Professor Jennifer Hudson joins Sarah to explore the role of leadership in higher education, and the balance between academic achievement and shaping future leaders in a time of cultural shifts, innovation, and uncertainty. Post-pandemic, higher education is undergoing rapid change, juggling economic pressures with a growing demand to rethink what learning should look like in 2025. How do we balance curiosity and critical thinking with the ability to disagree well—against a backdrop of cancel cu...
Apr 10, 2025•51 min
Can we live in a world of compromise instead of cancel culture? Sam McAlister is a former news night producer and the orchestrator behind one of the most famous royal interviews of our time. Since leaving the BBC, Sam has written Scoop, which later became a Netflix hit and featured Billie Piper and Gillian Anderson. Sam has since switched media for academic and is a fellow at the London School of Economics. Sam joined Sarah to explore what it means to lead today through the lens of public broadc...
Mar 31, 2025•56 min
In this week's episode, Gillian Tett, a Financial Times Columnist, joins Sarah to explore whether traditional media can still lead and influence. With the rise of AI-generated content, the challenge of misinformation, and the breakdown of trust in institutions, can traditional media still shape public discourse, influence decision-making, and hold power accountable? Gillian Tett writes a weekly column on Friday, covering a range of economic, financial, political and social issues. She also serve...
Feb 27, 2025•38 min
Hope not hate is an antifascist organisation leveraging the power of hope in the face of hate. Dr Joe Mulhall joins Sarah to explore the kind of leadership we need to address deep ideological and political polarisation, the rise of far-right political party, Reform, the power of MAGA as a force for change, the expectations of a new government, the overwhelming importance of community and where we can all find hope. In an honest and uplifting conversation, Sarah and Joe explore why the UK has bec...
Feb 19, 2025•1 hr 9 min•Season 5Ep. 11
What type of leadership do we need to address the climate crisis? In this episode, Sarah welcomes Emma Howard-Boyd, Chair of Client Earth, Climate Resilience for All and the London Climate Resilience Review and a Global Ambassador for Race to Zero and Race to Resilience, to answer One Question. With devastating serendipity, this episode was recorded just as the wildfires took hold of LA, causing so much destruction. Sarah and Emma discuss whether we only change something if we feel it, the polit...
Jan 20, 2025•1 hr 3 min•Season 5Ep. 10
CEO of Octopus Money, Ruth Handcock, joins Sarah to explore how we lead today through the lens of financial services. Part of the Octopus Group, which includes Octopus Energy and investments, Octopus Money is democratising financial understanding to create an economically stronger society, one day at a time. A B-corp with a long-term mission, Ruth explores how the values of the business impact her leadership, the dotted line between culture and profitability, the importance of diversity of thoug...
Dec 13, 2024•1 hr 18 min•Season 5Ep. 9
How do we lead today? In British Politics. This week's episode is timely, as Sarah is joined by Jack Doyle, former associate editor at the Daily Mail and Director of Communications to Boris Johnson at 10 Downing Street. Jack left journalism after ten years in the newspapers to become Boris Johnson's political spokesman and press secretary before being promoted to communications director and working with the then-prime minister during the Covid pandemic before joining Headland as a partner in 202...
Dec 06, 2024•1 hr 32 min•Season 5Ep. 8
Nadia Innanuzzi is the President of the international organisation OTT Hydromet, which was founded in Germany and became a subsidiary of American corporate Veralto in 2023; as an Italian female leader, Nadia has a unique perspective on what it means to lead today across different markets and cultures. Nadia is joined by corporate communication leader Marshall Manson. Manson started his career in American politics before joining several leading communication agencies in the US and the UK, where h...
Nov 27, 2024•1 hr 17 min•Season 5Ep. 7
Kay Rufai is an artist, photographer and founder of S.M.I.L.E-ing Boys Project, a project to address the rise in youth affected by violence, which sparked a series of reactionary approaches from the government regarding tougher criminalisation of youth, more stop and searches and greater police presence in global majority communities. These approaches inspired Kay to investigate the mental health provisions, or lack thereof, for the demographic in question - Black youth. Kay joined One Question ...
Nov 14, 2024•1 hr 10 min•Season 5Ep. 6
In 2024, the rate of suicide is the highest it has been in twenty-five years. In the last decade, 6929 young people, those under the age of 39, have taken their own lives; suicide is the most common cause of death for those under 24. Perhaps the country's most critical challenges are supporting positive mental health and addressing the overwhelming rise of those in crisis. Sarah is joined by leaders from three of the biggest charities: Simon Gunning, CEO of Campaign Against Living Miserably; Son...
