By Dr Marcele De Sanctis
12 March 2014
Dr Marcele De Sanctis, Principal Consultant and Terry Coyne, Head of Leadership Assessment hosted their Summer Boardroom Lunch on Friday 28 February 2014, which was the second in a series of seasonal events hosted by Oppeus International focusing on thought leadership and emerging trends in talent and leadership assessment, development and management. This event followed our highly successful Spring Boardroom Lunch held in November 2013 in which Professor Paddy Miller, Professor in the IESE Business School, Barcelona, led a thought-provoking discussion on innovation and leadership.
Terry recently joined Oppeus International to co-lead our Organisation & Leadership practice, specifically focusing on Leadership Assessment, in addition to his role as Director for the Melbourne-based Centre for Leadership Advantage. Terry co-founded Coyne Didsbury Pty Ltd, later acquired by Personnel Decisions International (PDI), which became Australia’s leading psychometric assessment and career development coaching consultancy under Terry’s leadership.
In the Summer session, Terry led a stimulating and engaging discussion on ‘The Mind of a Leader’. Drawing heavily on Terry’s past 10 years working with the Geelong Football Club on their organisational and leadership transformation, Terry specifically discussed ‘Pivotal Leaders’ being those individuals who provide an organisation with a multiplier effect to sustain success through their rare combination of influence, outcomes orientation and resilience. Terry then explored how ‘Pivotal Leaders’ go about their work, exploring domains of Resources, Practices & Processes, Clarity, Power, Participation and Commitment.<
Our group of 20 guests comprising Managing Directors, People & Culture and Organisational Development Executives participated in a lively discussion of examples of ‘Pivotal Leaders’ and the extent to which these individuals are successful across varying industries and organisational contexts.
Guest feedback from the event was very positive and supported our efforts in building a forward-thinking Leadership Assessment practice to diversify Oppeus International’s services and leverage our Executive Search capability. Guest comments included:
“Firstly thank you for the very kind invitation. In summary one of the best sessions I have been to in a very long time. The speaker was entertaining however also very informative and most importantly credible. The venue was great and the opportunity to eat, listen, reflect was the perfect balance. Again, thank you for your very kind invitation and I think you have found the right formula. The key is always in the quality of the presenter and you have certainly established a very high benchmark for yourselves!”
General Manager Human Resources, listed Industrial organisation
“Thank you for the invite, it was a very interesting talk and a very diverse group of people. Looking forward to attending the next event.”
Managing Director, dual-listed Manufacturer
“It was enjoyable and informative. It was good to hear of the importance of Values Based Leadership in the context of Transformation.”
Group General Manager Human Resources
“I enjoyed Terry’s take on the topic. His delivery was authentic and the fact it had clearly come from practical experience meant it resonated. The breakdown of ‘what they do’ (with regards to ‘Pivotal Leaders’) made it more tangible/granular as I imagine every participant was able to identify their own relevant examples – the more personal, the more traction. I particularly enjoyed Terry’s take on business acumen, as it’s an area too often overlooked.”
General Manager Human Resources, Manufacturing
Our next Boardroom lunch for the Autumn series will be held in late May and will again provide a forum for thought leadership around topical areas of leadership and assessment.