Discover the most powerful competitive advantage in today’s volatile landscape.

Trust in leadership is faltering across industries and geographies. 60 % of employees would take a pay cut for a better manager. In the UK alone, employment tribunals have doubled in two years and stress-related work absenteeism costs now exceed the UK defence budget. These statistics signal that the current paradigm on what makes a good leader has become outdated.

Time for a New Leadership Paradigm?

The world of work has changed forever, yet many leaders are still operating with frameworks built for stability, not volatility. Despite decades of investment in leadership development, too many leaders still struggle to inspire trust, sustain change, or create lasting impact. The leadership models that once worked – power, control, even “authenticity” or “servant” leadership – weren’t designed for the volatility and scrutiny of today’s world.

Kindness As A Strategic Capability

Far from softness, kindness is the sharp edge of performance – a measurable behaviour grounded in Trust, Credibility, and Purpose that fuels clarity, accountability, and collaboration.

Open Water is delighted to be hosting a live online conversation to coincide with the publication of the new book 'Kindness in Leadership: The Only Competitive Advantage in a Forever-Changing World;
(Amazon books 2025) by the founder of the Global Kindness Institute, Mark Doughty.  During a 1-hour session, Mark Will be joined by GKI’s global advisors, Jim Steele and Heather Swain to explore why Kindness in Leadership is the only competitive advantage.

Access Here

Meet the Speakers

Mark Doughty

Founder, Global Kindness Institute
‍Mark has over 30 years of experience in leadership and organisational development across top-tier global brands. Author of 'Kindness in Leadership: The Only Competitive Advantage in a Forever-Changing World' (Amazon, 2025), he is known for his innovative, award-winning work in leadership effectiveness. Mark has helped organisations build strategic capability and deliver transformative business results worth millions. He holds an M.Ed. and an M.A., is a member of the British Psychological Society, and a liveryman of the Worshipful Company of Management Consultants.

Jim Steele

Performance Coach & Global Advisory Board, GKI

Jim is a high-performance coach and award-winning speaker who's spent over 25 years helping senior leaders and sales teams unlock their mindset and deliver breakthrough results.  Author of "Unashamedly Superhuman", Jim's sessions are high-energy, grounded in science and full of practical insight you can apply straight away.Jim has worked with global clients across life sciences, finance and tech, helping leaders bring belief and impact to their biggest leadership moments

Heather Swain

Global Advisory Board, GKI

Heather is a talent and leadership development specialist with 30 years of global corporate experience, specialising in Professional and Financial Services.With deep expertise in organisational change, engagement, culture, talent and performance, leadership, and learning. She has worked with leading organisations such as KPMG, Deutsche Bank, Origin Energy, and most recently as Director of Talent and Learning at Deloitte. Her expertise lies in senior executive team performance, facilitation, team coaching, and driving organisational transformation.

Why Attend

If you are a changemaker, lead people, influence teams, or shape culture, this one-hour session will challenge how you think about performance and leadership.

You'll leave with:
1. A new lens on leadership.Why even the most progressive models – authentic, servant, transformational – no longer meet the demands of today’s volatile, high-accountability world.
‍2. A practical framework for impact.How kindness, operationalised through Trust, Credibility, and Purpose, creates stronger teams, clearer decisions, and measurable results.
‍3. Tools to assess and strengthen leadership.An introduction to theKindness Quotient (KQ) and KINDset framework as a new way to evaluate and build leadership that balances high performance with humanity.
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