Oct 22, 2024•1 hr 34 min•Season 5Ep. 5
Using artistic license to tweak this week's questions, Sarah is joined by Sarada Peri and Lindsay Holst, part of the recent Democratic Conventions Writing Room, to explore how we tell the story of leadership when leadership is uncertain. Before founding her own communications practice, Sarada was a former senior speechwriter for President Obama, working closely with Lindsay Holst, who, before co-founding Group Project, was director of digital strategy for President Obama. Sarada, Lindsay and Sar...
Oct 12, 2024•1 hr 9 min•Season 5Ep. 4
Sarah is joined by Richard Meddings CBE, Chairman of NHS England, and George Gordon, Communications and Corporate Affairs Director of TSB, to answer this One Question through the lens of society. Are we increasingly being asked to lead in service of something greater than ourselves, or has that always been the case? It is just that the context of leadership has changed. Before joining the NHS, Richard Meddings was CFO of Standard Chartered Bank. He was integral to one of the most critical financ...
Oct 04, 2024•1 hr 10 min•Season 5Ep. 3
Dan Smith, managing director of communication and reputation consultancy, Headland, and Dr Ben Shenoy, psychologist, author, and professor at the London School of Economics, join Sarah in answering this series question, "How do we lead today?" Ben and Dan are authors of the Collaborative Report, research unveiling how a business that partners with peers and third parties can unlock financial, social and environmental value and how by tackling systemic challenges like the climate crisis, the rise...
Sep 25, 2024•1 hr 1 min•Season 5Ep. 2
"Hope is a renewable source. Fear is not. At a certain point, you run out of fear because it stops being real. Hope is a renewable resource. It is intended to be self-sustaining." In episode one of series five, in partnership with Headland Communications Consultancy, Amanda Litman, co-founder of Run for Something, joins Sarah to explore this series' One Question: How do we lead today? What does leadership mean in the US right now, and is a new model of leadership enough for a democratic win on N...
Sep 18, 2024•56 min•Season 5Ep. 1
Nick Hounsfield is an inspiration. Founder of The Wave, the first inland surfing destination in Bristol, and devout surfer, Nick is building a blueprint for business that prioritises people and the planet. In episode 14, Nick joins Sarah to chat about his vision for The Wave and the impact of the surfing community as activists for the future, the undeniable link between purpose and profit, passion, determination, and so much more. This conversation is truly one of hope for the future. Find out m...
Oct 31, 2023•1 hr 7 min•Season 4Ep. 14
*Please be aware this conversation was recorded before the terrorist attack on Israel on the 7th of October.* Over the last twenty years, Naseem Khuri has worked as a trainer, consultant, mediator and facilitator specialising in negotiation, influence, and conflict management. He is a Senior Facilitator with Vantage Partners, a Principal with CMPartners, and a Senior Advisor with Dragonfly Partners. He is also an Adjunct Assistant Professor of International Relations at the Fletcher School of La...
Oct 11, 2023•1 hr 7 min•Season 4Ep. 13
Sometimes, when something doesn't exist, you have to create it. Nick Stoop spent ten years at the world’s largest asset manager, BlackRock before setting up Pangea in 2022. Having spent most of his career in Asia, when he returned to the UK and sought to reallocate his UK personal pension into positively impactful funds, there were few options, so he built one. Founder of Pangea, a positive impact wealth management provider to individual clients in the UK, Nick joins Sarah to answer our One Ques...
Sep 27, 2023•1 hr 2 min•Season 4Ep. 12
In this episode, Sarah is joined by Dr. Sarah Hughes, CEO of Mind, to answer this series question from the perspective of leadership in the non-profit and charitable sector. Spanning a 34-year career in mental health and criminal justice, Dr Hughes is a powerful voice on the importance of rewriting the rules of leadership and the economic model of charities and foundations in the UK. At a time of turbulence and an opportunity for change and during an increasing mental health crisis, how can inno...
Sep 13, 2023•1 hr 3 min•Season 4Ep. 11
As the title states, the Activist Leader is a new mindset for doing business. Co-author Lucy Parker has worked with companies all over the world and in all sectors to help them shape and deliver their social value strategies. Before setting up Brunswicks Business & Society practice, Lucy chaired the UK Prime Minister’s Taskforce for Talent and Enterprise for Gordon Brown, focused on high-value skills for a competitive edge in the global economy. As well as co-authoring The Activist Leader an...
Aug 21, 2023•1 hr 25 min•Season 4Ep. 10
Before joining TBWA, Larissa Vince was CEO of the independent agency NOW, a former Managing Director at Saatchi & Saatchi and a passionate advocate of the commercial value that difference can bring to teams and creativity. Larissa joins Sarah to explore what leadership means in the advertising industry, from a lack of diversity to old economic models, do the rules of leadership need to be rewritten to reflect an ever-evolving society, and if so how? An honest conversation on the highs and lo...
