The Global Leadership Hypothesis. What makes a great leader‪?‬ Talita Ferreira

Welcome to today's podcast episode featuring Guillaume, a financial strategy and performance improvement expert who helps organisations achieve rapid growth. With his commercial and strategic insight, Guillaume assists boards and business leaders who are experiencing frustration around their finance teams' poor performance, a lack of clarity in their strategic direction, or an inadequate finance function.
Guillaume's impressive results include creating a finance department from scratch within two months, centralising in-country finance operations, and designing pricing strategies that led to double-digit percentage increases in EBITDA. He has also directed implementing of ERP systems, enabling the launch of new business models and supporting board and CFOs in significant investment deals.
If you're looking for ways to improve your organization, you won't want to miss this episode as Guillaume shares his insights and experiences.

Welcome to this episode of our podcast, where we're excited to be joined by Dr Ibilola Amao, Principal Consultant of Lonadek Global Services. Lonadek is a multi-award-winning, women-owned company. It provides engineering technology and innovation solutions, including talent outsourcing, digital asset lifecycle and information management services, predictive engineering, operations and maintenance, engineering software sales, administration and support, and training and human capital development initiatives.
As a Fellow of the Energy Institute and a member of the EI Council, Dr Amao is a renowned expert in the field of energy and engineering. She also serves on the panel of judges for the Royal Academy of Engineering UK Africa Prize and is a member of the Nigerian Society of Engineers. In addition, Dr Amao is a Women In Energy Network co-founder and sits on the board of other STEM-focused firms.
Recognized as a Forbes 2019 Rising Star, Dr Amao is a passionate change agent who invests her time in continuing professional development activities and human capital development initiatives. She works tirelessly with STEMpreneurs and TECHpreneurs to deliver innovative technology solutions globally and is involved in Girls in STEM and Women in Entrepreneurship activities with WimBiz.
Join us as we delve into Dr Amao's journey as a leader in the engineering and energy industries, her commitment to human capital development, and her thoughts on the future of technology and innovation.

Meet Zahra, a technology leader passionate about driving innovation and transformation for clients across all industries. As the leader of Accenture's Technology business in the UK and Ireland, Zahra is responsible for delivering application development, support, and platform services to her clients. With a specific focus on cutting-edge technologies such as artificial intelligence, cloud, blockchain, and platforms such as SAP, Oracle, Microsoft, and Salesforce, Zahra is committed to leveraging technology to help her clients succeed in a rapidly changing business landscape.
Beyond her technical expertise, Zahra also strongly advocates diversity and inclusion within the tech industry. She leads inclusion and diversity initiatives for Accenture's
European Technology business, working to create a more equitable and inclusive
workplace for all. Zahra is also a Director on the Accenture UK board of
directors and a member of the Technology Leadership Group for the Prince's
Trust. Her passion for technology and commitment to creating a better future
for all make Zahra a true leader in her field. 

Meet Arif, a financial expert who works with businesses to enhance their financial resilience and operational efficiency. With a firm belief that the finance function should act as a partner rather than a mere support function to any business, Arif has made significant contributions to several companies throughout his career.
Arif's impressive track record includes actively managing cultural and behavioural change from a traditional partnership to a corporate entity while maintaining the business's core values. He achieved this at renowned organizations such as Hunters Law LLP, Thomas Cooper LLP, and G L Hearn Limited. Additionally, Arif has successfully turned around businesses from loss-making to sustainable, profitable entities through effective working capital management.
Arif's expertise also extends to employee share option trusts, having established one based in Jersey, Channel Islands, and setting up a tax-efficient Employee Management Incentive (EMI) Scheme for the grant and exercise of options.
Arif is an accomplished financial expert and a thought leader in the industry. He regularly contributes to the financial press, including publications such as Financial Director Magazine, Accounting and Business, CFO World, and Economia. With his impressive accomplishments and thought leadership, Arif is a valuable asset to any business looking to enhance their financial performance and efficiency.

Meet John Reed, an experienced financial services executive and transformational leader. With a background in banking, wealth management, and insurance, John has held a wide range of board-level executive roles and operated at the CEO/COO level in stock market-listed financial services businesses.
Following his successful career in financial services, John has transitioned into a portfolio of Chair and non-executive director roles, mostly in financial services. He has a proven track record in strategic development, governance framework design, and culture shift, bringing valuable expertise to the boards he serves on.
John's executive roles include former Group COO of SG Hambros Group, CEO of Arbuthnot Latham & Co. Ltd, and NED at Tesco Bank, where he chaired the Remuneration Committee and sat on the Audit and Risk Committees. He was also part of the bid team for Williams & Glyn's Bank business, which raised £1.1bn of commitments from the stock market in 2013.
Join John on this podcast as he shares his insights and expertise on financial services, leadership, governance, and culture shift.  He will explore the topics that matter most to today's financial services leaders and provide actionable advice for those looking to drive organisational transformation and growth.

Meet Deborah, a trailblazing business leader with a career spanning advertising, marketing, construction, property, and consultancy. She began her career in London and gained an MBA before moving to Scotland. She became the first and youngest female director to be appointed at the Miller Group, a large Scottish construction company.
Deborah's impressive career continued as she rose through the ranks at Miller Group, first as national marketing director for the Miller homes division and then as regional managing director of partnership and mainstream housing businesses, negotiating single contracts with values of up to £38m. She was then headhunted to lead Wilcon Homes as MD for Scotland, becoming the first female MD of a large-scale construction company in Scotland.
After running her own property and consultancy businesses, Deborah returned to academia, earning a Doctorate in Business specializing in leadership. She established her leadership research with classic leadership theory, underpinned by her wide business experience. Deborah has over 20 years of experience as both an executive and non-executive director in the commercial, public, and voluntary sectors, including recent board appointments with the EDI Group, Scottish Canals, and Edinburgh Women's Aid.
As a Fellow of the Institute of Leadership and Management and a member of the Scottish Environmental Technology Network, Deborah is a respected authority on leadership. She regularly speaks at conferences and events and guest lectures at university business schools in Scotland and Germany.