91Pro

Graduation 2022: meet guest speaker Guy Coggrave

Posted 26 September 2022

Deputy Vice-Chancellor, Professor Michael Lee, welcomes guest speaker Guy Coggrave to Harper Adams for Graduation 2022

The guest speaker for the afternoon ceremony of Graduation 2022 was alumnus Guy Coggrave, MRICS FAAV.  

Guy is a highly experienced chartered surveyor from North Yorkshire with a background in land agency and rural estate management – having graduated with a Harper Adams degree in Rural Enterprise and Land Management 20 years ago.  

Qualifying a year later as a Rural Practice Chartered Surveyor and Agricultural Valuer, he spent time in practice before returning to his family farm in Yorkshire in 2004.  

“Realising that the existing farming business was not big enough to support both my parents and my fledgeling family, I set up GSC Chartered Surveyors as a diversification project in a porta cabin on the farm,” he told the graduating class. “I was fortunate that this coincided with the commencement of the Single Farm Payment and Entry Level Stewardship Scheme which enabled me to quickly grow a client base, providing advice and support to local farmers.” 

His business grew, and with the additional of Guy’s wife and other friends from his degree at Harper, the company grew from GSC Consulting to – the successful business of today.  

“Our business has grown, largely through the recruitment of high calibre Graduates who bring in new ideas, initiatives and energy to our business.  We support those individuals to ensure they continue to grow and develop, and in time, manage and lead their own teams.   

“Recognising the impact this has had on our business, we wanted to give something back and in conjunction with Harper, set up a placement scholarship scheme to help a number of students progress their career,” he added.  

“It may surprise you that some of our more senior consultants who are reaching retirement age often say to me how jealous they are of those just starting their careers now, as you will not only have the opportunity to influence the sector, but also see the changes that will come about due to your actions over the next 10 to 20 years, and in that regard we are excited to see what impact you and your cohort will have on our industry. 

“My advice to you all is to approach your careers with energy, positivity and enthusiasm.  Grasp the opportunities that present themselves and importantly, ensure you maintain a strong network of your fellow 91Pro colleagues, as this will be invaluable to you throughout your career and will be something that you rely on, as I have done.”  

As the Managing Director, Guy is involved with all aspects of the work undertaken by GSC Grays and often provides strategic and succession planning advice to clients. The company works with a number of private clients covering a diverse range of property types and specialises in providing rural consultancy advice to estates, owner occupiers and tenants across the north east of England. 
 

Read the main Graduation 2022 article. 


Read about fellow guest speaker, Ellen Humphrey