Intuitive Insights

Rob Mullen did not take a straight route into the railway. He originally hoped to become a fighter pilot, but after failing the RAF eyesight requirements, he found his way into railway consultancy. Later, a move into operational rail gave him a closer view of the people and practical decisions that keep the railway moving. It also gave him the chance to learn to drive trains alongside experienced frontline colleagues.

That experience runs through his conversation with Nina. Rob reflects on what he learned from people across the railway, and on the adjustment involved in moving into senior leadership. He realised he did not need to have every answer. Asking better questions and drawing on the expertise around him could lead to better decisions.

They also discuss the opportunity and challenge of bringing three organisations and their cultures together through GBR Anglia. Rob hopes integration will create a shared purpose and encourage more collaboration across the railway, with practical benefits in areas such as procurement, engineering access and sharing expertise. The task is to respect different histories while giving colleagues a common future.

Trust is another central theme. For Rob, it is earned by doing what you said you would do, consistently. He believes accountability should make it easier for people to speak up, report problems and learn from mistakes, rather than create a culture of blame. That matters as the railway balances financial constraints with the need to protect reliability and punctuality, while building its capacity for the future.

What you’ll learn in this episode

About Rob Mullen

Rob Mullen is Chief Customer and Commercial Officer for GBR Anglia. His career has included railway consultancy and operational roles, giving him experience of the railway from both frontline and senior leadership perspectives.

Katie Frost didn’t set out with a fixed plan for a career in transport. She joined Network Rail after university because the opportunities appealed to her, and over the next two decades that decision took her through a wide range of operational and leadership roles, from managing King’s Cross station to senior positions across the railway and, now, Chief Executive of Metroline London.

King’s Cross was an earlier senior role that changed how she thought about leadership. Katie describes arriving with a strong operational mindset, before quickly realising that “you manage things and lead people”. She also talks about the value of putting yourself forward before an opportunity appears, whether that’s shadowing colleagues, working nights and sitting in on meetings simply to understand the job better, so that when the Station Manager role came up, she already knew what the role demanded and had shown she was ready to take it on

There is a more personal thread running through the episode too. As Katie became more senior, she had to work out how to adapt her style without sanding off the parts of her personality that made her effective. She calls that judgement the “Katie-meter”: knowing when to dial her energy up or down according to the room. Representation became more important at the same time. Having been the first woman in several senior roles, Katie is clear that being first only means so much if others are able to follow.

Her move into bus has challenged some of her own assumptions about the sector. Katie talks about the relationships drivers build with the communities they serve, and describes garage managers as “mini CEOs” because of the breadth of responsibility they carry. She has also been struck by how quickly bus can respond to change compared with rail. For Katie, it is a sector with more ambition and career potential than its external image sometimes suggests, particularly for people who want to take on responsibility and progress.

What else you’ll learn in this episode

About Katie Frost

Katie Frost is Chief Executive Officer of Metroline London - the first woman to hold the title in the company’s history. She joined Metroline following more than two decades in the UK transport sector, most recently serving as Route Director, Anglia at Network Rail.

Her career has taken her across frontline operations, infrastructure and senior leadership, including managing King’s Cross station, among others. At Metroline, she has set an ambition to make the business the safest and best-performing operator in London, with a strong focus on developing its people and future leaders.

Jeremy Westlake’s route to the top of Network Rail was not built around a neat, fixed career plan. In conversation with Nina Lockwood back in May 2026, he reflects on a career that has taken him through finance, consulting, manufacturing, aviation and rail, with international experience across several countries, cultures and business environments.

That breadth of experience sits at the heart of the conversation. Jeremy talks about the value of staying open to unexpected opportunities, the risk of being too tightly wedded to one career path, and why moving sideways can be just as important as moving upwards. His advice is practical and grounded: look for learning opportunities, broaden your experience, build visibility beyond your immediate circle, and leave room for career serendipity.

