Enter the Boardroom

Vivienne is CEO of the FTSE Women Leaders Review, the UK government-backed framework tracking and driving gender representation across the boards and leadership teams of the FTSE 350 and the UK's largest private companies. Tune into this episode to hear about: How Princess Anne left Vivienne lost for words when receiving her OBE (01:20) The subprime meeting that predicated the financial crisis - and why no one listened (03:31) How to challenge without confronting: the running water approach (09:11) Why Vivienne resigned and why it wasn't walking away (11:46) The rainmaker problem: why boards protect the wrong people (16:14)  Forget the rules on data privacy (19:16) Her lessons from a real data breach (21:19) The questions every board should ask before replacing staff with AI (24:04) What good AI governance actually looks like (27:17) What it's really like to be the only woman in the room (31:06) ⚡The Lightning Round⚡(34:49)

Host: Oliver Cummings
Producer: Will Felton
Editor: Penelope Coumau
Music: Kate Mac
Audio: Nick Kold
Email: [email protected]
Web: https://www.nurole.com/nurole-podcast-enter-the-boardroom

Andy Higginson is Chair of JD Sports Fashion plc. Previously, he was Chair of Wm Morrison Supermarkets plc and a non-executive director at organisations including Tesco, Sky, Clarks, FirstGroup and Woolworths. Listen to this episode to hear about: The three boardroom moments that shaped Andy's career (01:06) What a near-bankrupt Laura Ashley taught him about simplicity and focus (03:58) The Laura Ashley banking crisis that changed Bank of England policy (07:18) The four strategy Tesco pillars (09:54) Inside the Tesco succession that went wrong (14:35) Why a new CEO should keep their rivals (18:23) What every retail NED should do when they first join (21:36) The first thing Andy did when he arrived at a struggling Morrisons (25:58) Morrison’s acquisition by private equity (31:35)⚡The Lightning Round⚡(36:46)
Host: Oliver Cummings
Producer: Will Felton
Editor: Penelope Coumau
Music: Kate Mac
Audio: Nick Kold
Email: [email protected]
Web: https://www.nurole.com/nurole-podcast-enter-the-boardroom

Danuta Gray is Chair of Croda plc and NED and Chair of the Remuneration Committee at Burberry Group plc. Previously, she was Chair of Direct Line Insurance Group plc during its acquisition by Aviva. Tune into this episode to hear about: How Danuta has improved on CEO hiring (01:46) The importance of staying curious about AI (06:42) Why every board waits too long to change their CEO (08:01) Why Danuta looks internally first when a CEO blames external headwinds (11:56) The board decision that has nothing to do with right or wrong (13:59) What to do when you think the CEO needs to go but the Chair disagrees (20:40) Why Danuta learns more from Gareth Southgate than a remuneration roundtable (25:21) ⚡The Lightning Round ⚡ (28:59)
Host: Oliver Cummings
Producer: Will Felton
Editor: Penelope Coumau
Music: Kate Mac
Audio: Nick Kold
Email: [email protected]
Web: https://www.nurole.com/nurole-podcast-enter-the-boardroom

Danuta Gray is Chair of Croda plc and NED and Chair of the Remuneration Committee at Burberry Group plc.  Previously, she was Chair of Direct Line Insurance Group plc during its acquisition by Aviva. Listen to this episode to learn about: The formative board experiences that shaped how Danuta operates today (01:03) The criminal case that showed her what great chairs are made of (05:14) Why she always doubles the time commitment she's given for a board role (07:31) What witnessing fraud taught Danuta about boardroom groupthink (08:16) What every chair gets wrong in a takeover approach (13:22) A takeover bid doesn't have to damage your business (18:32) How to block out the noise and make the right call under pressure (22:43) The question every board forgets to ask before recommending a deal (28:11) Why every new chair should force their way in to meet shareholders (35:38) Danuta's three rules for surviving your first unsolicited bid (39:00)
Host: Oliver Cummings
Producer: Will Felton
Editor: Penelope Coumau
Music: Kate Mac
Audio: Nick Kold
Email: [email protected]
Web: https://www.nurole.com/nurole-podcast-enter-the-boardroom

Julian Metcalfe OBE is the founder of Itsu and Pret. Alongside these, he is also founder of the Metcalfe Food Company and NED at Knoops Chocolate. Tune into this episode to here about: Why traditional ideas of good governance frustrate Julian (01:26) Why it’s important that board members are willing to be unpopular (04:54) One key lesson Julian would pass on  to his successor (07:14) The actual purpose of boards (09:22) How obsessive quality control built and sustained Pret and Itsu (12:33) The Pret ritual that kept the whole business honest (14:12) The counterintuitive Pret rules that built a loyal customer base (14:58) The short–termism trap that's killing most boardrooms (18:19) How to balance the focus vs. choice dynamic (25:24) Why two 24 year olds gave away 30% of Pret for free (27:56) The detail behind Itsu's most affordable product (31:31) How Julian would describe his approach to building successful companies (35:15)⚡The Lightning Round ⚡(40:10)
Host: Oliver Cummings
Producer: Will Felton
Editor: Penelope Coumau
Music: Kate Mac
Audio: Nick Kold
Email: [email protected]
Web: https://www.nurole.com/nurole-podcast-enter-the-boardroom