Intertek CEO visits Dhaka with his first book

Intertek CEO André Lacroix has taken part in a series of events held in the capital over his debut book "Leadership with Soul," which challenges conventional leadership thinking practices and invites existing and future leaders to reinvent their approach to become ever-better leaders.

At the University of Dhaka's Nawab Ali Chowdhury Senate Bhaban, hundreds of students and aspiring leaders participated in a #MeetTheCEO and Q&A sessions organised by ICE Center in collaboration with the Faculty of Business Studies of the university. During the event, André talked about his own leadership journey, the 10 principles at the heart of Leadership with Soul, and what it means to be a good leader. 

Photo: Courtesy

He also met the university's Vice Chancellor Dr Md Akhtaruzzaman, and Md Rashedur Rahman, founding executive director of ICE Center.

Dean of the university's Faculty of Business Studies Dr Muhammad Abdul Moyeen expressed his commendation for the book and the author's leadership model saying, "Leadership with Soul offers practical guidance and insights for developing a leadership style centred on awareness of self and others, compassion, integrity, authenticity, trust, and transparency. This work is an invaluable addition to literature on leadership."

André also met with the country's senior business leaders in a roundtable event, where he discussed how good leaders can make a big difference by delivering sustainable performance for all by putting people at the heart of strategic thinking and day-to-day operations.

Describing the events in Dhaka as "energising," André said, "It was incredibly inspiring to meet with so many people who are as passionate as I am about good leadership. From students at the university to senior leaders of some of the country's biggest businesses, I was struck by their warmth, enthusiasm, and the common view we shared that the only way to deliver sustainable growth and value for all stakeholders is by putting people at the heart of an organisation's growth strategy."

In Leadership with Soul, Lacroix reveals his model for business success built over more than three decades of experience with world-leading organisations such as Ernst & Young, PepsiCo, Burger King, Euro Disney, Inchcape, Reckitt Benckiser, and Intertek. André attributes his success to taking an empathetic, humanist approach for driving sustainable growth and value for all including customers, employees, shareholders, communities, and the society as a whole.

With a Gallup survey showing that 80% of the global workforce is disengaged, every day 2.8 billion individuals go to their workplace without passion and excitement about their day ahead, a shocking statistic that shows how people truly feel today at work. André asserts that too many companies are over-managed and under-led, with damaging knock-on effects for employee morale, productivity and performance.

Through a combination of real-life anecdotes and vivid storytelling, André has brought forth his 10 leadership principles before the readers in an inspiring fashion, providing interested stakeholders with the tools to think differently about leadership and urging them to trust, empower and galvanise their people, putting them at the heart of their business strategy, which, André argues, is the only way to deliver sustainable growth and value for all stakeholders.