The Glaxo company became a major pharmaceutical manufacturer and after a series of mergers it became part of the United Kingdom's GlaxoSmithKline in 2000.
He is also the Non-Executive Chairman of Glaxo India Ltd & Burroughs Wellcome (India) Ltd and on the Board of Castrol India Limited, Hindustan Unilever, Siemens Ltd, Mahindra & Mahindra, Indian Hotels Company and SingTel.
He subsequently became director and/or chairman of various companies, including travel company Thomas Cook, Midland Bank, tea company Brooke Bond, engineering firm John Brown, helicopter manufacturer Westland, Royal Insurance, Investors in Industry (later 3i), pharmaceutical company Glaxo, and Orion Publishing Group.
In this study, processes were developed for producing various chemicals from the waste left over after producing sisal fibers; namely, the hecogenin used to produce steroidal drugs, a process originally developed and patented for cortisone production by Cornforth and Callow in the 1950s for Glaxo.
She has won awards for her work, including the Glaxo Science Prize, the Caroline Walker Award and several Glenfiddich Awards.
It would later be revealed that they are both the character of Parker from the children's puppet show Thunderbirds who is actually Les' father (his 'mother' is Glaxo Industries)