Business motivational speaker Karan Bilimoria, founder of Cobra Beer, launches his new book

Motivational speaker and entrepreneur Karan Bilimoria is the founder of Cobra Beer, He has launched a new book about his experiences gained in founding and running the company, Against the Grain: Lessons in Entrepreneurship from the Founder of Cobra Beer: Karan Bilimoria’s Guide to Brewing a Successful Business

From selling the first cases of Cobra out of the back of a battered old Citroen 2CV along the streets of West London to exporting to over 40 countries around the world, Karan Bilimoria′s vision of a less gassy beer has travelled a long way.

Starting out with a heap of student debt, a complete lack of industry experience and parents desperate for their son to get a proper job, it could all so easily have gone wrong. But Karan′s single–minded determination to succeed and his ability to inspire those around him to buy into his vision, turned Cobra, sip–by–sip, into the multi–million pound business it is today. Karan′s story bottles the very essence of entrepreneurship: vision, drive, creativity and a relentless battle against all odds, to make the idea you so passionately believe in work.

′Every bit as good as the beer itself.′ Sir Richard Branson

′Essential reading.′ Richard Reed, Co–founder, Innocent Drinks

′An inspirational story.′ Sir Martin Sorrell, Chief Executive Officer WPP

′Karan Bilimoria is one of the great entrepreneurs…′ Jo Malone, founder of Jo Malone

′Inspiring! … worth the cover price for the “Financing Cobra” chapter alone.′ Professor John Mullins, London Business School

′… His story should inspire youth everywhere who are fired by the dream of becoming a successful entrepreneur.′ Ratan Tata, Chairman, Tata Group

Against the Grain is packed with insights into finance, strategy, planning, luck, discipline, and generally doing the unexpected to build your own business, from someone who′s been there and done it… and all with just a little less gas.

Karan Bilimoria Business Motivational Speaker

Leadership coach and speaker Ram Charan inspires executives with his new book

In these challenging economic times, business coach Ram Charan reveals how to  how to make the right leadership decisions in his latest book, Leadership in the Era of Economic Uncertainty: The New Rules for Getting the Right Things Done in Difficult Times. 

In an interview with Fast Company magazine he reveals how the top leaders should respond in these circumstances. 

“Good leaders are tuned to external change–anticipating, connecting the dots and seeing the outside world. So the question here is that while the landscape change is the same for everybody, it impacts differently. Leaders are those who are able to connect to this change and confront the reality of what it is. If they do that, their companies will come out ahead of others–and that’s why the leadership at this point is not only analytics or working with people, but also a performing art.” 

“A good leader will sort all this confusion and give an intellectual honest viewpoint. There’s no sugar coating, extraordinary pessimism nor extraordinary optimism–you have to build credibility in the eyes of your people.

“The first and foremost is defining realism, and then taking the actions now and not postponing them. The second thing is orienting people on the new reality with superb communications–internally and externally. And the third, coping with the toughness of the existing environment, but positioning the business to change the game after the storm.”

Read the full interview here.

Michelle Obama is inspired by a north London school

Amid great secrecy the First Lady Michelle Obama gave an inspirational speech to the girls from the Elizabeth Garrett Anderson school in north London, while accompanying President Obama to the G20 summit in London.  She told them how they could achieve success on their own terms.

Beaming warmly as students sang and danced, addressing them as “diamonds and wonderful girls”, and encouraging a spontaneous mob of hugs and high fives as she finished her address, Obama at one point appeared a little choked by her own words. “I’m an example of what is possible when girls from the very beginning of their lives are loved and nurtured by people around them,” she told them, adding “you too can control your own destiny.” They left the hall believing exactly that.

Leadership and motivational speaker Adrian Furnham speaks on Leadership Strategies

Professor Adrian Furnham is a psychologist and speaker on leadership and organisaitonal change.  He comments on how difference individuals tackle the thorny question of leadership and motivating teams of people.

“Every leader uses a variety of techniques and strategies to effect change and lead the individuals around them and the culture of an organisation. The great leaders know which strategy to use in a given situation, and not to overuse certain strategies. Great leaders tend to have some common charateristics;  Stability: Leadership roles are very stresful, so leaders have to be stable and be able to cope with stress. Extravert: Management and leadership is a contact sport. You have to go out and meet people. Even those good leaders who are naturally introverted learn to look extravert and behave in that way. You have to be Conscientious, you must be Open to new ideas and you must have Courage. You have to have the courage to confront the truth and confront poor performance. “

Alistair Campbell to be a judge on BBC TV’s “The Speaker”

The Speaker is a new series from the BBC, which will see tough-talking teens, class jokers and shy, sensitive types go head to head as they learn to talk publicly and passionately about the things that matter to them.   Tony Blair’s former Director of Communications and Speech Writer Alastair Campbell will act as a mentor and  demonstrate the subtleties of persuasion.  The programme begins on Tuesday April 7th.

Mike Harris is an innovation and customer service “legend”

Mike Harris is profiled in “Director” magazine.  Having set up First Direct and Egg, he is regarded as an industry legend.

“How do you best sum up Mike Harris? Banking entrepreneur? Intrapreneur, maybe? As the creator of banking pioneers First Direct and Egg, perhaps consumer champion seems an apt title. Both start-ups became billion-pound businesses by focusing on putting the customer first—a concept previously alien to the banking community.”  He is now highly regarded as a speaker on Customer Service and Innovation.

Inspirational speaker Heather Rabbatts walks into the Lion’s Den

Heather Rabbatts has a record of leadership and organisational turnround.

Her most noteworthy achievement was the remarkable transformation she engineered as the Chief Executive at the London Borough of Lambeth.

She subsequently held positions as a Governor of the BBC, the London School of Economics, a Director of the Bank of England and Channel Four.

Her latest challenge is as Executive Deputy Chairman of Millwall Football Club.  It is very rare for a woman to hold a senior position in such a male-dominated world.?  As a speaker she demonstrates to audiences from her personal experiences how she has overcome huge odds to create change and motivate.

Leadership speaker Mark Wilcox aims to “Re-energise The Corporation”

Leadership and motivational speaker Mark Wilcox was the Director of People & Organisational Development at Sony Europe.   Together with legendary Swedish Management guru Jonas Ridderstrale he has written “Re-energise The Corporation – How Leaders Make Change Happen”.

Mark says, “We seem to  strive to find the perfect process for change and the means of getting people involved in change in our organizations.  I am not convinced there is a perfect formula, a magic bullet or a perfect recipe.  However the human condition seems to demand some involvement and some discretion in all elements of life we participate in.  Why would committing to change be any different?

In the 6o’s Martin Luther Kings indeed raised the masses ideals with his “I have a dream” speech. Obama is doing the same now, raising hope when times are tough, sharing a dream for a strong and influential America, whilst at the same time encouraging people to take responsibility for the change – a dialogue of commitments.

Without a dream to aspire to you cannot inspire others to do something.  Delivery is about shared perspiring – doing something that is worth doing, and making the effort to do it well.

The key it seems to us is the ability to create a dream, Visioning, that is credible and aspirational at the same time.  That dream demands a dialogue with the congregation, the staff, the participants, those affected by its realisation, this we call Engagement.  Executing is the  process of delivery, getting things done through others and making sure they have the means, the information, the resources, the energy to do so.

There are not magic wands in change, but there are some approaches that work if used with skill and consideration for the context.  As they say en France Bon Courage !!