RIBA Chief Executive since September 2000, Richard Hastilow's first career was in the Royal Navy, operating around the world for thirty years and working with people from many different countries and cultures. He led the naval college at Dartmouth and commanded the aircraft carrier, HMS Invincible.
Coming ashore in 1995 he became the managing director of Hampshire Training and Enterprise Ltd, providing business support and economic development services to the Hampshire economy. He and his team worked closely with the construction industry and local partners on major regeneration projects in Portsmouth and Southampton.