Name: John Leggate

Title: CIO and group VP

Company: BP

What they say about him: "The elder statesman of the CIO community - a great advocate."

John Leggate is responsible for BP's entire digital capability - IT systems, technology and business processes - across the oil and energy giant's 150 global upstream and downstream business units.

Leggate sits on the BP group senior leadership team, is group VP for procurement and supply change management and is also responsible for group security.

Aside from the achievement of running such a vast global IT operation - more than 60,000 desktops - Leggate has also encouraged an environment of innovation and leading-edge thinking in IT at BP, including a 'digital consumer' initiative that is piloting a scheme to give a small number of employees an allowance to buy their own IT equipment and take care of their own support needs.

Leggate is a BP 'lifer' who started his career in marine consultancy and nuclear energy after graduating from Glasgow University. He then joined BP Exploration in 1979, climbing the management ladder over the next two decades to become president of BP's Azerbaijan international operating company in 1998, where he was responsible for managing BP's interests in the geopolitical and economic situation around crude oil export routes from the Caspian Sea.

Leggate received a CBE in 2004 in recognition of his contribution and leadership of the international technology agenda.