Aug 02, 2023•1 hr 1 min•Season 4Ep. 9
Tina Ziegler is a torchbearer for the new contemporary art market, having successfully executed and produced over 300 exhibitions. Tina is currently the director of Moniker Art, Moniker Foundation and The Ziegler Academy, pushing the boundaries of art, fashion, and media. Tina joins Sarah to explore leadership through the lens of the art industry. Arguably the art industry, encompassing the creative industries as a whole, has been rewriting the rules of leadership since time began, be it through...
Jul 11, 2023•52 min•Season 4Ep. 8
Natasha Whiting is the CEO and co-founder of Kollo Health. Her deep passion for improving lives led her to co-found Kollo Health in 2020, introducing their first product, the highly acclaimed and multi-award-winning Kollo Premium Liquid marine collagen. Natasha's leadership and dedication earned her recognition, including being honoured for her contributions as a team leader in tsunami relief efforts of 2004 at the age of 18. Natasha joins Sarah in conversation answering our single question thro...
Jun 28, 2023•40 min•Season 4Ep. 7
Dr Menaal Munshey joined the United Nations, Internation Immigration Organisation, Pakistan, in January 2023 following roles at the UN in Tokyo, Barcelona, Vienna and Beirut. A lawyer and criminologist, Menaal has worked on legal aid, criminal justice and prison reform in Pakistan and is leading Indus Relief 2022 , a fundraising initiative for immediate flood relief in Sindh. More recently, Menaal joined the One Question Foundation as Ambassador. Menaal joins Sarah to explore what leadership mea...
Apr 19, 2023•54 min•Season 4Ep. 6
Cody Keenan rose from a campaign intern in Chicago to become chief speechwriter at the White House and Barack Obama’s post-presidential collaborator. Today, Keenan is a partner at leading speechwriting firm Fenway Strategies and teaches a popular course on political speechwriting at his alma mater, Northwestern University. His first book, Grace , was published in October 2022 and became an instant New York Times bestseller. Cody joins Sarah to talk about what it means to lead today, how you keep...
Apr 05, 2023•47 min•Season 4Ep. 5
Aliyah is the founder of student-led movement, Pupil Power and a student of Education, Policy and International Development at the University of Cambridge. Aliyah joined our annual conversation in September, to explore the role of education in the education system. How can businesses and society better understand the education system to equip the next generation as they navigate their careers? And perhaps, more importantly, what can businesses learn from generations to come on the values we need...
Mar 29, 2023•53 min•Season 4Ep. 4
It is perhaps somewhat unusual to invite the company Chairman, to the podcast to answer our question but, in true One Question style in this episode, Sarah chats to friend, chairman and founder of New Working Class, James Scroggs, to answer our single question, can we rewrite the rules of leadership? How do we define leadership in 2023? What are the tenants of true leadership? What role do business, society and perhaps more importantly education play in developing leaders of today and of the fut...
Mar 22, 2023•1 hr•Season 4Ep. 3
Episode two of the brand new series invites Joe Twyman, the co-founder of independent public opinion consultancy, Delta Poll, to explore our one question, can we rewrite the rules of leadership? One of Britain’s best-known political pollsters, Joe previously worked as Head of Political and Social Research at YouGov and was a director at the founding of the company back in 2000. Before leading the Political and Social Research Team at YouGov, Joe held a variety of senior positions within the comp...
Mar 15, 2023•1 hr 4 min•Season 4Ep. 2
Series 4 of the One Question podcast returns, asking, can we rewrite the rules of leadership? Episode one invites the Co-Founder of Word On The Curb, Ndu Uchea, to answer this series one question in conversation with Sarah. Word on the Curb is a youth insight and communications consultancy that specialises in working with ambitious brands to engage with underrepresented Gen-Z and Millennials. Ndu co-founded the organisation with business partner and friend, Hayel, when the two were studying at t...
Mar 07, 2023•1 hr•Season 4Ep. 1
In the final episode of this series asking, can business make society better? Sarah is joined by Lucy Stephens, Headteacher of The New School, a new type of school on a mission to positively change the way we educate children in the UK, Sebastian Gray, Headteacher at Laurance Haines School in Watford and Karrelle Dixon, formerly heading up advertising agency, Wieden+Kennedy in Portland, Karrelle is retraining to become a teacher. An integral perspective of the 2020 question through the lens of e...
May 06, 2021•1 hr 2 min•Season 3Ep. 12
In partnership with Bloomberg Media, Sarah is joined by CMO, Anne Kawalerski and Vice President of brand at Audi, Henrik Wenders, to answer our 2020 question, can business make society better? Through the lens of the marketing industry. An illuminating conversation on the responsibility of marketers in balancing a strategy based on core values and commercial success. The call for new metrics of success and the importance of 'practising what we preach' in business and in marketing. Please subscri...
Apr 01, 2021•1 hr 4 min•Season 3Ep. 11
