News Innovation and Leadership: Two Exciting Talks and Workshops 21.11.2025
In November, students, parents and staff explored effective communication and entrepreneurial thinking. Lydia Jourdain introduced the five lenses of The Communication Code, helping participants understand their communication styles. Dr Gorkan Ahmetoglu then highlighted key entrepreneurial traits—vision, creativity, proactivity and opportunism—and how developing them can enhance wellbeing, confidence and success.
Monday 17 November – The Communication Code
We were delighted to welcome back Lydia Jourdain, executive leadership coach with Wakeman Wright, who delivered a GiANT workshop on The Communication Code. In a welcome change from the usual format, this session brought together Year 10 Innovation and Leadership students, Lower Sixth students in leadership roles, and parents for a shared learning experience.
The workshop focused on helping participants understand their preferred communication styles—both how they naturally transmit and receive information.
The Communication Code breaks communication down into five lenses: care, critique, collaborate, clarify, and celebrate. After exploring these lenses, participants identified their personal defaults before designing their own preferred order. It was fascinating to hear the rich discussions around what felt most natural to different people and, unsurprisingly, to discover just how varied we all are.
These lenses and tools have given us all plenty to reflect on as we continue to explore the most effective ways of understanding ourselves and one another. Ultimately, we hope that students—and any members of our wider community who join us—develop greater self-awareness, self-leadership, collaborative skills, and the confidence to lead others.
Wednesday 19 November – The Entrepreneurial Mindset
We were also pleased to host Dr Gorkan Ahmetoglu, Associate Professor of Business Psychology at UCL and co-founder of Meta Profiling Ltd, for a compelling talk on The Entrepreneurial Mindset. As a leading expert in talent management, psychological profiling, entrepreneurship, and consumer decision-making, Dr Ahmetoglu drew on more than 15 years of research into the benefits of entrepreneurial thinking.
His central message was clear: a strong entrepreneurial mindset not only contributes to greater happiness but also enhances our success in everyday tasks—regardless of whether we consider ourselves entrepreneurs. Through his research and writing, Dr Ahmetoglu has identified four core competencies that underpin this mindset: vision, creativity, proactivity, and opportunism. He discussed both the value of these traits and the practical ways we can intentionally develop them.
One compelling example came from a project in Africa, where micro-entrepreneurs trained in proactive entrepreneurial behaviours significantly outperformed both a control group and those given traditional business education. This “personal initiative training” approach was developed by Professor Michael Frese of the National University of Singapore Business School and Leuphana University.
A particularly encouraging takeaway is that our Futures Programme and Year 10 Innovation and Leadership Course are already designed to nurture exactly these competencies. As Leila in Year 10 reflected after attending the talk, she ‘could recognise that activities and learning aligned to many of the traits associated with entrepreneurial competency.’