Being vocal and building a network to create change in organisations is not easy. In fact being seen to influence is often considered a dirty word. But for Manfred Boudreaux-Dehmer, the first Chief Information Officer at NATO, if done in the right way influencing, negotiating and aligning are fundamental to a senior leader’s value proposition. And where best to practice and learn this, if not in the unique and high-pressured environment of NATO.

“NATO is a consensus based organisation. If 31 say yes and one says no, it is a no. It means that you have to work at it and come up with the best possible compromise, the best possible solution.”

In the final part of our Leadership Unlocked podcast series, Manfred speaks to Professor Bernd Vogel, Director of the Henley Centre for Leadership, about, compromise, and multi-directional influencing. The need to give it all, yet emotionally and spiritually detaching at times, and also the reality that, unfortunately, both is required: working smart and hard.

From the importance of having (and following) a North Star and removing roadblocks, through to the role of mentors and role models on his leadership journey or using self-doubt as a motivator, Manfred shares his leadership insights and learnings from a cross-industry career.

“A healthy dose of self-doubt is sometimes quite valuable because it keeps you on your toes and it makes you question yourself.”

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Strong mentors at different stages of your senior leadership career can make the difference between getting ahead and getting left behind. That also means giving back and paying forward by obsessively assisting others, according to Helene Murphy, CHRO at Gridserve and former Chief People Officer with Unite Students and Formula E.

In the sixth part of our Leadership Unlocked podcast series, Helene speaks to Professor Bernd Vogel, Director of the Henley Centre for Leadership, about the power of mentoring and feedback, but also hard work and determination. She also discusses the importance of showing up, not just for yourself but your team, not outsourcing your career, and the value of young employees and leaders. Having left school at 16 and not following a degree pathway, Helene is ruthless about equity and inclusion in the workplace and supporting social mobility.

“I think some of the things that we read, the diversity fatigue that people talk about, I'm more motivated than ever because of what I see, and the piece about equity is something that has a real personal meaning.”

She is also a firm believer in being humble, saying when you don’t know, and not forgetting to check your ego once in a while.

“One of the best characteristics of good leadership is humility.” 

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Leadership Unlocked – ‘The temptation to talk not listen’

Leading your boss in business seems counterintuitive but is one of the most important skills for senior leaders to master, according to Sanna Suvanto-Harsaae, Chair at Finnair and a number of other high-profile Nordic businesses. Sana has been honoured as Finland's most influential woman in business for multiple years.

“This is a senior executive dilemma. We are always better holding our mouths open, than our ears open.”

In the fifth part of our Leadership Unlocked podcast series, Sanna speaks to Professor Bernd Vogel, Director of the Henley Centre for Leadership, about her mantra of saying yes to ‘fewer, bigger, better’ things and the importance of saying ‘no’.

Sanna’s candid views on leadership cover relentless measuring and improving, being boyfriend material - or not - as a leader, the temptation to talk instead of listen, scenario management, and how avoiding difficult discussions and glossing over dilemmas creates an unhealthy workplace culture. She is also not interested in her business legacy or one to waste a good crisis.

“There's always something on the energy of crisis that you can change.”

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Change in business is inevitable but do you, as a senior leader, always relish the idea of dealing with it? For self-confessed change champion, Paul Lindley, Entrepreneur, Founder of Ella’s Kitchen and Chancellor at the University of Reading, change is essential for success but it needs to be based on clarity of purpose. And systemic change needs to last longer than the person in the senior role.

“If we don't change, we stand still and if we stand still, we really move backwards.”

In the fourth part of our Leadership Unlocked podcast series, Paul speaks to Professor Bernd Vogel, Director of the Henley Centre for Leadership, about his thoughts on leadership as a platform not a hierarchy, why feeling should come before figures, learning from failure, and how projects with meaningful purpose are core to his life and aspirations.

“The purpose of each of us is to leave the world in a better place than if we weren't here or before we were here.” 

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Award winning journalist and broadcaster Emily Maitlis didn’t get to the top of her profession by accident. While the start was more of a coincidence, her hunger for continuous learning, breaking the big news stories and creating content that has a positive and meaningful impact on society and people has seen her cover new ground in a profession that wasn’t an obvious first choice. Journalism, like leadership, also seems to be a profession where aging actually helps.

“With age I've become a better journalist. I would not want to go back to being the 28 year old me. I would not want to be that young again. I would not want to be that naive. I would not want to lose everything I've understood about the world today.”

In the third part of our Leadership Unlocked podcast series, Emily speaks to Professor Bernd Vogel, Director of the Henley Centre for Leadership, about her career highs, obstacles and learnings.

Emily’s exclusive interview with Prince Andrew in 2019 might have propelled her even more into the public consciousness, but her role in uncovering numerous public interest stories and interviewing countless senior leaders and heads of state gives her a unique insight into what it means to be a leader today.

“If you're not giving something new, then really you're wasting everyone's time. You're wasting your own time. You're wasting all of our time.”

These experiences have shaped her own approach to succeeding in a hugely competitive and cut throat profession, which she shares with Bernd, along with her thoughts on the impact of AI on her job, how to protect the truth in journalism and beyond, and what keeps her awake at 3am.

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Being available, honest and not afraid to tackle the tough discussions are key leadership principles that ensure Tommy Olofsen, Chief Marine Services Officer at global ship management company OSM Thome, can keep people his top priority.

“Success for me is that our seafarers who join ships, they come back home safe.”

In the second part of our Leadership Unlocked podcast series, Tommy speaks to Professor Bernd Vogel, Director of the Henley Centre for Leadership, about the challenges of making the right decisions in an organisation where safety is the first priority and driving profitability and reducing costs come second.

Tommy talks about the importance of learning how to lead yourself before you can lead others and that there is no ‘fast track’ to success. He also discusses why being task focussed is not his style and that he leaves the ‘how’ for his team to decide.

“I can make people be their best I think, by giving them the best conditions to do that, and that's what I try to do. I don't tell people how to do their job. I tell people what they're responsible for achieving, and then I engage with them in finding the best way and solving the problems within that framework.”

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Having fun at work isn’t always top of the agenda for senior leaders. But for Christian Pau, General Manager UK & Ireland at The Lego Group, getting the balance right between enjoyment and business challenges is an essential part of both personal and business success.

“What I realised quite early in my life was that I like to take responsibility and also that people trust me, sometimes even ask me to take responsibility.”

In the first part of our Leadership Unlocked podcast series, Christian speaks to Professor Bernd Vogel, Director of the Henley Centre for Leadership, about his leadership journey to an executive position at The Lego Group and what’s shaped his style and approach.

From making tough calls and navigating tensions in the toy/boardroom, through to the need to be (and show) your authentic self. And painfully learning to let go so your management team can thrive while the senior leader provides the guardrails.

And not forgetting the importance of managing your energy buckets (alongside THE bricks), and the role of family and close relationships.

“I think leadership is very much about empowering your team to be autonomous, to ensure they can deliver – and frankly sometimes to know when you need to get out of the way.”

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