Stephen Parkins

Culturedge

Building a network of executive coaches specialised in growth & innovation

Will soon be hiring:
-very experienced coaches with entrepreneurship and corporate leadership experience
-an entrepreneurial CEO
-exceptional account executives
(Soft skills even more important than hard skills)

Innovation Leadership Consultant & Founder

Enerfip Group

I'm leading the expansion of Enerfip Group to the Netherlands, and soon to Belgium & Luxembourg.

Enerfip is based in Montpellier and has grown to become Europe's leading investment platform for clean energy projects - having matched more than €400 million in investments and financed close to 500 projects.

CEO Benelux

Unicorn International Investments

International Growth Consultant

Our mission is to enhance economic opportunities for young people - especially around housing, wealth building and employment.

-Startup/scaleup management services (fundraising, budgeting, cap tables, growth hacking, sales strategy, digital marketing, talent acquisition, compensation structures)

-Venture building & startup investment (Real estate, Housing, PropTech, Tokenization, Digital Platforms, Digital Assets, FinTech, DeFi, Recruitment)

*Startup pitches in the domains listed above are welcome* (please send a direct message)

Managing Director

Digitulip

Founder & Innovation Director

Led the group's portfolio of early-stage innovation projects and chaired a global community of innovation leaders.

Since 2021 I have built our company's global incubation lab & innovation lab, recruiting a diverse team of top-tier innovators and designers. These 'labs' form the starting points from which we nurture and launch disruptive new business ideas for the group, working with our global business divisions and regions.

Based on our bespoke innovation thesis methodology, my team and I created the innovation strategy of our respective business divisions - enabling them to execute on this strategy and take a venture capital approach to allocating investments in innovation.

Subsequently, our global ideation campaigns have given SGS employees across the world the opportunity to participate in innovation and see their new ideas come to life. In addition to training and coaching on innovation, many participants have since received local recognition for their participation (such as promotions, new roles and additional responsibilities).

Reporting to the CEO, my current focus is on launching ambitious new progammes to explore business opportunities linked to emerging technologies (e.g. AI, blockchain, quantum, metaverse) - in line with SGS's ambition to become the leading digital company among its peers (TIC industry).

In terms of Open Innovation, I also act as the company's ambassador for external events and partnerships with startups.

Global Head of Innovation / Corporate Incubation

ABN AMRO Bank N.V.

Established and led Modular Banking Services, an ambitious bank-wide programme to integrate BaaS (Bank as a Service), FXaaS and Embedded Banking innovation and new business development activities across multiple business lines and subsidiaries.
Reporting to the ExCo (Executive Committee) on a regular basis, I acted as general project lead, with a strong focus on new client acquisition and product design. I introduced an agile / Scrum way of working for the project team.

Head of Modular Banking Services / Innovation Strategy Lead

My team and I founded corporate startups and pushed the most successful ones to scale.

I directed our corporate startup teams to create and accelerate Platform-based innovation initiatives and strategic partnerships - in order to fill our innovation funnel with new business models and sustainable sources of income for the bank.

Main focus areas: B2B Platforms, SME Growth, Financial Management, Financial Markets, Investment channels and Global Trade.

Managed a high-profile project team (20 FTE) in which we pivoted the business model of one of the bank's most prominent consumer banking products (Tikkie), transforming it into a revenue generator. Managed key senior stakeholder relationships and made investment recommendations to members of the board.

More generally, my vision was to drive change within the bank along two dimensions: a digital transformation alongside a cultural transformation.

Senior Innovation Manager & Venture Builder - Digital Platforms

Coached a portfolio of disruptive innovation teams. Responsible for steering, refining and accelerating their progress from 'ambitious opportunity' to 'real business'.

Brought a startup / VC mindset to the bank's innovation culture.

Employed Lean Startup, Design Thinking and Agile methodologies, to manage the bank's portfolio of innovation initiatives - both accelerating and "de-risking".

Focus was primarily on disruptive innovation within Corporate & Institutional Banking, Treasury and Commercial Banking (e.g. Supply Chains, Trade Finance, Structured Products, Asset Management, Energy Transition, Asset tokenization).

Innovation Manager / Corporate Startup Coach / Consultant

Rockstart

I mentored two startup teams, helping them to:
-generate new customer data (to sharpen their understanding of the problem),
-iterate on their value proposition,
-explore potential partnerships,
-prepare for their end-of-programme pitch

Startup Mentor

Applyr

VC-funded SaaS startup. I co-founded and co-designed Applyr recruiter chatbots, a customisable Artificial Intelligence software solution for corporate recruitment.

I led a small team of experienced entrepreneurs and techies. Full responsibility for Product Management, Sales / Bizdev / Digital Marketing, Partnerships, Finance / Budgeting / Fundraising, Recruitment and M&A.

CEO & Co-founder

MyDeliChef

Built Europe's largest Marketplace and Professional Network for Private Chefs.

MyDeliChef™ was an Airbnb-style online P2P platform for chefs and customers all over Europe and beyond.

In addition to developing the platform (Drupal, PHP, jQuery, JavaScript, HTML5, CSS3), I managed Sales / Partner acquisition, Digital Marketing, Multilingual Content and Recruitment.

Provided leadership to our small team: Product Development, Customer Service and Content Creation.

Founder & CEO

Sahara Group

Profit-generation via proprietary trading in oil derivatives (crude and refined products), portfolio management, risk management and optimisation of crude marketing positions.

