Ellee Seymour

"Responsible Leadership" is the title of an event I am attending in London this afternoon, billed as The Echo Summit.

We all know that strong leadership is inspiring while weak leadership is de-motivating and unproductive; we saw the contrasting effects of this with Gordon Brown and David Cameron over the last week. Now I shall hear the experts speak about it.

Echo Research, which specialises in reputation analysis, media measurement and stakeholder research, has put together a great line-up of talented movers and shakers, including  Chris Cramer, (pic) former MD of CNN International and the man credited with building CNN into a world-wide media powerhouse. He will be speaking on "When old media meet new" - the future of reporting and trust.

We will also hear "The Starbucks Story" - how global values and communications set it apart, from Cliff Burrows, President EMEA, Starbucks. If I get the chance to bend his ear, I shall tell him about how my son’s first request on leaving hospital was for a Starbuck’s frappaccino.

I’m also looking forward to hearing Adrian Hodges, MD of the Prince of Wales International Business Leaders’ Forum, speak on best practice in relation to activists and stakeholders globally. Our activists are so powerful and knowledgeable today, this presentation will be so interesting.

It’s going to be a quality event, and I’m naturally looking forward to the champagne jazz reception afterwards when I hope to meet up with Croydonian who introduced me to Echo.

I wonder, are great leaders born, or are they created?

Update 9 October: Great minds, BBC News Business ran a similar story yesterday asking if leadership skills can be learnt.

I strongly believe that individuals should give something back to society, that those of us fortunate enough to have good health and possess valuable skills should use them in a voluntary capacity to help others.

This is why I am a trustee of Headway Cambridgeshire, which helps rehabilitate brain injured adults. We should not take our own well being for granted.

None of us can tell if one day our luck will change, it could so easily be us who will rely on the time and skills provided by volunteers. That is particularly true with Headway because an acquired brain injury could happen to anybody without warning, like having a road accident or falling off a ladder, being attacked or suffering unexpected medical problem. Every year, one in 300 families in the UK is affected by a brain injury.

I am flagging this up because Headway Cambridgeshire is appealing for new trustees, and is particularly interested in hearing from people with the following skills - financial, marketing, surveying, social services, neurological, occupational therapy and fund-raising.

Andrew Gardner, (pic) our new chief exec, sums up the crucial role of trustees by saying:

“Trustees play a key role in the running of Headway Cambridgeshire. The skills and experience they can bring to bear can really make a difference to the success of the organisation.

“As well as doing something ‘worthy’ there is a huge amount of pleasure to be obtained from being involved in helping people achieve their potential. Trustees also get the opportunity to use their skills and experience in an environment that may not be familiar and this can be very rewarding for them as well as they develop new skills and experiences.”

I find it very enjoyable and rewarding to pop into Headway Cambridgeshire and try to get to know its members. It’s a fabulous place with very caring staff.

If this interests you, please do let me know. If you can’t help locally, maybe you can support another branch, or another chosen charity.

It is vital not to waste your skills and talents which would be appreciated by so many others.