Meet John Leeman – Driven To Success

Time to Read: 2 minutes 30 seconds

Meet John Leeman – Driven To Success

This month, Clive Barrett, speaks with John Leeman:

FOOTBALL supporters with an allegiance to Sunderland have been through a whole range of emotions over the years, with despair being the current one.Thankfully for inspirational business leader John Leeman, while his heart has been lost to a club who in recent times have specialised in failure, his head has ruled his career and his has been an upward spiral to the very top of his field.

John, from Cleethorpes, is Group Operations Director for automotive giants TrustFord, having been Regional Director prior to that.

A friend of Naked Leader founder David Taylor and advocate of the Naked Leader ethos, his can-do attitude, knowledge, skills and values have stood him in good stead during his elevation to his current position.

So has Ford focused John got a tip for others on how to be successful?

“I believe a company has to have strong values, principles and a purpose which has to be lived day in, day out by any leader in an organisation, it’s not just words on a piece of paper,” he says.

“I have values, principles, which have helped and they are to be true to yourself and have honesty and integrity.

“Also to have care and respect for everyone and to have a goal with a positive attitude to make it happen.

“The most important one for me is to enjoy what you are doing because then you get the most out of it.”

TrustFord has a one-in-six market share in terms of vehicles sold in the UK and John’s task in overseeing the award-winning operation is a huge one.

“I think you have to have a purpose, our purpose is to drive the standard in customer care,” he adds.

“All your focus should be aligned. I have to be a leader and demonstrate this to contribute to the organisation’s success.”

That ethos holds true in all areas of business and John says the Naked Leader philosophy has helped: “I met David and Naked Leader around four years ago and they have worked with some of our teams and worked on focusing on outcomes.

“Knowing where you want to go, where you are now and doing it to make sure you get there. That has been a massive help.”

It has certainly been a factor in John’s rise – maybe his beloved Sunderland should take note!

David adds: “John is a very humble man in terms of his achievements, his leadership and how he is universally respected by his colleagues. He does this by in each and every day being himself, and letting others be themselves. It is powerful, and the results are amazing.”

Thank you John. If you have any recommendations or suggestions for future Leader Features please email Clivebarrett@nakedleader.com.

Next month Clive is speaking to the amazing Andria Zafirakou, 2018 Global Teacher Prize winner, a lady who is inspiring her pupils to reach new heights.

With my love and best wishes to you all

David

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