PTFL materials

Finally one aspect of our working lives linked to the increase in leaders facing VUCA environments is the growth of technology bringing great benefits, but also ever more rapid change and complexity in the systems we deal with. These sorts of challenges create tensions for all involved: but in particular for those who need to exhibit leadership. Finding yourself leading in a VUCA environment appears to be a ‘new normal’. What can a business school teach you about succeeding in a challenging VUCA environment? Well a good start is having tools and models with which to better understand this type of environment, such as those covered by our Cranfield

individuals to develop themselves in order to succeed in ever more complex environments. The focus has always been less on providing external knowledge and instead working to help people drive their own internal change, with consistently powerful results. “Rather than teach you external knowledge, which can be interesting but may avoid the issues, we work with people to access the rich tapestry of their own experience. From this they can improve the awareness of self, from which we can help them rediscover a sense of self- confidence”. And it is from this sense of personal strength – often referred to as ‘resilience’ – is developed. And all without a single powerpoint slide.

Biographies Drs Ido van der Heijden Doctoral Degree Clinical Psychology, Visiting Fellow, The Praxis Centre

Ido has an established reputation for over 30 years, as an expert in developing Emotional

Intelligence in organisations. He pioneered the in-depth personal development work at Cranfield since 1980 and later co-founded The Praxis Centre. Ido graduated as a clinical psychologist from The University of Groningen in 1976 and since then received extensive postgraduate training in different forms of psychotherapy. His knowledge and experience covers a wide spectrum of approaches to human development ranging from Freudian psychology to NLP and Meditation. Paul Hughes LLB MBA, Head of Praxis Centre Paul was appointed Head of The

“By working with people to help connect with themselves at a deeper level, we are able to help restore internal connections that have been lost from dealing with constant organisational, or personal, crises”

colleagues Professors David and Kim Turnbull-James. But understanding the environment isn’t the same as knowing how you can best cope with and achieve success within, a VUCA environment. While new techniques and new knowledge, such as tools or models, can support how you understand your environment, they may not enough to make you able to relate to it. That is less likely to come from new knowledge but instead emerges from a better appreciation Personal Leadership Development, Cranfield School of Management has worked successfully in this area for many decades. A key figure in that has been Drs Ido van der Heijden, a renowned Clinical Psychologist who has been teaching at the school since 1981. and connection with yourself. Through our Praxis Centre for

We have found that resilience is something that emerges not just from what you think, but also how you think and how you feel, appreciate, understand, conceptualise and process your environment. And no text book can teach you that. But it can be developed, as Drs van der Heijden outlines “Helping people build security in themselves is the key to a higher sense of self belief.” When we have helped people gain that foundation we are able to support people in not only understanding their environment, but enhancing how they relate to it. And from this comes the confidence to deal with the inevitable paradoxes within a VUCA world. Research has shown time and again that helping people know what to do is quite straightforward. But helping them have the courage to do it, when the paradoxes are in front of them and not in the classroom, lies at the heart of the difference between developing leaders in name, and leadership in practice.

Praxis Centre for Leadership Development in 2015, having

joined Cranfield as an Executive Development Director in 2011. His work is strongly focused on leadership and management development, organisational change and supporting people,

teams and organisations successfully implement or achieve strategies.

Paul is certified in the use of personal profiling instruments’ e.g. MBTI, Wave, 16PF, Belbin Team Roles, Assess as well as a number of proprietal tools. Since 2003 he has conducted over 10,000 hours of 1:2:1 capability assessment, development and coaching activities. He has coached board level leaders as well as functional heads.

Over the last 35 years Ido and The Praxis Centre for Personal Leadership Development have helped individuals, or groups of