Kevin Gaskell

Kevin Gaskell has been recognised as one of the most capable leaders of his generation. He has led three of the world's iconic brands to new levels of success and managed successful turnarounds of failing international companies.
An engineer and accountant by qualification, at the age of 32 he was appointed Managing Director of Porsche Cars GB. Inheriting a business which was close to bankruptcy he built a world class team to focus the business back to its engineering heritage. In the space of 5 years Porsche was changed from a struggling business into the UK's most profitable car company. In 1997 he joined BMW (GB) as Managing Director where he formed a team who challenged themselves to challenge the business. Driving a shift to a more agile, creative and entrepreneurial culture the team achieved 4 years of record growth with sales improving by 40% and profitability increasing by 250%.
In 2000 he was appointed European Chief Executive of CarsDirect.com. A few months later the parent company retrenched to the USA. The European team used the opportunity to raise new funding and create a business which, within 5 years, became the UK's leading provider of e-commerce solutions to the automotive fleet sector. On exit, 9 years after incorporation, the shareholders were paid a return of 200 times their investment.
Kevin is an energetic and passionate leader with a proven record of business success. His other notable achievements include representing his country at sport, walking unsupported to both the North and South poles and playing in a rock band!

Using practical lessons contrasting the experience of driving business turnaround and growth with that of walking to the poles a structured approach to achieving success in adversity is identified. The role of the leader is key to forging the creative and resilient culture which drives success. What does a leader need to bring to the role and what can they expect to take from it How can they achieve extraordinary results, even in difficult markets How can it be fun for everyone involved

He answers these questions and draws upon his wide experience including that gained from his ongoing chairmanship of global companies to share practical lessons on how to motivate people to achieve extraordinary results. He uses an open and involving style to share with the audience the concepts, methods and techniques which they can use to drive their own business to greater success. He passionately believes that by the application of a consistent set of priorities and skills leaders can be developed at all levels in an organisation who will be instrumental in driving positive change.