What is the best piece of career advice you’ve ever received?

To join companies with a clearly stated and compelling purpose, purpose is the connective tissue across culture and strategic transformation, and makes the everyday work more meaningful and rewarding

What future opportunities do you think marketing and communications will create over the next five years?

The opportunity is to connect with customers in ways that were not available before, digital has spurred the rise of own media channels where customer experience and communications converge, redefining the way brands are being built. This will continue to be the case

What is your most trusted news source?

A mix of news sources. Aside from the trusted FT and BBC, I enjoy the variety of coverage that Google news offers, I get to see the full spectrum of opinions and develop a more informed perspective quickly. I also enjoy digital publications like Pyments, AltFi and Finextra for business.

What has had the most influential impact on your leadership career and why?

I have been very lucky to have had a variety of strong leaders that I have learned from, each of them has added a piece to the jigsaw that has made me the leader I am

What is your biggest takeaway from covid19?

It is possible to live more simply, to put less strain on the environment, to become more agile, to work from home etc. It is possible. So we need to stop making excuses for not wanting to change

How are you planning for 2021 and beyond?

I tend not to make personal plans as I find they distract me from being attuned to what is going on in the marketplace and from seizing great opportunities. Rather, I focus on outcomes. My next outcome will be to find my next executive home while continuing to deliver value as a FTSE250 NED

What career advice would you now give to yourself 10 years ago?

Focus on creating value for customers and on leading with kindness, the rest takes care of itself

What’s the toughest interview question you’ve ever asked or been asked?

‘Do you love money? Because if you don’t, then you will find it very hard to do this job day in day out’ – needless to say, I answered truthfully and I did not get the job

Who is your business hero and why?

Gerry Mallon, CEO of Tesco Bank. Incredibly competent and progressive, and always cool and unfazed.