Event Reflections – KPMG’s Scottish Future Leaders Network

Rutherford Cross’ Amy Ferguson shares insights from the latest KPMG Scottish Future Leaders Network, which featured former Livingston James Group ambassador and World record holder, Mark Beaumont as its guest speaker.

At Rutherford Cross, we are lucky to participate in a number of networking and learning events over the course of the year. Speaking with peers and listening to inspiring people talk about incredible things they’ve done throughout their personal and professional life always makes for a great evening and provides much food for thought.

In November, one of my colleagues and I attended KPMG’s Scottish Future Leaders Network welcome event in Edinburgh. This new network aims to connect aspiring to inspiring leaders and peers across all of Scotland. The aim of the group is to build a supportive network that meets throughout the year, that will continue to develop Scotland’s position as an influential centre of the UK.

The event invited former Livingston James Group ambassador, Mark Beaumont, an endurance cyclist, and Guinness World Record Holder for cycling around the world in under 80 days to lead the discussion. It was interesting to hear how Mark has managed to set himself up for success the way he has and there were a few points of conversation that I have reflected on.

Building your Team

Firstly, Mark spoke about the importance of the team around you and recognising that individuals are motivated in different ways. As a leader you should recognise that the thing that motivates you to succeed, or the goal of what you are trying to achieve, may not be understood in the same way by everyone in a team.

I interpret this as the differentiator for a great leader, and therefore a great team, is to ensure every member of your team understands exactly what they need to do to ensure the whole team is successful, no matter how big or small their role is. It is important to understand that each member of your team will be motivated differently.

Planning with Quiet Confidence

Mark also discussed executing plans with quiet confidence. Although Mark didn’t go into detail during his talk about what actually went into his Guinness World Record expeditions, I can only imagine the sheer amount of planning from Mark and his team that goes into making these expeditions successful.

I think this translates into the corporate world as there is a lot to be said for creating a cohesive and organised plan and confidently and quietly implementing it, and reaping the rewards.

Stick to your Personal Goals

The final point that stuck out to me from Mark’s conversation is to not let your ambition and goal setting be clouded by what people have done before you, and what has been possible for people before you.

Many of us are guilty of a lack of confidence in our ability to create and execute successful projects. When we are setting our sights on beating a record or trying to do something better than it has been done before we can automatically find ourselves having doubtful feelings.

The key takeaway for me is to be ambitious and back up that ambition with a comprehensive plan that will ensure you get there. This is perhaps easier said than done but is something I will be focusing on as we move into 2023.

 

At Rutherford Cross we run a number of networking and conversation-based events throughout the year. These include our ‘Planning Your Career Journey’ series in which we invite Scottish finance leaders to share insights into their own career journey. Our next instalment of ‘Planning Your Career Journey’ is on Thursday 1st December in Edinburgh. Please feel free to reach out should you be interested in attending at [email protected]