The Proust Questionnaire: Mark Bretton
The Proust Questionnaire: Mark Bretton
The Proust Questionnaire: Mark Bretton
Happiest when he is at the top of his business, reckons he could compete with Churchill with leadership speeches remembered as a normal bloke who led from the front...
SSON: Who do you look up to in business and why?
Mark Bretton: I have worked with some bright entrepreneurial people (Allan Leighton, Adam Crozier for example) as well as some high profile politicians and military officers. It is hard to name one individual, but leaders who have made a difference to their teams always get my respect.
SSON: What has been your greatest achievement?
MB: I have been lucky in many ways. I have a beautiful family (wife and two teenage daughters). As a Territorial Army Officer, I was privileged to command the TA detachment at The Cenotaph for Remembrance Day and I have just finished being Centenary Captain at my golf club. Completing the restructuring of Royal Mail's customer service business (73 sites to 9 with major process and technology change) without using a single external management consultant sits high on my business list.
SSON: What is your greatest regret?
MB: Not making a bigger external splash of the Royal Mail programme; it was probably one of the largest customer service transformations in that 10 year period.
SSON: If you could do it all over again, what would you do differently?
MB: Not send a couple of strong emails that came back to haunt me later! Other than that, not a lot. It is easy to review what you did with 20:20 hindsight, harder to be content with the decisions you made at the time. Certainly I could have followed a more financially lucrative path but who knows what I might have had to forego on the way.
SSON: What looks like the biggest potential for you right now?
MB: TCS is growing even more rapidly than before and it is now a world force in its chosen markets, exploiting this is a great opportunity.
SSON: What is your favorite occupation?
MB: Working with people and clients to make a difference. You can give it any title you like, but I do like being at the top of my business.
SSON: In 10 years time - how do you see your current operation being run?
MB: Not by me, time for some more golf and someone younger to take over, hopefully someone I've groomed.
SSON: Which management books do you read?
MB: To be honest, not many, but I have a signed copy of The Black Swan in my hand baggage yet to be openedmaybe this trip
SSON: Who are your favorite writers?
MB: I read quite a few books by news journalists (John Simpson et al). They tell great stories of our time in wonderfully graphic prose.
SSON: What car do you drive and what should you be driving?
MB: A Jaguar and a Jaguar!
SSON: What's your favorite 10 minute dish that you cook yourself?
MB: I don't cook much, but my daughters would say "Dad's special mince"
SSON: Tell us a behavioral trait we should expect of you
MB: Strong sense of what is right, leadership by example always.
SSON: Reveal one weird thing we don't know about you
MB: I am totally flat footed which for someone who spent 20 years in uniform is unexpected.
SSON: What one question would you put to your peers?
MB: How can we make our industry an even more fun place to work in (and that does not include killing email as an answer!)
SSON: Which historical figure do you most identify with?
MB: Thatcher for strength of purpose, Ballesteros for scrambling and Churchill for great leadership speeches.
SSON: If your job requires a lot of traveling - what is your favorite journey?
MB: To India, always. 26 trips and not counting.
SSON: What is the quality you most like in men?
MB: Gentlemanly conduct, politeness and respect for ladies
SSON: What is the quality you most like in women?
MB: Pride in personal appearance, chic and elegance, the ability to multi task in a wide range of activities that would put a man to shame.
SSON: What is your motto?
MB: To aspire wherever I have worked, to be remembered as a normal bloke who led from the front, looked after his team and did the right thing.
This article was first published on the SSON website; read the original article here.
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