Careers

Leadership – Walking the walk

Leadership has a massive role to play on the road to recovery, says management guru Rene Carayol. For him leadership is all about attitude and behaviour.

That means managing less and leading more, he told a recent management symposium. He also stressed that culture is more powerful than strategy.
Carayol explained that a lot of people know that Sir Richard Branson is dyslexic. But what many people don’t know is Sir Richard has a deep stammer. Carayol once saw him undergo a TV interview where it took him five takes to get a sentence out. At no time was he prepared to give up, he just kept asking the interviewer to ask the same question again and again until it came out right. Sir Richard told Carayol that to be a real leader you have to be bold. No matter what people tell you Branson also stresses that ‘size matters’. He has a £24bn company with 29 businesses and 29 MDs. If a company gets too big then he splits them and gets in two MDs to run them. He stressed that speed is of the essence in business, as it is now on the football pitch. Finding a cause or purpose is also vital, and he pointed out that PR is a frontline weapon. Branson has shown that time and time again in what he does, said Carayol. Branson’s other words of wisdom are, don’t hide from a problem and be careful who you stand next to! • Jo Daley

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