Inspiring Leadership with Jonathan Bowman-Perks MBE

Former British Army commando officer. Former Minister for Veterans’ Affairs. Former MP for Plymouth Moor View. Author of We Were Warriors and No Way to Run a Country. About Johnny Johnny Mercer grew up as one of eight siblings in a strict religious environment and attended boarding school from the age of seven. Gaining a full scholarship to Eastbourne College, he then joined the UK Military after...

Karen Coventry is the Chief Executive Officer of Special Olympics Ireland, where she leads one of Ireland's most impactful sporting and social inclusion organisations. Passionate about the transformative power of sport, Karen is dedicated to creating opportunities for people with intellectual disabilities to thrive, develop confidence, build relationships and reach their full potential. As CEO...

Paul currently serves as Chairman of Campbell Companies, a group of businesses supporting mining, energy development, construction, and technology operations across more than thirty facilities throughout the Western United States, employing over 1,300 associates and generating more than $1 billion in annual revenue. He also serves as Honorary Consul of Canada for Utah, representing the Canadian go...

Nick Parker left the UK Army in May 2013 after 40 years’ service. His senior operational military experience includes Northern Ireland, the Balkans, Sierra Leone, Iraq and Afghanistan. He led the military reaction to the venue security crisis at the London 2012 Olympics. His final appointment was Commander in Chief UK Land Forces.  Since leaving he has reviewed the senior structure of the UK...

Steve Byrne leads one of the most distinctive businesses in global travel. Not call centres. Not high-street shops. People. As CEO of Travel Counsellors, he leads a community of more than 4,000 independent travel entrepreneurs connected through its platform and supported by over 400 support team colleagues across seven countries.   His own start was humble. His first job was a paper roun...

Sir Simon Gass is a Senior Adviser to SC Strategy, a London-based geopolitical strategy company. Simon had a long career as a British diplomat and national security expert. While in the British Foreign Office, his appointments included Ambassador to Greece (2004-2009), Ambassador to Iran (2009-2011) and NATO’s Senior Civilian Representative to Afghanistan (2011-12). As the Foreign Office’s Politic...

Ofir Drori – founding Director of The EAGLE Network  Ofir Drori has experience of two decades in fighting wildlife crime and corruption in Africa. He created the EAGLE network, operating in seven African countries, that brought about more than 3,000 arrests and subsequent prosecutions and imprisonments of major wildlife traffickers. It has been instrumental in clamping down on criminal syndic...

For this episode, we are joined by Baroness Eaton DBE DL , whose career in public service spans more than four decades. Beginning her professional life as a schoolteacher, she was elected to Bradford Metropolitan District Council in 1986 and became the council's first female leader in 2000. She later made history again as the first female Chair of the Local Government Association, representing cou...

Wayne brings 25+ years in senior leadership roles, culminating with two assignments as President for the APAC region in publicMNCs with healthcare focus (CooperVision, GN Hearing). ​ His substantial service in the prescription pharmaceutical industry culminated with senior leadership roles at Sanofi and Janssen-Cilag (J&J). He has led teams of up to 600 direct employees, and revenues...

Paul Chapman is co-founder and Managing Director of HornbyChapman, the specialist executive search firm he built with Victoria Hornby in 2006. Before that he spent eighteen years inside the securities services industry: eleven years at Brown Brothers Harriman, where he rose to Senior Vice President and Head of Investor Services in London, followed by senior roles at Credit Suisse, State State and...

The Rt Hon Tobias Ellwood was born in New York in 1966 to British parents and holds dual British-American nationality. He was schooled in Bonn and Vienna before Loughborough University. He commissioned into the Royal Green Jackets, reached the rank of captain, and still serves as an Army reservist, now a lieutenant colonel and County Colonel for Dorset. He was Conservative MP for Bournemouth East...

Greg Zlevor is the Founder and President of Westwood International, a global leadership development and consulting collaborative dedicated to helping organizations lead wisely and thrive in a rapidly changing world. For more than 25 years, Greg has partnered with Fortune 50 companies, government agencies, healthcare systems, and global organizations across North America, Europe, Asia, South Americ...

