BusinessCloud has joined forces with the UK’s largest community of board advisors to hold a series of exclusive UK-wide masterclass business events in 2026.

VirtualNonExecs is the UK’s largest community of board advisors, giving corporate partners unparalleled access to the boardrooms of over 50,000 SMEs.

The company, which was acquired by Leonard Curtis in 2024, specialises in connecting companies, private equity, venture capital and family office funds with non-executive and chair professionals.

VirtualNonExecs has big ambitions to grow and have teamed up with BusinessCloud to hold a series of face-to-face masterclass events.

Computacenter seals $120m deal for professional services firm

Experienced Dominique Dempsey has joined as events manager and the first  business breakfast has been confirmed for Leeds at the end of February on how to scale internationally.

Gary Cain, managing director of VirtualNonExecs, said: “We’re delighted that Dominique has joined us and to be partnering with BusinessCloud.

“We have a network of over 29,000 members and we want to transition from a primarily online network into a high calibre peer group that holds regular events where relationships can deepen in-person.

“There’s no substitute for in-room networking, which is critical in a world where most NED and board roles are normally secured by people who are already known and trusted.

“VirtualNonExecs is already the UK’s largest community of board advisors and has access to the boardrooms of over 50,000 SMEs.

“By combining these in-person events with VirtualNonExecs’ existing virtual networking, we are creating a powerful hybrid model that really enhances our offer.”

Cain said he’d known BusinessCloud’s executive editor Chris Maguire for more than a decade and the media organisation was the perfect partner for in-person events.

“BusinessCloud grew its online audience by 70 per cent in 2025 and has an excellent reputation for organising and hosting events,” he said.

“BusinessCloud is a respected UK-wide platform at the intersection of tech and high-growth business, with strong audiences of founders, scale-ups and investors that align with a board advisor community.

“Having known Chris for some time now, he is an experienced, award-winning business journalist and accomplished event host known for making memorable events.

“We are really looking forward to joining forces on our breakfast masterclass series during 2026.”

THG Ingenuity split was right thing despite sleepless nights – Moulding

Chris Maguire said: “We’re delighted to be working with VirtualNonExecs. I’ve known Gary and Dominique for a long time and we can leverage our respective networks to produce the best events.

“I’ve followed the growth of VirtualNonExecs since it was founded in 2019 and we’re honoured that they’ve chosen BusinessCloud to be their events partner.”