Episode 5: Bold Leadership with Lord John Browne, Chairman of BeyondNetZero and Former CEO of BP
Download MP3What does it mean to lead boldly? It can involve making unpopular decisions to chart a new way forward. In our industry, it can translate to putting planet hand in hand with profit or finding innovative ways to put sustainability at the heart of strategy. It can also mean being able to see where today’s trends might lead us tomorrow.
In this episode, ZeroNorth’s Chief Purpose Activist Lora Jakobsen sits down with Lord John Browne, Chairman of BeyondNetZero and former BP CEO, to discuss the necessity of leading boldly. Under his leadership between 1995 and 2007, BP made some of the most dramatic changes in the organisation's history and oversaw a change in direction that was radical, even by today’s standards. In his landmark 1997 speech at Stanford University, he set BP's intentions to become a global leader in the way they addressed climate change.
In this conversation, Lord Browne talks us through why he decided to change BP’s direction during his tenure and why bold leaders should expect pushback when implementing radical changes. Lora and Lord Browne also discuss why incentivising change is so important and how @ BeyondNetZero, a climate growth equity venture from General Atlantic that he helped found in 2021 and currently serves as Chairman for, is helping to finance the green transition.
Since his time at BP, Lord Browne has been involved with a large number of climate change initiatives, including BeyondNetZero, an organisation that focuses on identifying entrepreneurs who are addressing climate-focused problems and helping them scale, and currently has over $70 billion under advisement. He also serves as the independent co-chairman of the United Kingdom’s Prime Minister’s Council on Science and Technology, Chairman of the Queen Elizabeth Prize for Engineering, and Chairman of the Francis Crick Institute.
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Navigating Zero is presented by Lora Jakobsen, Chief Purpose Activist at ZeroNorth. ZeroNorth is a service platform helping the global shipping industry achieve optimal performance and reduce its carbon emissions, by blending advanced data-driven technology with human expertise. It was founded to lead the sustainable transition of global trade.
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