janice was an Associate Professor at Warwick Law School from 2001-13. Specialising in company law and corporate governance (details of expertise below), her interests developed from analysis of legislation and case law to encompass governance structures and socially and environmentally responsible business (see publications list below).

As a consultant from 2014, Janice engaged with major clients (including Ploughshare Innovations Ltd, the Data Lab, Department for Transport, Direct Rail Services Ltd, London Borough of Barking & Dagenham and Radioactive Waste Management Ltd.) on recruitment of directors and top team members.  She also advised on commercial and employment contract matters.

Janice also served as an elected member of Warwick District Council for eight years, which taught her about transformation of large organisations.

At the Law Society of England and Wales, Janice served from 2022 to 2026 as the Company Secretary/Head of Governance.  In this key role she led a team of ten and enhanced service to the Council, Board and Committees, in particular by improving the use of technology and updating regulations and procedures to align with current priorities.  She worked with directors and officers to assure compliance and responsiveness in the complex stakeholder environment of a professional membership organisation with high public profile.

Having enthused many students at the start of their careers about the positive contributions companies can make to the economy and society, she is now using her knowledge directly as a consultant to business, to support and develop excellent practice in compliance and sustainability. Janice has extensive experience in research and analysis, advising senior individuals managing governance teams and updating and improving processes to support organisational performance.

Academic Qualifications

Ph.D: ‘Directing Public Companies: Company Law and the Stakeholder Society’

Brunel University

LL.M (International Business Law), with Distinction

University of Manchester

Subjects Studied: European Community Law, EC Social Law, Corporations and International Business, International Fiscal Law

BA (Hons.) Jurisprudence, Class 2(i)

Somerville College, University of Oxford

Company Law Expertise

Work at the University of Warwick 2001-2013 (Associate Professor) included:

  • Law of Business Organisations: (UG, final year LL.B option) –
    UK company law, including comparison with other structures and systems.
  • Law and the International Business Environment: (UG, BA students) –
    structural and contractual issues and regulation for companies operating internationally.
  • Corporate Law and Economic Activity in Europe:
    (new LL.M module) examining various models of governance and organisation and their effects.
  • LL.M Dissertation Supervision (LL.M students)
    8-10,000 word dissertations, successfully supervised over 40 on a wide variety of topics including CSR and corporate governance.
  • PhD Supervision:
    supervision of doctoral students in my subject area, including 4 to completion; also examined doctoral theses.
  • Co-director of BA Law and Business Studies degree programme:
    improved student satisfaction scores on this challenging, exciting joint course.
Publications & Writing

Janice Dean is an experienced author in both law and business, pleased to contribute and update text for both academic and professional audiences, and review/ edit research papers/ articles for accuracy and clarity.

Books: 

  • ‘Directing Public Companies: Company Law and the Stakeholder Society’,
    Cavendish Publishing, August 2001.  (Scholarly monograph).
  • ‘Company Law Handbook’,
    Croner CCH, March 2005.  (Reference text for both business people and students).
  • ‘CCH Corporate Practice Service’:
    contributor of chapters on directors’ duties, company secretaries and corporate governance (regularly updated)

Selected Articles:

  • ‘Public Companies as Social Institutions’, Business Ethics: A European Review, October 2001, p 302.
  • ‘The Future of UK Company Law’, Company Lawyer, April 2001, p 104.
  • ‘Stakeholding and Company Law’, Company Lawyer, March 2001, p 66.
  • ‘Corporate Mobility and Company Law Cultures in Europe’, International Company and Commercial Law Review, June 2003, p 197.
  • ‘Trust and Corporate Communications’, Journal of Corporate Law Studies, 2004, p. 465.
  • ‘Ideal Type Organisations and Company Law in Europe’, European Business Law Review, 24(3) 2012, p. 455.
  • ‘Cultural Norms and Company Laws in Europe’, International Journal of Business and Social Science, 3(5) 2012, p. 281.

Conference papers:

  • European Company Law and Long-term Value
    in company law section, Society of Legal Scholars, Bristol, 2012.
  • Corporate Responsibility for Sustainability
    at interdisciplinary seminar ‘Cultures of Sustainability’, Wolfson Research Exchange, Warwick, 2013.

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