Karl Hinett is a British Army veteran, ultra-endurance athlete and motivational speaker whose life is a lived example in resilience and the power of the human spirit. Born and raised in Tipton, West Midlands, Hinett’s journey from a wounded soldier to a world record breaking runner has inspired many around the globe. Service and Sacrifice Driven by a desire for adventure and service, Hinett joined...

Mark ‘rusty’ leruste is  a sought-after inspirational Keynotespeaker, leadership communication expert and Bestselling author of glow in the dark, on a mission to Redefine what it means to be human at work . As Founder and CEO of StoryCast®, he teaches business leaders how to harness the power of personal storytelling to connect with audiences, motivate teams, and drive organisational suc...

Larry Kramer has been President and Vice Chancellor of the London School of Economics and Political Science 1 April 2024. He served as President of the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation from 2012 to 2024. Under his leadership, the foundation significantly adapted its strategies to meet changing circumstances and seize new opportunities, including new efforts to respond to pressing and timely ch...

Alexander S Hoare is an eleventh‑generation Partner at C. Hoare & Co., Britain’s oldest privately owned bank, where he has played a central role in stewarding a multi‑century institution through modern financial, technological, and cultural change. A leading voice on values‑based leadership, Alexander is the author of Impact Banker, a reflective memoir that explores what it means to lead with...

Greg Sampson grew up in a small coal‑mining town north of Sydney, Australia, and was among the few in his school to leave. As the first in his family to attend university, he moved to Sydney at 18, drawn by the pace and opportunity of city life. He began his career in veterinary vaccines before moving into commercial roles, where he quickly found both success and a platform for growth. Over time,...

Andy Foote is a Birmingham-based entrepreneur, founder, and philanthropist whose career spans property, recruitment, investment, and charitable leadership. With a portfolio of successful ventures built on strategic growth and social impact, Andy is known for combining commercial strength with a strong sense of purpose. He is the Founder and Chairman of Joseph Mews Property Group, a prominent UK-ba...

Alex Konanykhin is the founder and CEO of Unicoin, an audited, public reporting, and regulations-compliant cryptocurrency company. His background is so implausible that he resorts to media reports to summarize his life story: The Wall Street Journal: “Mr. Konanykhin was a whiz-kid physics student who became a pioneering Russian capitalist in early 1990s, building a banking and investment empire va...

Colonel John Blashford-Snell (JBS), one of the world’s most renowned and respected explorers, has organised and led over one hundred expeditions including an exploration and first navigation of the Ethiopian Blue Nile. In 1972, using the first Range Rovers and a Landrover, he led the first vehicle crossing of the Darien Gap including the infamous Atrato Swamp. In 1971/72 this team was the first to...

Dr. Tamsin Astor is a neuroscientist who studies habits in teams. She is a habit and leadership strategist and helps leaders and organizations transform the way they work, connect, and live — by linking the tiny, daily habits we overlook to the big, legacy-level visions we care about most. With a PhD in Cognitive Neuroscience and 20+ years of research-driven practice, she blends habit science, min...

Graham David Brown is an entrepreneur, world traveler, storyteller, podcast host, author, and founder of Pikkal & Co and Podcast Guesting Pro. He has produced, hosted, and appeared on over 2,000 podcast episodes, helping corporate leaders, founders, authors, coaches, and storytellers find their voice and build authority through long-form conversation. His work spans corporate podcasting, busin...

Andy Ramage is a former professional footballer who, following a career-ending injury, went on to establish two successful financial brokerages. After taking a transformative break from alcohol, Andy experienced profound changes in his mind, body, career, and overall life. Now, a decade later, he is widely regarded as one of the world’s leading alcohol-free performance coaches. Andy is the best-se...

This is the 3rd edition of the Ride to Inspire 2026 series of podcasts — meeting individuals who are joining the Inspiring Leadership Foundation on a powerful three-day cycling experience uniting purpose-driven businesses, leaders, and communities to create meaningful social impact through sport, teamwork, and shared ambition. More than just a ride, this unique event blends energising corporate fu...

Brian Wood MC, is a British Army veteran and recipient of the Military Cross for exemplary gallantry on active operations. His life story was told in a Sunday Times bestselling book and later adapted into a 90-minute BBC Two drama, bringing national recognition to his service and resilience. Since leaving the military, Brian has become a leading mental health advocate and fundraiser for veteran ch...