By-Fellow
William J. Conner has over 40 years’ experience in development and as a management consultant in philanthropy. My expertise is in institutional development, strategic planning for large fundraising campaigns, leadership giving, volunteer leadership recruitment and good governance practices. From 2008 I was a Fellow and Development Director at Wolfson College before retiring in 2019 and joined Hughes Hall at the University of Cambridge as Director of Institutional Advancement in January 2019. I also maintain a thriving multi-national consulting practice, Conner and Associates, based in London and Boston.
Much of my life has been centred around a strong interest in classical music, with a particular expertise in 17th and 18th century keyboard music. As an editor of The New Grove Dictionary of Music working with Stanley Sadie in the mid-1970s, I worked on bibliographical problems, musical instruments and instrument makers. I was a founder of the Boston Early Music Festival in the late 1970s and am currently a trustee of Handel Hendrix in London, Pushkin House (London) and the Voces8 Foundation (London). Earlier in my career, I was active as a church musician. My other main interest is the environment and am active tree farmer in the US and am a trustee of Marks Hall Estate in Essex.
