On this week’s episode, MT’s former staff writer Éilis Cronin talks to Leon Butler, general manager of IBM UK and Ireland.

Having previously been IBM vice president responsible for global AI sales, Butler has a clear viewpoint on what businesses need to do to get the most out of the technology.

As far as those at the top of the organisation are concerned, this comes down to the need to “lean in” more and actually use the technology themselves, as this enables leaders to not only talk about it but really to understand it and, in turn, effectively implement it within their organisation.

By the same token, initiatives often fall short when they are treated like a “science experiment”, as opposed to rooted in clearly defined objectives.

Butler is an IBM veteran in the truest sense of the word, having spent more than two decades at the company and worked his way up the ranks before clinching the top UK job a year and a half ago. He talks about the lessons he has acquired along the way – not least the need as a leader to really understand your business.

“I’m in the technology industry, and if you don’t understand technology, how on earth will you run a company that rolls it out?” This understanding underpins everything, he says, from the quality of your communication with your teams to their ability to convey the company’s offer, to ultimately the strength of your clients’ understanding of your solutions.

The episode also covers how AI is changing the in-demand leadership attributes, the challenge and opportunity of upskilling, and the importance of psychological safety in harnessing AI’s gains.

Credits:

Presenters: Éilis Cronin and Antonia Garrett Peel

Producer: Inga Marsden

Artwork: Chris Barker

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Are organisations getting it right or wrong on workplace culture? While the answer to that question isn’t straightforward, it would seem that something is slightly amiss across British businesses.

As workplace culture expert Bruce Daisley says, it is clear that the last few years have been difficult and many organisations are probably aware that their culture is just not as good as it used to be.

“I think it’s not through a lack of desire or will to make culture better that it’s not working right now, but I just think some of the tricks that used to work in the past aren’t proving as effective, and that’s why firms are getting it wrong,” he says. “Work used to be more fun than it is now.”

Daisley became one of the best-known technology leaders in the country, during a 12-year stint first running YouTube in the UK for Google and then what was at the time Twitter across Europe, the Middle East & Africa.

Today he is the bestselling author of The Joy of Work and Fortitude, the voice behind the award-winning podcast, Eat Sleep Work Repeat, and a keynote presenter and culture coach.

In this episode of Leadership Lessons podcast, Daisley discusses why, in an age of AI, getting workplace culture right is more important than ever and offers some helpful advice on how to make improvements, from optimising face-to-face time to the importance of looking at what behaviour is encouraged, what is rewarded and what is – but no doubt shouldn’t be – tolerated.

Credits:

Presenter: Claire Warren

Producer: Inga Marsden

Artwork: Chris Barker

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Shevaun Haviland is a born optimist – a trait it seems safe to suppose has helped see her through some tough – or as she jokes is the more characteristically understated British way of putting it – “interesting” times.

As deputy director of business partnerships at the Cabinet Office and later also head of business engagement at Number 10, Haviland served the government for five years – a period that, as she tells Leadership Lessons, spanned “three prime ministers, two general elections, an EU referendum, an actual leaving of the EU, and a year of Covid”.

Things weren’t set to slow down when she assumed the role of director general of the British Chambers of Commerce (BCC) in spring 2021. The intervening years have seen war in Europe and the Middle East – with concomitant energy price shocks – three prime ministers in one year, as well as new costs for business, notably around national insurance.

As well as being the first female leader in the BCC’s history, Haviland is also an entrepreneur and a veteran of big business, with stints at WPP and The Walt Disney Company under her belt.

In the episode, we talk about how this combination of business and government experience has benefitted her in her current post, the key priorities for the BCC and how Haviland sees its role evolving.

Credits:

Presenter: Antonia Garrett Peel

Producer: Inga Marsden

Artwork: Chris Barker

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

On this week’s episode, we hear from Ivan Doruda, CEO of native advertising platform MGID.

Doruda was plotting a new venture when the full-scale invasion of Ukraine began in early 2022 and over the next couple of years served in the army as a reconnaissance soldier, then a drone operator, before rising to become a commanding officer.