The episode also looks at what leadership now needs to mean for UK rail. Nina and Jeremy discuss the cultural shift required as the industry goes through major reform, including the need for better collaboration, stronger learning cultures and a more joined-up approach across the railway. When asked about the impact he hopes to have as Chief Executive of Network Rail, Jeremy does not focus on personal legacy. Instead, he talks about enabling others to carry the torch and creating the conditions for people to move the industry forward with confidence, support and ambition.

What you’ll learn in this episode

About Jeremy Westlake

Jeremy Westlake is Chief Executive of Network Rail. His career spans finance, manufacturing, aviation and rail, with international experience across Europe, the Middle East, the US and beyond. Before becoming Chief Executive, Jeremy held senior leadership roles including Chief Financial Officer at Network Rail, where his remit covered commercial strategy, property development, innovation and private finance.

With a background shaped by safety-critical industries, engineering, global business and major infrastructure, Jeremy brings a broad perspective to one of the most significant periods of reform in the UK rail industry.

In this episode of Intuitive Insights, Nina Lockwood talks to Angie Doll, Chief Executive Officer of Govia Thameslink Railways (GTR), the UK’s largest train operator. Angie discusses her unorthodox route into rail, which all started with a teenage passion for travel.

Angie talks about how she “fell into rail” after 12 years as a holiday rep in Spain, starting out as a station manager with no prior experience in the industry, and reveals how her earlier working experiences shaped the core beliefs to which she still holds true today.

In a wide-ranging conversation, Angie and Nina also delve into philosophies of leadership, the importance of visibility in encouraging more women to take up senior positions in UK rail, and the future of GTR as it moves into public ownership.

Angie Doll is the Chief Executive Officer of Govia Thameslink Railways. She previously served as GTR’s Chief Operating Officer from 2021 to 2023, having first joined the rail industry as a station manager in 1999. One of UK rail’s most prominent female leaders, she has consistently emphasised the need for a cultural transformation in the industry to foster new talent.

In this episode of Intuitive Insights, Nina Lockwood is joined by Richard Brown CBE, former Chairman and Chief Executive of Eurostar. Together, they discuss topics including the importance of supporting younger talent in bring through future leaders, and what the coming years hold for the rail industry.

Richard talks about his own 40-year career in UK rail and how, having entered the industry originally by chance, he worked his way into its highest echelons. In particular, he highlights the importance of supportive leaders willing to trust capable young people with real responsibility.

Also, Richard and Nina delve into the politics of running the UK’s rail network. Richard argues that the complexity of running railways is often underestimated by policymakers, insisting that change will only succeed if both leaders and frontline staff are trusted and empowered.

Richard Brown CBE is a senior British transport executive. He was Chairman of Eurostar until June 2013, and Chief Executive from 2002 to 2010. A former chair of the Association of Train Operating Companies and former president of the Chartered Institute of Logistics and Transport, among numerous other roles in the industry, he has served on the board of HS2 Ltd since 2012.

In this episode of Intuitive Insights, Nina Lockwood is joined by Laura Shoaf, Chair of Shadow Great British Railways, to discuss the meaning of leadership, culture change and what a truly passenger-first transport system looks like.

Laura shares her unorthodox career journey – from early customer-facing roles in the US to senior leadership in UK public transport – and explains how curiosity, a commitment to public service and saying “yes” to opportunity have combined to shape her unique path.

Together, Laura and Nina talk through what good leadership truly means, why learning the right lessons from failure is a vital precursor to enduring progress and how empowering the people closest to passengers can inspire meaningful change across UK rail.

Laura Shoaf CBE is Chair of Shadow Great British Railways. With extensive experience across public both public transport and local government, Laura has led initiatives to enhance transport connectivity, economic growth and encourage skills development. She also served as one of the UK’s first Transport Champions for tackling violence against women and girls.

Nina is joined today by Sarah Boyd, MD, Lothian Buses

About Nina Lockwood

Nina is joined today by Vinay Parmar, Chief Everything at Dhruva Star

About Nina Lockwood

Nina is joined today by Laura Hadzik, Partner, Co-Head Commercial Road Transport at JMW LLP

About Nina Lockwood

Nina is joined today by Louise Cheeseman, Founder and Chair of Women in Bus and Coach

About Nina Lockwood