Leading Through Uncertainty

Jude Jennison reads out chapter two of her book Leading through uncertainty and explains the context of uncertainty, how technology is driving a rapid pace of change and the emotional disconnection experienced in work.

In season 2 of the Leading Through Uncertainty podcast Jude Jennison reads chapters of her book, explains why she wrote each chapter and unpicks it.

In this episode, she reads the Introduction.

Saqib Bhatti became the youngest President of the Asian Business Chamber of Commerce in Birmingham when he was only 28 years of age. He shares his experience as an auditor in the banking crisis where people dismissed questions as preposterous that later turned out to be the crucial ones. Inspired by his father, a leading businessman in the West Midlands, Saqib role models curiosity and a desire to understand the point of view of people with different experience, skills and backgrounds.

Ron Carucci from Navalent shares his story of moving from the east to west coast of the US, taking his family with him, the challenges of taking on more than one role and the importance of reflection as part of our development as leaders. He explains that sometimes uncertainty is thrust upon us and sometimes we create our own uncertainty by the choices we make. I think that’s an interesting take because we often think uncertainty is completely out of our control, yet Ron argues, and for what it’s worth, I agree with him, he argues that we create uncertainty by instigating change.

Richard Edge is a Customer Development Controller at Mondelez. Richard’s story of uncertainty is both professional and personal as he shares his story of how he finally admitted to having a mental health issue some 18 months after struggling on in silence. He speaks candidly about the uncertainty of being open and honest about mental health as well as the uncertainty of returning to work after a 6 month period of absence. Richard’s story is both harrowing and heart-warming. This is a must for everyone to listen to.

Karen Walker is President of OneTeam and author of the book No Dumbing Down. She’s no stranger to uncertainty. She explains how she had the courage to leave a well-paid job in her early twenties to help set up Compaq, a company that grew exponentially in the 14 years she was there. She is a strong advocate for the development of people and teams to grow business. She has a wealth of wisdom and experience and shares it generously in this interview. Have a listen.

Chris Thurling talks about the importance of vulnerability and failure as a key part of the process of creativity and innovation. As the Executive Chairman of a creative marketing agency and the Chair of Bristol Media, you might expect Chris to be naturally creative but he explains creativity as being pertinent to every business and why we need to engage both head and heart in decision making.

Theo Millward, MD of Swimtime has all the passion and enthusiasm of a young entrepreneur but there’s no naivety in his business. It’s based on a vision for the future of humanity, pushing the boundaries of what is possible and grounded in the hard graft of execution. There is so much in this podcast to take away for every leader in business about challenging the status quo.

Transforming company culture is always challenging, especially when going from a family culture to a commercial one. Lynda Moore, Head of Talent and Development at the Bradfords group, explains how communication was key and has improved collaboration. She talks openly about the challenges of attracting a younger and more diverse employee and the impact that has on the business and the managers within it.

Alison Jones is the owner of Practical Inspiration Publishing and the host of her own highly successful and engaging podcast series called The Extraordinary Business Book club. Alison has a wealth of experience in publishing from being Director of Innovation Strategy at Macmillan to now running her own niche publishing company specialising in publishing business books.