Oct 22, 2025 | Events, Roundtables
On the 9th of October, we were joined by Michele Dix (MPA, NISTA and former TfL), Julia Pyke (Sizewell C) and Richard Holm (ICW) for our latest ResoLex Roundtable, ‘Are We Selecting and Developing the Right Type of Leaders?’ Almost two years on from the MPA’s No More Heroes report, senior voices from across the major projects community came together to reflect on progress. The verdict was mixed: while the sector is showing signs of change, particularly around collaboration and diversity, there is still a long way to go to see more examples of good leadership cultures that are inclusive, adaptive and emotionally intelligent.
Despite the broad acceptance that the “hero” leader model is outdated, our speakers brought perspectives through different lenses – combining client leadership, industry body viewpoints and consulting experience. Michele reaffirmed the relevance of the “incomplete leader” concept, reminding the group that no one person embodies every quality. She pointed to “green shoots” of change, such as improving gender and ethnicity diversity, but more is needed to reflect the wider diversity of thought. She also emphasised that leaders should be assessed not only on what they deliver, but how they lead. Building on this, Richard introduced the idea of “character skills”, a concept originally explored by Alex Grant, arguing that so-called “soft skills” should be reframed and revalued as essential competencies for leadership. From a client perspective, Julia stressed the importance of leaders communicating vision clearly, hiring wisely, and empowering their teams to perform at their best – connecting the work of major projects with wider social value.
‘It was great to represent the Institute for Collaborative Working and see the alignment between the ‘MPA No More Heroes’ publication and the ICW Collaborative Leadership Insights paper. Whilst independently undertaken, the conclusions were aligned, placing an equivalent emphasis on management experience, as there is to emotional intelligence, and collaborative leadership skills.’
Richard Holm
‘It was very encouraging to hear consensus on the need to move away from hero leaders and the recognition of leaders needing to be “learn it all’s” as opposed to the “know it all’s” going forward – especially in an increasingly complex system-based environment.’
Michele Dix
Designed as an open, interactive discussion, participants shared their own experiences of where progress is being made and where barriers remain. The conversation unfolded across three key themes, each exploring how the industry can evolve from individual heroism to collective, sustainable leadership.
- Leadership in Major Programmes – Beyond the “Hero” Leader
Leadership in major programmes demands more than technical excellence. It requires ‘learn it all’s’, not just ‘know it all’s’ – emotional intelligence, systems thinking and the ability to orchestrate collaboration across complex environments. Participants called for leadership to be treated as a specialised discipline, supported by deliberate development and structured learning.
There was a strong call to grow talent from within through mentoring, coaching and safe spaces for stretch roles. Human qualities such as courage, empathy and vision were highlighted as essential, with agreement that great leaders not only deliver outcomes but also connect people to purpose. The takeaway: leadership should be seen as a craft, shifting the focus from short-term delivery to long-term capability building and ensuring there are good leaders across the project or programme, not just at the top.
- Capacity and Succession – Expanding and Diversifying the Leadership Pool
The discussion turned to why the leadership pool for major programmes remains so narrow. Consensus pointed to both quantity and readiness, but also to confidence in the industry of there being a committed pipeline of major projects to be involved in. Too few people are being developed, and those who are, often lack the support or experience to succeed. Over-reliance on familiar names, rigid professional silos and limited cross-sector mobility continue to stifle diversity and renewal.
Participants also recognised a disconnect between training and practice. Leadership programmes exist, but the learning rarely embeds once people return to delivery-driven roles. Burnout, lack of progression and a “too busy to develop” mindset were identified as major risks to capability and retention.
To break the cycle, the group urged a move away from “hero” models towards shared leadership teams, recognising and rewarding leadership behaviours at all levels, not just at the top. Building a connected system that values leadership as a collective, long-term capability was seen as essential for resilience.
- Future Skills and Behaviours – Leading with EQ in an AI World
Looking ahead, participants explored what the next generation of leadership should look like. The message was clear: leadership development must start early, not at university but in schools and early career experiences. Education still teaches outdated command-and-control models, leaving future leaders technically skilled but emotionally underprepared. Closer collaboration between industry and education was seen as vital to redefining what effective leadership looks like, combining real-world experience with academic learning.
