René Carayol

Session Summary:

“Nothing is best done alone anymore” – no one leader can make all the tough calls on their own anymore. Our world was until recently more joined up and interdependent than it has ever been before. Information spreads at digital speed and no economy is immune or unaffected by the force, velocity, or impact when seemingly well-informed decisions turn out to be dramatically mistaken. Every leader requires the support of a diverse and high performing team and a culture that enables ‘every voice to be heard’.

Far too many leaders are weighed down with huge uncertainties and inherent risks. Building a collaborative and inclusive culture demands a new approach to leadership and a change in mindset.

In the past, a good enough strategy with a good enough management team and a strong brand were good enough to ‘get by’; but in this new rapidly changing world these strengths alone will solve little.

Every progressive business desire is stability at the top but an active succession plan is fundamental for success. Marketplaces are too fast moving, aggressive and unrelenting for the top team to be in place for more than a decade anymore; there need to be credible younger candidates to take the top roles at any time.

We must start to view the next generation of leaders as a huge asset and not impatient and entitled novices. Collaboration is the new leadership.

René will share case studies and stories from the front line to the Boardroom. He will share stories of abject failure, and of those who have stalled, but most of all, how many have succeeded.

René will close with his top 10 practical tips on how everyone in the room can move tangibly towards a more collaborative approach as soon as they get back to their place of work.

Speaker Bio:

These days, through speeches and his writing, René Carayol focuses on provoking and inspiring his audiences to be the best leaders they can be. Based on his leadership philosophy, SPIKE, he leads the Strengths-based Revolution.

He is also a Visiting Professor at the Cass Business School in London where he lectures on their MSc in Management.

He has written three books, “SPIKE – What Are You Great At”, “Corporate Voodoo” (now in its third edition), and “My Voodoo”.

René has been a regular broadsheet columnist, and columnist writer for The Sunday Telegraph supplement ‘Business Reporter’.René’s television and radio career have seen him become a regular voice on BBC Radio 5 and present the Channel 4 film “The Man from The Met”. He is also a press reviewer on Sky Breakfast News and has been an expert witness on “Mind of a Millionaire”. René was also the presenter of BBC2’s business program, “Pay Off Your Mortgage in Two Years”.

He has been Chairman, CEO and MD of blue-chip businesses. René spent 10 years at Marks and Spencer in various roles and then moved to Pepsi where he was on the board of directors for 3 years.