Ireland must 'manage less, lead more', says guru

"Ireland: manage a little less, lead a little more." This is the message that UK business guru René Carayol will be delivering loud and clear in his address on inspirational leadership at the Irish Management Institute (IMI) next week.

Leadership, Carayol insists, is the last missing piece in the Irish jigsaw. "If someone said to me, what does Ireland stand for in terms of leadership, I couldn't answer," he says. "You've got your infrastructure now, you've got a hugely talented workforce, the educational institutes are producing fantastic graduates and the skills base is high. The bit I would say is a little challenging on the landscape is that you're creating a nation of really good managers; where's the leadership?"

So what exactly distinguishes a leader from a manager? "The whole approach of a leader is catching people doing things right," he says. "The whole approach of a manager is catching people doing things wrong." Leaders have two key roles, he says - firstly they must get ordinary people to achieve extraordinary results, and secondly they must create more leaders.

"If you look to the UK, every time you get a fantastic leader, they create a whole generation of new leaders," he says, citing the example of Alan Layton, former chief executive of Asda, who created a "generation of retail leaders".

Although he feels that true leaders are thin on the ground in the Irish corporate sphere, we are not completely bereft of role models. "In the world of aviation you're in very very good shape. Willie Walsh running British Airways is outstanding," he says.

"And who could not be in love with Michael O'Leary? He knows what he stands for. If you want to know the culture of an organisation, look at the leader. Is it any surprise that Ryanair is the most risk-embracing, fast-moving, belligerent, aggressive, fearless operator in the sky when you've got . . . Michael O'Leary at the helm?"

However, he is insistent that, in general, Irish business leaders are overly pessimistic. "It's because they're managers at heart," he says.

Ireland is not particularly welcoming at the moment, he says, emphasising that the State must embrace the new workers flocking to Ireland, which he sees as the lifeblood of our economy. "At this moment in time, to maintain the lead that Ireland's got and the wealth that it's got, it should be asking one question - where are the new ideas coming from? It's from the new generation of Irish people," he says. "Diversity is an important part of leadership. The more diverse your management and leadership teams are, the more innovative they become."

So who exactly is René Carayol, the man whose joint mandate with the IMI is to create more business leaders in Ireland?

He has a classic business background, having spent 10 years with Marks & Spencers, and subsequently served on the boards of Pepsi and IPC Media.

In 2000, he retired - "for about three days" - before putting his extensive corporate experience to good use, penning Corporate Voodoo - Business Principles for Mavericks and Magicians, which went on to became something of a cult classic. Others may recognise him from the TV programme he presented earlier this year, Pay Off Your Mortgage in Two Years. In 2004, he was awarded an MBE for outstanding contribution to the business community. He now travels the world "from Johannesburg to Vegas, Moscow to Beijing", giving up to 80 talks a year.

In November he will chair the biggest leadership event in Europe which will mean interviewing Colin Powell, Richard Branson and Alan Sugar. "I've worked with so many fantastic leaders over the past five years, from Branson to Alan Layton to Nelson Mandela. I've yet to meet the flawless leader," Carayol says. "But what they have got are two or three things they're absolutely brilliant at, they're Olympian standard at.

"And the one tip I'd give to anyone who wants to be a great leader is, don't try to be brilliant at everything - that's what managers do."

Aspiring leaders eager to catch more of Carayol's pearls of wisdom at his IMI address next week should prepare by asking themselves the following searching questions: what are the one or two things you're brilliant at; who are your role models; and do you have a business mentor?

"Do those three things and come to my session; I'll do the rest," he says. "If you want to be better at leadership, you better be in my audience."

René Carayol will address a management briefing at the IMI Conference Centre on October 5th.