After holding positions with Westinghouse, Kværner, Amey Rail Ltd. and Barhale Ltd.,[4] he served as the chief executive officer of the Clugston Group, a construction firm, from 2006 to 2016.

[5][8] In that position, Martin worked to give the IoD "a leading voice in ... supporting government to negotiate a Brexit deal which is in the interest of business".

[9] In 2017, he led initiatives relating to corporate governance, supporting reforms to the UK listing code such as those initiated by Prime Minister Theresa May to require certain companies to disclose the ratio between chief executive pay and that of average workers, and to maintain a register of companies with significant shareholder opposition to executive wages.

In 2018, he criticised a change in listing rules by the Financial Conduct Authority designed to allow Saudi Aramco to skirt certain corporate governance requirements.

[12] In 2018 The Guardian reported that IoD Chair Barbara Judge had commented negatively on the fact that three employees were black or pregnant.