In the episode, we talk about the different ways in which his military service has impacted on his view of leadership and the existing skills and qualities that helped him on the frontline. He says that faced with an extraordinary situation, “you can still adapt your lessons and experience from previous times, even to circumstances like those”.

Doruda also explains how his return to the ad world – in the shape of a job as managing director of the Ukrainian division of GroupM (now WPP Media) – provided the anchor for his readjustment to civilian life. To this day, he says he is “incredibly thankful” to WPP for taking a chance on a veteran.

Then, last year, Doruda took up the role of CEO of MGID, the global advertising platform he first joined 15 years ago.

We discuss what business ‘resilience’ means in the context of a country at war, why integrating AI into your product is easier than into your processes, and the risk of seeing mistakes as a “dead end”.

Credits:

Presenter: Antonia Garrett Peel

Producer: Inga Marsden

Artwork: Chris Barker

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

On this week’s episode, we hear from Vineta Bajaj, CFO of Holland & Barrett. By her own admission Bajaj thrives on change.

Before joining the high street chain of supplement and health food shops, she was group CFO at European online grocery business Rohlik and spent nearly ten years as a finance leader at Ocado, during which period the business grew from a FTSE 250 company to at one point overtake Tesco as the most valuable UK retailer, while transforming into a b2b technology provider.

It makes sense, then, that she would choose to join Holland & Barrett in the midst of a major transformation effort – its 2025 financial year marked the largest investment period in the company’s history as it spent on its store estate and digital capabilities, with the aim of ensuring that, as Bajaj puts it, the 100 year old business will “be here in another 150 years”.

We discuss some of the challenges of stepping into a transformation part-way through, why the company has opted to build its own software systems (it has more than 500 staff in its technology and automation division), and how Bajaj is bringing the science of unit economics from her grocery background to Holland & Barrett.

Credits:

Presenter: Antonia Garrett Peel

Producer: Inga Marsden

Artwork: Jenny Hardy

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

For the already anxious, this year has provided plenty more fodder for AI-related unease. A wave of AI-connected layoffs continues to impact the tech sector. Companies have been quietly reworking performance criteria to include usage of the technology, with some warning that AI refuseniks’ days are numbered. And Meta’s CEO is reportedly helping to train an animated, AI-powered version of himself that could converse with employees in his absence.

Mark Zuckerberg previously told investors in January that he expects 2026 to be the year that AI “dramatically changes the way we work”, typifying the bullishness that characterises tech execs’ pronouncements on the technology. But the evidence suggests that this assuredness is somewhat lacking in the average boardroom, as executives continue to grapple with how to realise tangible value from AI.

“The assumption is we’re on this path where great quantifiable benefits will materialise but haven't yet,” says Andrew Palmer, The Economist’s Bartleby columnist and host of the Boss Class podcast, who adds that the current experimentation phase is essential to reach the endpoint of “either nirvana or disaster depending on your point of view”.

This week, Palmer joins Leadership Lessons to talk about some of the burning questions surrounding the technology, such as whether AI is set to hollow out middle management, how you can AI-proof your career, and who wrote his column better: him or a chatbot?

Credits:

Presenter: Antonia Garrett Peel

Producer: Inga Marsden

Artwork: Jenny Hardy

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Pippa Murray is a foodie at heart with a particular love for nut butters, which in the early 2010s were her favourite pre- and post-marathon snack. But many of her favourite products at the time were “pretty processed”, often containing palm oil which is high in saturated fats and environmentally destructive to procure.

Simultaneously, the protein trend was in its infancy and the wellness industry was championing ‘healthy fats’. Despite these market shifts, existing brands had failed to fully leverage these emerging developments.

Spotting a gap in the market, Murray went on a journey to grow and scale her own nut butter brand while working at The Science Museum, eventually launching Pip & Nut in 2015. The brand has been growing strength to strength and is now the UK’s number one nut butter brand.

On this week's episode, Murray discusses the early days of product development - including the three months she spent living in a shed - aligning the values of people, planet and profit, and using business as a force for good.

Credits:

Presenter: Éilis Cronin

Producer: Inga Marsden

Artwork: Jenny Hardy

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.