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Jim Skyrme
• This year promises to be both exciting and challenging for the National Bus Company. This is the view of Mr S. J. B. Skyrme (Jim to his friends in the industry), who became NBC's chief executive on January 1. His appointment coincided with that of Mr F. A. S. Wood as the new chairman of the company.
Jim Skyrme is a Surrey man who was born in Croydon 60 years ago, and educated at Norwich School.
It was in 1929 that he began his career as an engineering apprentice under the watchful eye of his father who was then assistant general manager of the Belfast Omnibus Company. Two years later he moved to Scarborough to become a trainee with United Automobile Services. While with UAS he rose to the position of area engineer of the Durham division. Jim Skyrme has seen many changes in the industry, but possibly the first and most significant one was when Scarborough changed its trams for buses.
Three years after the end of the Second World War, he became chief engineer to the BET Group in the East Midlands, and three years later was appointed to a similar position in the North Western area, only to return to East Midlands within a further three years as general manager.
If Jim Skyrme believes that three is his lucky number, who can question it After a further period of three years he was appointed general manager with Southdown.
The South Downs air must have agreed with the roving Jim Skyrme, because it was not until 1966 that he took up an appointment as executive director of BET and became chairman of Yorkshire Traction. For the first time there was evidence of a business interest outside the bus field, as chairman of Eddison Plants and Magnet Bowling Ltd. When BET sold its bus interests in Britain to the State, Jim Skyrme was invited to join the Transport Holding Company and in 1969 was appointed chairman of the south-eastern region of NBC. His next appointment was as executive director (manpower) with the company, a post which he held until January 1 this year.
In addition to his business appointments he is a member of the PRTA, chairman of the Conference of Omnibus Companies, and vice-chairman of the National Council of the Omnibus Industry.
Obviously, the South Downs appealed to him because in addition to his five years there he has now settled in the Sussex village of Ditchling. He reads for pleasure, walks and plays the occasional game of golf, and with what little spare time he has, he "labours" for
his wife in their garden. D.M.