On Friday 9 October 2026, we had the pleasure of welcoming Mark Dowie CBE (WL 1974–79) to King’s as our second OKS speaker of the academic year.

Mark is a former senior commercial and investment banking professional. Until 2016, he served as Chief Executive Officer of Corporate & Institutional Banking at Standard Chartered, leading the bank’s global wholesale banking business. From 2019 to 2024, Mark was Chief Executive of the Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI), one of the UK and Ireland’s largest charities.

During his tenure, RNLI lifeboat crews launched more than 45,000 times, and the charity’s lifeboat crews and lifeguards saved over 2,000 lives. Mark provided leadership during a particularly challenging period, which included the pandemic, the cost-of-living crisis, the war in Ukraine and small-boat crossings in the English Channel. In 2025, Mark was awarded a CBE in recognition of his charitable work.

Leading the RNLI: A Conversation with Mark Dowie

Mark’s talk began with fond memories of his time at King’s, including rugby, rowing and music. He shared that he remains in touch with around 20 OKS friends, who often meet for lunch in London.

After leaving King’s, Mark studied at the University of East Anglia but was unsure of his career path until he met a Royal Marines officer on campus, who encouraged him to join the Royal Navy. Mark subsequently embarked on a career in banking, taking up roles at UBS and Standard Chartered. In 2019, following three years of volunteering with the RNLI, Mark became the charity’s Chief Executive.

Mark gave pupils an overview of the RNLI’s history, explaining that the organisation was originally founded to save lives from shipwrecks. Today, the majority of RNLI launches are to assist people who have got into difficulty in the water, including swimmers, holidaymakers and paddleboarders.

With 97% of the RNLI’s frontline lifesavers being volunteers, Mark explained how he had fallen in love with the people at the organisation. From shop volunteers and fundraisers to lifesavers, every volunteer gives their time to support the charity. Without them, the organisation could not operate. Reflecting on the challenges he faced during his tenure, Mark discussed small-boat crossings in the English Channel and emphasised that the RNLI exists to save lives and remains politically neutral.

The talk was followed by a Q&A session, during which pupils were offered RNLI-themed prizes for asking good questions. The audience raised plenty of thoughtful points, including the future of volunteer organisations, how the RNLI educates people about water safety, the moments that had stayed with Mark during his tenure and how the charity is funded. One pupil asked, “When you were at King’s, what did you think you’d do?” Mark explained that his career journey had been unconventional and encouraged everyone to take risks, get out there and feed their curiosity.

It was a fantastic and engaging talk, followed by thoughtful questions from pupils. An enormous thanks to Mark for returning to King’s and sharing his career story! 

Visit the RNLI website to learn more about their life saving work here.

If you're an OKS and interested in delivering a talk to pupils at King's, please get in touch with the Development Office: community@kings-school.co.uk