Honda UK

Exeter Leadership Partners

Honda’s involvement with the Business School began with Exeter Leadership Partners, a programme run by the Centre for Leadership Studies (CLS), which explores ways to unlock the leadership potential of individuals and organisations. “We became a partner for many reasons,” explains Pauline Wiseman, General Manager, European Human Resources at Honda. “We were attracted by the Partnership events and workshops, but probably the most important factor for us has been the personal consultancy.”

Making regular contact

Partnership events include evenings with leaders such as Justin King, CEO of J Sainsbury plc, and talks with distinguished visiting professors from around the world. Along with facilitated workshops on specific issues, these assist leadership development by sharing information and expertise – but it’s Honda’s ongoing relationship with the CLS that has had the greatest influence on the company’s strategic leadership thinking.

Alan Hooper, who originally founded the CLS, is the main link between the two organisations. “I meet with Pauline Wiseman twice a year, and also see Ken Keir, Senior Vice President of Honda Europe. But our relationship is now so close that we help each other on an ‘as required’ basis. We’ve built up such a level of trust over the years that all feel we can make contact at any time. I think this situation has evolved largely because Honda is a Japanese company, where management is based very much on trust.”

Pauline Wiseman agrees: “Only recently, one of our managers needed help with a particularly complex problem. I emailed Alan to ask if he knew anyone with the right expertise, and he recommended a specialist almost straight away. If we didn’t have such an open relationship open with the CLS, we’d probably still be trying to tackle the problem ourselves.”

More about Honda

Established shortly after the Second World War, the Honda Motor Company had become the world’s largest manufacturer of motorcycles by 1964. Today, it’s the sixth largest car manufacturer in the world – and it still produces motorcycles, as well as marine equipment, jet engines, generators and lawnmowers.

Worldwide, the company employs around 180,000 people – and 3,000 people at its European headquarters in Swindon.