Incisive Strategic Leadership – Lieutenant General Sir Nick Pope KCB CBE & Jonathan Bowman-Perks: Inspiring Leadership Interview

Lieutenant General Sir Nick Pope KCB CBE served as Master General of the Ordnance from 2011 to 2013 and Deputy Chief of the General Staff from 2015 to 2019. He is now ready for his next stage of his career post a very successful time in the British Army.

Nick saw that he is had 3 x Parts of his career. Humorously describing himself as a “Bristol reject” who went to Jesus College Cambridge Tactical – Regimental duty with Junior Command appointments Operational – Staff appointments and getting acquainted with the MoD bureaucracy Strategic – Leading leaders He was commissioned into the Royal Corps of Signals he was then Brigade Major/ Chief of Staff at HQ 19 Mechanised Brigade. He was Commanding Officer of 30 Signal Regiment and later commanded 1st Signal Brigade in Rheindahlen in 2005 and was deployed after that to Afghanistan.

The leader who most inspired Nick was General Lord David Richards the former Chief of Defence Staff. David Richards’ skills: Developing a team through empowerment, trust & team practices Stakeholder engagement Crystallise the key issues – mission + team + individuals Learning from Failure?

Nick found he learnt the most when receiving 360 reports on his performance from all those around him Nick said I learnt that I needed to work on the following two areas: You are arrogant. You need to communicate more (tough one as a Royal Signals Officer) They were right! I tried to do everything myself. Now I talk and listen to people more and make them part of the journey Nick’s Top tips – 1. Stay positive (especially in the language we use) 2. Embrace challenge 3. Smile more

Jonathan’s Insights:

Nick was one of the sharpest minds of our generation at staff college and always had refreshingly different view and carved his own furrow. Alongside General Sir Stan Cowan, Nick was the most senior Royal Signals officer. He had a view on many topics and to be fair was right much of the time.