Bridging the gap between academia and industry was seen as critical. Participants called for more collaboration, with practitioners teaching in universities and academics engaging with live projects. Diversity of thought, empathy and adaptability were identified as future core competencies, especially as AI automates technical work.
The conversation also touched on the future of work. Younger professionals want autonomy, flexibility and meaning rather than hierarchy. Organisations that fail to offer purpose-led environments risk losing talent to more progressive sectors. As one delegate put it, “we can’t keep measuring people by outdated frameworks and expect modern leadership to thrive.”
Shifting from Heroic to Systemic Leadership
Across all three themes, the message was consistent: sustainable leadership in major programmes requires cultural and systemic reform. This will mean creating safe spaces for growth, structures for mentoring and mobility, and metrics that reward empathy, collaboration and trust.
Without these shifts, the Hero leader challenge will persist, with a small group of exhausted leaders carrying the weight of complex programmes while a generation of potential successors look elsewhere.
This roundtable marked just the beginning. In an upcoming playbook, we will explore the data gathered during the session alongside wider industry research and insights from related events. Together, these will examine how major projects can move beyond the hero leader model and build a more sustainable leadership ecosystem.
Stay tuned as we share more on what it takes to select, grow and sustain the right type of leaders for the future of major programmes.
Oct 10, 2025 | 25 in 25, Events, News and insight
ResoLex partnered with the University of East Anglia (UEA) on the delivery of the Enterprise Centre, one of the UK’s most sustainable buildings. The project set out to achieve exceptional environmental performance, using innovative materials and construction methods to push the boundaries of what was possible.
From the outset, the ambition to deliver a Passivhaus-certified, BREEAM Outstanding building presented unique challenges. Success required close collaboration across a wide network of stakeholders, including UEA, its architects, contractors, local suppliers, and funding partners. Traditional risk registers were insufficient here: they capture technical and commercial risks but overlook those arising from human behaviour, organisational practices, and cultural dynamics. These “invisible risks” around alignment, trust, and collaboration had the potential to derail progress if not actively managed.
That’s where ResoLex came in. We supported the project team with regular workshops and facilitated engagement sessions that created a safe environment for open discussion and problem-solving. Central to this was our RADAR tool, which provided a confidential way for individuals to share perceptions of risk, collaboration, and communication. This data was analysed by an independent panel and fed back to the team through monthly reports, highlighting both emerging risks and positive behaviours.
During our involvement, RADAR provided leading indicators of risk, often giving the team 6-9 months’ early warning of potential issues. This allowed leaders to adjust quickly, prevent conflicts from escalating, and maintain alignment around shared objectives. Crucially, the anonymity of the process gave stakeholders confidence to be candid, surfacing issues that might otherwise have been buried.
The findings showed that risks linked to expectations, commercial negotiations, and the use of pioneering materials were identified and managed early. For example, RADAR flagged concerns around affordability, supply chain capability, and programme clarity months in advance, giving the leadership team time to resolve them collaboratively. As Professor John French, UEA Project Sponsor, later reflected:
“ResoLex’s RADAR platform provided us with real insight into our scheme, allowing us to capture the views of all involved on the project. This ensured we were able to tackle issues early, reduce conflicts, and ultimately save time and money.”
The impact went beyond traditional project measures of cost, time, and quality. By embedding continuous feedback and collaboration into governance, the team developed stronger relationships and created a culture of trust and accountability. This cultural alignment was a critical factor in the successful delivery of a world-class facility that continues to be celebrated for its sustainability.
The project demonstrated that sustainable construction is built on sustainable relationships, and that behavioural risk management can be as important as technical expertise in achieving ambitious outcomes.
Oct 8, 2025 | News and insight
The University of Southampton has just released a paper Clienting in Major Projects: Beyond Outputs, Towards Outcomes. The paper presents a Clienting Framework for Major Projects that adopts a systems-based approach designed to help clients shift from buying assets to stewarding measurable outcomes. It has been great to be part of this valuable research alongside the University of Southampton and Emma-Jane Houghton.
