Harriet Green OBE: The leader's battle cry for innovation-led growth

Harriet Green is the real deal. She’s run some of the world’s largest companies and has been banging the drum on the tangible benefits of inclusivity for over two decades.

From 2018 to 2020, she served as the Chair and CEO of IBM Asia Pacific, where she focused on driving innovation-led growth within the organisation. Prior to that, she was the leader and founder of the IBM startup Watson Internet of Things from 2015 to 2017. Green's expertise and leadership contributed to the advancement of IBM's initiatives on the Internet of Things domain.

Before her tenure at IBM, Green held the position of CEO at Thomas Cook Group from 2012 to 2014. During her time there, she played a crucial role in transforming the company's fortunes. Under her leadership, Thomas Cook Group's market worth skyrocketed from £148m to over £2bn, and the company's share price experienced a staggering increase of 829%. Following the announcement of Green's departure, the company's share value suffered a significant drop of over £350m. This incident highlighted the impact of her leadership on the organisation's financial performance and investor sentiment.

In addition to her roles at IBM and Thomas Cook Group, Harriet Green also served as the CEO of Premier Farnell from 2006 to 2012 and has been a board member of BAE Systems, a leading multinational defence, security, and aerospace company. Green's notable achievements and track record in driving growth and innovation demonstrate her strategic vision and ability to deliver substantial results in various industries.

We talk to Harriet about how innovation-led growth could get us out of the global economic struggles, restructuring a business with empathy, the importance of building trust with your employees and much more.

Here's what we discussed:

• Could you tell us about what Tikkun Olam is and why it's so important to you? (00:55)
• Could you give us an overview of your career to date? (03:04)
• How do you reflect on the improvement we've seen in the last few years in regard to ESG? (06:25)
• You've always been very outspoken about digital transformation before it was widely accepted. Why was that so important to you and where did the drive to make a decision like this come from? (12:10)
• Could you tell us about how you got your job as CEO of the Thomas Cook Group? (16:38)
• How do you reflect on your departure from Thomas Cook? (18:46)
• You oversaw the cutting of over 2,500 jobs at Thomas Cook. How did you deal with making difficult decisions like this and do you have any tips for people who may have to do the same? (25:39)
• Your career has seen you travel all over the world. Have you seen any business practices that stick out in your that you wish people did more elsewhere in the world? (30:33)
• Do you have tips for leaders looking to build trust with their employees? (35:36)
• The Good News Postcard: What's your favourite book and why? (39:49)
• What makes a great business leader? (42:41)

Thanks to Rose from the Jill Dando News for bringing us The Good News Postcard this week. Get your dose of positive news by visiting The Good News Post, a website collated by hundreds of young people aged 8 to 18 in the UK. They've written real-life “news that’s good for you”, covering people, animals, stories to cheer people up, and tips to make lives better.

Be sure to subscribe to the podcast and the Business Leader YouTube channel for more interviews with some of the world’s leading business figures.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.