14 Stephen Oliver managing director, Marston's Pub Company (MPC) (17) David Elliott managing director, Greene King Pub Partners (17)

Why they are on the list:

They head up the leased and tenanted pub estates of Britain's two super-regional brewers; Oliver's Marston's Pub Company (MPC), formerly known as Union Pub Company, operates around 1,600 pubs, while Elliott is in charge of almost 1,200 outlets. Both men are known to speak their minds on important industry issues.

What the past year has held:

Preparing their estates for the smoking ban has been a major challenge. Initiatives have ranged from Greene King's Fresh Thinking Pubs advice kits, to MPC deep-cleaning its Welsh pubs before the 2 April ban. These have been accompanied by massive investment to improve outdoor facilities.

The past 12 months have seen MPC take two notable steps in its relationship with licensees: introducing open-book accounting, and gaining BII accreditation for its code of practice on tenancy and lease agreements. Elliott, who pioneered open-book accounting, is also trialling cheque-cashing, which promises to provide his licensees with

a valuable new source of income.

Challenges ahead:

Helping licensees minimise the damage to trade from the smoking ban will be a major task.

As police forces step up their test-purchase operations, encouraging hosts to toughen up their procedures to prevent underage sales is also a priority.