»» RENE CARAYOL28

business

Whilst the UK took for granted ten years ofalmost uninterrupted economic plenty upuntil the unprecedented credit crunch

and downturn of last year, few realised at the timethat it was the con�dence of strong and visibleleadership that was underpinning our vibranteconomy.

There were many things to hold against TonyBlair during his years as Prime Minister butleadership was not, in my view, one of them.Whether we agreed with or liked what he had to sayor not, he could lead.

Many say that it was the only thing he wasbrilliant at. Personally I believe it was due in nosmall measure to his optimism, vision and deftcommunication that the nation enjoyed this decadeof prosperity.

He energised a nation away from inward-lookingtrade unions, industrial strife and dependency onthe welfare state and picked up Margaret Thatcher’sbaton of independence, self-su�ciency and freemarket policies.

Everyone wanted to invest in the UK.From Abbey National and the London Stock

Exchange to Jaguar Land Rover, ManchesterUnited and O2, huge swathes of UK PLC havebeen sold over the last ten years to foreigninvestors.

But this was vital to Blair’s vision to make Londonthe �nancial capital of the world and the resultswere there for everyone to see. The money neverstopped pouring in as deals, deals and more dealswere conducted at breathtaking speed with ‘light-touch regulation’.

Put quite simply, it was easier buying a businessin Britain than in the US, Europe or any otherWestern economy.

This was wealth creation at its �nest and evenwhen there were hiccups along the way, Tony Blairwas there to reassure us and tell us that everythingwould be �ne.

And the ugly truth of the matter is that even whenwe didn’t agree with what was going on, we wouldlook in our wallets or check our bank balances andeverything would seem �ne once again.

When the media were screaming for his headover the invasion of Iraq, the business communitykept their heads down and said little; it marked thebeginning of the tension between ideology andprosperity that we are feeling even more markedlynow.

Because now there is a leadership void.With Barack Obama �lling that void and o�ering

a new vision of the future for the US, it is imperativethat Britain and Europe do the same. There is aleadership crisis and whenever there is an issuesurrounding leadership you must go back to thelast time it was right to �x it again for the future.

In the UK, it wasn’t that long ago at all. During New Labour’s �rst two successful terms in

charge we bene�ted from the dream team; thevisionary, optimistic and clear communicator Blairleading the country and the solemn, taciturn andpragmatic Brown in charge of the treasury.

Brown was a great foil for the more risk-embracing Blair, as were the big hitters that madeup the rest of the cabinet. From Robin Cook andCharles Clarke to Peter Mandelson and DavidBlunkett, all had their own ideas and were di�cult tomanage but easy to lead.

Times have changed considerably. It is inconceivable that anyone who knows

anything about leadership would have consideredGordon Brown as THE candidate for Prime Ministerfrom such a collection of individuals and most nowknow that if Brown had gone to the nation in hisearly days for another term, he would have failedmiserably.

We are victims of a lack of democracy, as aremany of our businesses. If you are ever in anydoubt as to someone’s leadership qualities then putit to the workforce or nation; they will know whatthey need.

Tony Blair had an entrepreneurial spirit butGordon Brown doesn’t. Therefore the outlook forentrepreneurs in 2009 remains bleak, for as long asBrown and Darling remain in charge of the

economic direction.With the business community screaming out for

help at the end of 2008 they took the decision to cutthe VAT rate. It was ham-�sted, short sighted andreinforced once more the feeling that nobody in thecabinet ‘gets’ business.

The lifeblood of any Western economy comes inthe form of SMEs and entrepreneurs, and withoutsuitable lending and overdrafts from the banksthese companies and individuals simply freeze. Thegovernment has failed to act with any form ofleadership or authority to get this situation tochange and still the e�ects of the credit crunchloom over us for the New Year.

Darwinian forces always apply in business andwe need entrepreneurs to not only create wealth,but take the bull by the horns and act whilst thegovernment continues to blunder.

Perhaps it’s time for entrepreneurs to helpentrepreneurs?

We had a memorable experience at our ownbusiness forum – Inspired Leaders Network – lastyear when Brad Rosser, former right-hand man toSir Richard Branson and renowned businessbuilder, was interviewed at one of our sessions.

At the end of the evening four or �ve buddingentrepreneurs swamped Brad with their ideas. Hehas since gone on to become Chairman andshareholder for at least one of them and they areblossoming with his help; having shunned moreconventional methods to expand in the downturn.

It is a model we must continue to adapt.The ‘big hitters’ such as Sir Richard Branson and

Sir Philip Green have been laying down thisframework for years and are now as muchrenowned for investing in new projects as they arefor their work with their own organisations and withit wealth creation can continue to �ourish whilstgovernments stall.

And the best part of all?The actual money invested is just one part of the

process. The expertise and con�dence that ‘bighitters’ bring to those with the new ideas meansthese embryonic businesses are given the insightsand wisdom that investment alone never brings.

Money is invested to create more money andmore jobs and success stories inspire others tofollow the lead.

After all, success breeds success.Perhaps it’s a lesson our government should

heed.

WE NEEDENTREPRENEURS TONOT ONLY CREATEWEALTH, BUT TAKETHE BULL BY THEHORNS

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THE LEADERSHIP VOID

THE CREDIT CRUNCH AND ECONOMIC DOWNTURN IS IN NO SMALL PART DUE TO POVERTY OF LEADERSHIP RENÉ CARAYOL,CEO OF THE INSPIRED LEADERS NETWORK, IN A HIGHLY PERSONAL ANALYSIS OF THE UK ECONOMY.

René Carayol is one of the world’s leading businessgurus. He is the best selling author of the leadership andculture bible, ‘Corporate Voodoo’, a regular televisionand radio broadcaster for the BBC and a VisitingProfessor at Cass Business School. He is also CEO of theInspired Leaders Network, with operations in London,Belfast and Johannesburg.

, SAYS