The framework identifies six dimensions that move clients beyond transactional control towards outcome-focused orchestration:
- Purpose and outcomes – clarity of intent anchored in measurable value
- Governance and decision rights – authority that follows information, not hierarchy
- Client organisation and capability – lean but credible cores that blend technical and behavioural strength
- Procurement and contracting – incentives aligned to value, not volume
- Relationships and ecosystem – clients as trusted brokers within systems of delivery
- Methods, data and digital – shared evidence that builds confidence and enables adaptation
“Effective clients orchestrate collaboration”
The paper’s core finding is that clients must orchestrate ecosystems, providing the leadership that convenes suppliers, users, regulators, and sponsors, rather than attempting to control every detail from the centre. It outlines how weaknesses in any one area can systematically erode outcomes and offers recommendations, diagnostic questions, and vignettes illustrating how orchestration practices work.
ResoLex’s perspective
Major projects change places and lives, but too often they deliver assets, not the promised benefits. The University’s research echoes what we see in practice: outcomes fade when clienting focuses on outputs, not value creation. This is particularly evident when governance expands into bureaucracy and ineffective ways of working create decision-making latency, slowing delivery into paralysis.
For 25 years, ResoLex have supported major programmes to build the relational and behavioural foundations that enable technical and commercial excellence to flourish. The research validates what we experience daily: that the key to performance is not more governance, but better collaboration, shaped through trust, clarity, and shared purpose.
“Approaches grounded mainly in technical and procedural competence are increasingly ill-suited to the complexity of today’s projects”
At ResoLex, our work is about designing the relational and behavioural systems that prevent that fade, so technical and commercial excellence can actually produce the benefits intended. These principles echo our belief that collaboration must be designed, not assumed, through deliberate structures, behaviours, and feedback loops that align intent across diverse actors throughout the project lifecycle.
Our reflections
From our experience supporting some of the UK’s largest programmes, we see three priorities for clients seeking to act on the University of Southampton’s insight:
- Build relational capability early – create the operating environment that enables teams to work at pace and with candour
- Design governance for timely and effective decision making – empower the right people, with the right data to make the decision, and not descending into a pseudo collaborative culture of rule by committee
- Invest in being a ‘Client of Choice’ – predictability, trust, and a clear sense of purpose will attract better partners and unlock the potential of collective problem-solving to drive outcomes
Looking ahead
We are proud to have supported the development of this important research and look forward to developing a practical guide for clients. This seeks to translate the framework into actionable tools, techniques, and behavioural enablers for those delivering complex programmes.
Our shared ambition is simple: to help clients move beyond control to orchestration, creating delivery ecosystems that are aligned, adaptive, and capable of achieving the transformational outcomes society needs.
Read the full paper here: Clienting in Major Projects: Beyond Outputs, Towards Outcomes
Sep 4, 2025 | 25 in 25, News and insight, Social value
We’re delighted to share that ResoLex has been recognised as one of the UK’s Best Workplaces in 2025 for Consulting & Professional Services™ by Great Place to Work® UK 🎉
This recognition is based entirely on anonymous feedback from employees across the industry. Great Place to Work® UK used their research-backed Trust Index© employee survey to assess workplace culture, exploring how organisations support work-life balance, fulfilment, job satisfaction, psychological safety, and financial security.
The Best Workplaces in Consulting & Professional Services™ list includes organisations across a wide range of knowledge-intensive roles, spanning across management consultancy, legal services, engineering, marketing, recruitment, and more.
“Employees in consulting and professional services are under increasing pressure to perform amidst digital transformation and shifting client expectations, reshaping how people work. The top-performing workplaces in this sector stand out by actively supporting their employees through change. Employees have shared with us that clear, consistent communication from leadership, and a focus on inclusive decision-making have helped to ensure colleagues feel supported, informed, and empowered.
Congratulations ResoLex, on creating a truly great workplace and earning recognition as a UK’s Best Workplace in Consulting & Professional Services™”
Benedict Gautrey, Managing Director of Great Place To Work® UK
At ResoLex, we’re proud of the culture we’ve built together, one rooted in collaboration, trust, and the belief that strong relationships underpin successful outcomes. This recognition is a reflection of the amazing people who make ResoLex what it is.
You can view the full list here: UK’s Best Workplaces in Consulting & Professional Services™ 2025 | Great Place to Work® UK
