The importance of effective leadership

Rebecca Galley, Leading Business Growth participant, discusses her experience on the programme and how it helped to shape her leadership journey.

In 2019, I embarked on an exciting new career challenge as the Managing Director at Hydroscand UK, a leading Industrial Machinery Manufacturing Group. My main objective: to drive business growth. However, like all business leaders, with numerous hurdles to overcome, including navigating the unpredictable COVID-19 pandemic, managing acquisitions, ensuring safety, nurturing customer relationships, and fostering cultural change to name a few, my journey wasn’t straightforward.  

Recognising the importance of professional development to support our goals, I decided to enrol on the Leading Business Growth programme. Having previously studied at Warwick Business School for my MBA in 2009, I knew that this programme was perfectly aligned with everything we were striving to achieve with the business. Its practical elements proved to be instrumental in tackling key areas that needed attention.

Leadership

One of the key takeaways from the programme was being reminded of the importance of making things as easy as possible for people. By making tasks easy and simple, in theory, people are more likely to do them. Another important lesson in effective leadership is understanding that it’s okay not to have all the answers but the key is to ask the right questions and sometimes ‘wicked problems’ have clumsy solutions and that’s okay – it’s actually a good thing! Embracing a leadership style that is agile in unpredictable times and recognising your influence as a leader is pivotal in driving a team’s success.

Developing a strategy

When it came to developing a comprehensive business strategy, we learned a number of different frameworks.  The tools and concepts learned on the programme were valuable to me in creating a thorough three-year plan that aligned with our organisational goals. This strategy has served as a guiding roadmap, ensuring that our actions are purposeful and lead to sustainable growth.

Tackling bias

The programme highlighted the importance of addressing biases in the workplace and that we are all biased in a multitude of ways. We learned strategies to address this, which I will have in mind as we continue to foster an inclusive work culture.

Strategic decision-making

Data plays a vital role in understanding market trends, customer preferences, and overall business performance. Through the programme, I gained insights into how we can manage and analyse our data.

The programme also emphasised the significance of digitalisation in today's business landscape. I have leveraged this knowledge to identify accelerate our digital journey. The digitalisation sessions   gave me confidence to secure funding from ‘Made Smarter’.

The Leading Business Growth programme was a fantastic experience. Through world class teaching and current thinking covering a broad range of relevant subjects, the programme has provided me with valuable tools, ideas, and frameworks that I can apply not only in my current role but also in future positions and challenges. The connections I made and the interactions with faculty and industry professionals have been invaluable.

If you're considering enrolling in this course, I urge you to stop thinking and just apply. It is a truly valuable and enjoyable experience that can elevate your professional journey to new heights. Trust me, you won't regret it.