Spear’s Review

David Yelland, former editor of the Sun, founded boutique reputation firm Kitchen Table Partners in 2015 to ‘counsel individuals and the businesses they run’.

The europhile Manchester City fanatic sees reputation management as akin to the insurance industry, with more clients viewing it as a form of risk management.

‘There are policies against fraud, fire, theft … every major company is trying to manage currency risks,’ Yelland says. ‘Reputation is increasingly seen to be in that bucket.’

Yelland deals with private clients at a close, personal level, advising them on managing the media, especially the tabloids. Having access to information is not enough: ‘You’ve got to know what to do with it,’ he says. Few are better versed than Yelland, who understands ‘the way the country works, as opposed to the way people think it works’.

In July 2025, Yelland co-founded Agenda, a six-week programme that combines AI with expert guidance, helping business leaders test ideas and refine decisions by training AI to mirror their own communication style.