Thoughts on leadership and building businesses

I was asked to speak on a few thoughts on leadership and building businesses. One could write a long essay on this, a PowerPoint presentation or merely some bullets. I have chosen the latter as it allows the opportunity to expand (or not) on each individual point.

This is what I have to offer and would value any comments:

i)                   Always have a clear purpose in mind and communicate this incessantly.

ii)                 Have a deep understanding of your key drivers of value and guard them very carefully.

iii)               Equally have a clear strategy, but also be opportunistic.

iv)               Have a short set of clear commercial criteria or filters for projects.

v)                 Understand the risks and have simple mitigation strategies.

vi)               Build strong networks and intensely collaborate. Attend conferences where you can, but better still present papers and participate in panel discussions.

vii)             Be very aware of the ecosystem you operate in: political, social, economic, etc. Read widely so you can arrive at your own balanced view.

viii)            Apply new technology, ways of doing business and thinking: remain on top of this. 

ix)               Read and learn from history, it repeats itself time and time again.

x)                 Build a supportive high-performing team based on culture, skills and competency. Weed out those who don’t fit the culture. The word ‘team’ is broadly used as this will include employees, consultants, colleagues, etc

xi)               Flowing from the above is the concept of ‘leading beyond authority’ and ‘cultural intelligence’. Both concepts are key in the complex, often virtual, and international world we live in.

xii)             Ensure good governance, only necessary bureaucracy and rapid decision making. Try to blend the best of a large company with the best of a start-up venture.

xiii)            Covid-19 times are times of opportunity, a time of growth, reflection and learning.

xiv)            Be a caring and empathetic human being. Give back to society in some way.

xv)              Always operate with integrity. Be an active member of professional industry bodies.

xvi)            Manage your social media: you are a brand.

xvii)          Be an inveterate electronic filer.