Built the company's paper trading desk from scratch and managed all derivative trading strategies - both fundamental and technical.

Securities managed: ICE/Nymex futures, OTC product swaps, crude CFDs, complex structures

Head Trader - Derivatives

🌍 International Growth & Innovation Leader 🙋🏼‍♂️ I help ambitious innovators like you become industry leaders ✨ Innovation Management, Leadership & Culture

🚀 Corporate Innovation Leader | 🌐 Innovation Culture Champion | 📈 Entrepreneur | 💹 Former Trader | 🌐 Multilingual | 🎤 Public Speaker | Thinker & Doer

For close to 20 years, I've dedicated my career to helping businesses thrive in the face of VUCA forces (volatility, uncertainty, complexity, ambiguity). As a corporate innovation leader, my primary focus is on creating a thriving innovation culture and designing growth strategies for multinational corporations.

📰 Are you passionate about building a thriving innovation culture? Subscribe to my newsletter "Culture for Lunch," and join a community of professionals eager to learn and share insights on innovation culture and strategy 🌱🔗https://bit.ly/3msfl0B

I specialise in setting up, re-energising and leading innovation functions.

I believe in driving sustainable, ecosystem-based innovation with international scalability and impact. My expertise extends to digital platforms, multi-sided marketplaces, and emerging technologies, including AI, AR/VR, and blockchain.

🌍 I work in English 🇬🇧, French 🇫🇷, German 🇩🇪, Spanish🇪🇸, and Dutch 🇳🇱, and I shine when I'm building relationships across cultural borders and championing diverse teams to drive meaningful innovation.

As a servant leader, I'm committed to coaching and nurturing my team members' potential. Only in a climate of psychological safety can we expect innovation to flourish.

🎓 Key expertise:
➡️ Innovation Culture: Strategy, Portfolio Management, Governance, Execution, Finance & Impact Measurement
➡️ Entrepreneurship: Business Model Design, Digital Products, Platforms & Ecosystems, SaaS, Open Innovation, Corporate Venture Building, Product Management, Experiment Design
➡️ Emerging Technologies: AI, AR/VR, DLT / Blockchain, Tokenization, Smart Contracts, CBDC, Digital Transformation, Data & Analytics
➡️ Team Coaching, People Management, Talent Acquisition, Employee Development & Training, Partnerships
➡️ Public Speaking, Internal & External Communication
➡️ Sales, Digital Marketing, Business Development, Negotiation, Risk Management, Pricing, Procurement, Logistics, Inventory Management
➡️ Lean Startup, Design Thinking, Agile / Scrum, Operations, Project Management, Change Management
➡️ Financial Markets, Derivatives Trading, Market Psychology, Structured Products, Commodities, Forex, Hedging Strategies

🔗 Join the "Culture for Lunch" community today for original insights on innovation culture and strategy!
👉 https://bit.ly/3msfl0B

Global Head of Corporate Incubation / Innovation

My team and I are building SGS's global incubation lab & innovation lab, from which we nurture and launch disruptive new business ideas.

Currently hiring Innovation Coaches and Service Designers / Innovation Strategists with an international background and mindset

"Imagine we are on a boat... in a storm!"

Vince Vague stands before his team and he begins, for the first time in his management career, to face the tough task of telling them about imminent job cuts.

Known for his abstract messages, Vince now needs to be clear — something he's not used to.

Earlier, in his office, Vince had tried to find the right words. "Change helps us move forward," he practiced. "Challenges bring great opportunities."

But he remembered times when his vague language had made people think he didn't care.

This makes him worry about how to share the news...

But the reality is brutally simple: Senior management intend to cut 1/4 of his team. And he's been tasked with delivering the news.

And so, the Big Announcement begins.

Vince stands up and says, smiling nervously, "Like a garden, sometimes we have to remove some plants so others can flourish."

But his attempt to make the news softer with crappy metaphors actually makes it harder for his team to understand the true message about layoffs.

"Why are you talking about gardens?" someone shouts.

The team is visibly upset and confused. They can sense that something is not right.

They want straight answers and to feel that Vince understands their concerns.

"I want to be clear that I am talking about people! At least, some people."

Eventually his message get across.

After he mentions that "Not all of us will be present at the Christmas party", the team's hearts sink as they finally realise that some of them will be losing their jobs.

The team feels more disconnected than ever.

Beyond the upsetting facts, they wonder if Vince even cares about them.

"Is this just another day for him?" they wonder, feeling their trust in him fade away.

On the way out, one colleague with nothing to lose pulls Vince aside and gives him some frank feedback: "Do you see how your words affect us?"

This makes Vince think.

Deep down he realises that being a good leader means connecting with people on a personal level, not just sharing information.

And that trying to 'protect' one's team through softer, less direct language achieves the exact opposite.

ESPECIALLY in tough times, the team needs clear and empathetic communication.

And even when a leader can't change the difficult reality of what's happening, it's within his/her power to be radically open and sincere with the team.

This takes practice of course, particularly for 'big picture' thinkers.

So if you know a Vince Vague (or if you see a similarity with your own leadership style) it's important to start practicing this radical openness and clarity on a regular basis.

Because when the day comes that this leader needs to share news of layoffs or another painfully difficult message, the team will get the clarity and respect they deserve.
___________________
[The name has been changed, but yes: this is a story based on true events within a large corporation.]
#leadership
#ambiguity
#VUCA

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