Online Panel Discussion - New Leadership Skills for Senior Leaders

Old leadership and business models don’t work in a world that has irrevocably changed. To thrive, companies need executives who can lead differently, think systemically, and redesign the future of their businesses.

Join our expert panel for an executive‑level online discussion about the future of leadership. Insights for HR and L&D leaders shaping tomorrow’s organisations.

The big new issues we will explore:

• Building leadership capacity, capability and organisational bandwidth vs. developing leaders
• Re-imagining experimentation, innovation, and adaptive strategy vs. optimising efficiencies
• Catalysing regenerative and sustainable business models vs. transforming your organisation

This session will offer some new answers and prime a re-invention of leadership and organisational models.

Panellists:

• Professor Nick Kemsley - recognised thought leader in organisational capability and HR effectiveness
• Odharnait Ansbro - expert in leadership, creativity and organisational development
• Dr Mark Powell – business and strategy consultant, specialising in re-imagining and transforming organisations
• Chair – Claire Hewitt, Director of The Henley Partnership

Explore The Henley Partnership (THP)

The Henley Partnership is for organisations wanting to equip their leaders with fresh thinking. Practical development. A community of leaders who learn from each other. THP offers a comprehensive menu of short executive development sessions for Member companies.

Nick is an experienced HR and OD practitioner and recognised thought leader in organisational capability and HR effectiveness. He combines real-world corporate experience to group VP level with a senior consulting career, thought-provoking insights and research through his long association with Henley.

He offers considerable expertise on topics that include HR strategy and operating models, talent and leadership, OD and organisational design, L&D, performance enablement, employee value proposition, career pathing, succession planning and, in particular, organisational capability diagnosis and SWP, a field in which he is considered a global thought leader.

Odharnait is a coach, adviser and founder of Solas, a consultancy that develops leaders who want to build thriving organisations that have a net positive impact and are fit for the challenges of the 21st century. She brings considerable expertise in leadership, organisational development and innovation to help leaders tackle complex problems and unlock the creativity and resilience of their people.

She has worked across the non-profit, commercial and public sectors, with partners such as MIT and UNICEF. She is a founding member of the leadership team of Being Patient (a social enterprise transforming reporting on health issues) and T-minus (an agency specialising in leadership for environments of high growth and change). As Chief Learning Officer at T-minus, Odharnait helped hundreds of leaders in start-ups and global corporations, such as Unilever, to drive positive change in themselves and their organisations. She was lead author of the Disruptive Leadership Report (2020), which identified the core leadership capabilities needed in an age of disruption. She also partnered with The B Team to produce their flagship report Business Education for a Sustainable and Inclusive Future.

A business and strategy consultant for over 30 years, Mark is also a business writer and entrepreneur. He lectures on a wide variety of subjects, including innovation and creativity; strategy development; leadership, power and influence; strategic relationship building; and customer and employee engagement. He has held partner roles in EY, Capgemini, KPMG, Accenture, Fujitsu, Aon, and AT Kearney.

Mark read Economics and Management at the University of Cambridge, where he also gained a PhD in Organisational Behaviour. His primary interest has been in re-imagining and transforming organisations. He has co-authored four books with Jonathan Gifford (My Steam Engine is Broken, Perform to Win, Machiavellian Intelligence and The Five Principles of Performance Thinking), all of which explore different aspects of business transformation.

Claire is Director of The Henley Partnership. She is a seasoned Executive Education specialist, having headed Learning Design for many years as well as being a Client Director and Programme Director. Claire gained Henley’s prestigious Masters Degree in Coaching for Behavioural Change and is an executive coach and designer of executive learning programmes for many of Henley’s global clients.

Her commercial background is in marketing and innovation. Her marketing experience focused in FMCG and retail, latterly as Group Retail Marketing Director for British Airports Authority. Her innovation credentials were earned as a partner in global innovation consultancy Synectics, where she worked with large public and private sector organisations such as Unilever and Mars to create ambitious new products and services.