Pandemics expert Sir Jonathan Van-Tam shares leadership insights at global consultancy leadership summit in Madrid.
Infrastructure leaders gathering in Madrid for FIDIC’s third annual Global Leadership Forum Summit benefited from the insights of keynote speaker Prof Sir Jonathan Van-Tam, former deputy chief medical officer for the UK and a leading public health specialist with a clinical background in emergency medicine, anesthesia and infectious diseases.
Van-Tam, who is well known for his leadership role during the Covid-19 pandemic, explored how, in a global crisis, actions were achieved at a pace previously unimaginable. The insights and experiences he shared offered key learnings to the infrastructure sector to help it speed up progress in areas such as climate change, growth, AI and addressing the sector skills shortage.
Recounting the response to the threat posed by the Covid-19 pandemic, Van-Tam highlighted some of the issues around communications in a changing situation and the challenges involved in dealing with politicians. “Political leaders had to integrate scientific advice with social and economic considerations and this in itself was challenging,” said Van-Tam. He also said that in a modern, free society, making critical decisions in an age of instant communications and social media was also very challenging.
He drew parallels between pandemic preparedness and challenges like the climate crisis, both of which would see politicians and professionals being held accountable for their decisions. “You have to be able to speak truth to power when working with politicians,” said Van-Tam, as this was a prerequisite to good, open and clear leadership. If you are not prepared to do that then don’t work with politicians, was Van-Tam’s clear message.
Van-Tam spoke about the importance of “being able to look at yourself in the mirror as a leader as only you has to live with that for the rest of your life”. Choosing your moments when to speak out, especially to politicians, was also crucial, he said, stressing the dangers of expending political capital. Highlighting his ‘ingredients’ for leadership, Van-Tam listed the following areas as being crucial for all leaders to grasp.
- Understand threat.
- Understand the ecosystem.
- Mission clarity.
- Know yourself and your role.
- Use data to solve problems.
- Balance radicalism and urgency with calculated decision making.
On communicating to the public in a time of crisis, Van-Tam said that honesty, accuracy and “levelling with people” was really important and showing people that you were like them. “Developing social solidarity and empathy is crucial,” he said. Van-Tam’s down-to-earth and accessible style went down well with the infrastructure leaders present at the summit in Madrid. He came across as a calm, measured, authoritative and believable voice who had played a crucial role at a time of crisis in his country and for the world.
