Interview: How to use collaborative leadership to get the best out of your people Written by Ian Wylie Wednesday 17 May 2023 Share Share to LinkedIn Share to Facebook Share via email From counter-piracy operations to research and development, leadership professional Emma Bould CMgr FCMI says it’s vital to adapt your collaborative leadership to the context When you’re trying to solve big challenges, it’s best to take a collaborative approach. Just look at CERN, the European Organisation for Nuclear Research, which aims to understand the fundamental structure of the particles around us. To create the fabled Large Hadron Collider (probably the world's largest and most complex scientific instrument) it has brought together more than 7,000 scientists from 85+ countries. The organisation also works in a totally collaborative way. As Krisztina Holly describes, “there are no directors. No CEOs or presidents. No corner offices. In fact, the main building is cylindrical, with every office the same size. The leader of each experiment is called the ‘spokesperson’, and a ‘resource coordinator’ tracks the allocation of money and people.” Critically, says Krisztina, who has visited the site on the French-Swiss border twice, large Hadron Collider leaders “create the framework for people to share and contribute.” To explore how collaborative leadership works in practice, we talked to Emma Bould CMgr FCMI, who has spent her career in engineering leadership roles. Now director of corporate transformation services at Alvarez & Marsal – the corporate turnaround consulting firm best known for handling the Lehman Brothers’ bankruptcy – Emma has an executive MBA from Cranfield, worked for pharmaceutical giant GSK, and cut her leadership teeth in the Royal Navy. “The amount of leadership training you get in the military is huge,” she says, “because when you’re placed in an operational role, you have to perform.” You need to adapt your collaborative leadership to the context, so that you get the best out of your people Emma Bould CMgr FCMI Want to learn more about successful collaborative leadership? Login or register below for Free Instant Access Login If you are already registered as a CMI Friend, Subscriber or Member, just login to view this article. Confirm your registration Login below to confirm your details and access this article. Sign in with email Email remember me remember Forget? Please confirm that you want to switch off the "Sign in with email" remember me feature. Yes No Register for Free Access Not yet a Member, Subscriber or Friend? Register as a CMI Friend for free, and get access to this and many other exclusive resources, as well as weekly updates straight to your inbox. You have successfully registered As a CMI Friend, you now have access to whole range of CMI Friendship benefits. Please login to the left to confirm your registration and access the article. Interview At CMI, we’re hugely privileged to have contributed to many people’s management and leadership journeys. Take a look back at some of the people we’ve interviewed for some top tips and exclusive insight. Members See More CMI Members have access to thousands of online learning and CPD resources. Learn more about our membership benefits Join The Community CMI offers a variety of flexible membership solutions, tailored to your needs. Find out more and get involved in the CMI community today.