Battling with Business

Episode 144 - The Leader’s Equation : Data vs Intuition

Leadership is not just about having data. It’s about knowing when the data matters, and how to apply your experience. In a world obsessed with dashboards and algorithms, are you still cultivating your leader’s instinct?
In this episode of Battling with Business, Gareth and Chris  dive into one of the most pressing questions for modern leaders: how do you balance data with intuition? From battlefield intelligence to product strategy, they explore when leaders should trust the numbers and when human judgment, instinct, and experience must take the lead.
Data is powerful, but insufficient without human interpretation and strategic context. Intuition is informed by experience, not guesswork. The best leaders fuse insight from multiple data sources rather than rely on one. AI amplifies decision‑making but doesn't replace judgment, creativity, or innovation. Knowing what question to ask is often more important than knowing the answer.

Episode 143 - Shifting Ground: Finding Purpose and Leadership in Times of Change

Change is inevitable, but how leaders handle transitions, both their own and their team’s, defines long-term success. In this reflective episode, Chris  and Gareth explore the many faces of transition: from promotions and career shifts to redundancy, retirement, and identity change.
Drawing on Chris’s recent personal experience of redundancy, they unpack how leaders can guide themselves and others through the uncertainty of change with honesty, empathy, and resilience. The discussion ranges from the emotional impact of transitions to practical advice on handovers, adaptability, and reframing identity.
They explore how leadership is tested most during times of transition, how managing emotional as well as operational aspects of change is critical. They also discuss how every transition, personal or professional, is an opportunity to grow. Leaders must support both those leaving and those staying behind and change, handled well, strengthens resilience and adaptability.
If you’ve ever faced a major shift in work or life, or led others through one, this episode offers grounded wisdom, humour, and perspective. Tune in to reflect, reset, and rethink how you handle transition.

Episode 142 - Rerelease of Episode 8 - Adaptive teams and Pirates

In this high-stakes episode, a release of one of our very first episodes, Gareth Tennant shares a gripping real-world account of how a small, well-trained team of Royal Marine Commandos outsmarted a group of Somali pirates, and what it reveals about building truly adaptive teams.
Discover how elite military units use repetition, rehearsals, mission command, and common operating procedures to stay agile under pressure. From battlefield coordination to business boardrooms, this episode breaks down the core principles behind high-performance teamwork in unpredictable environments.
Whether you're leading in crisis or just want to level up your team's adaptability, this story-driven episode is packed with actionable insights on resilience, trust, and executing flawlessly when it matters most.
Perfect for leaders, entrepreneurs, and teams who want to thrive under pressure.
Tune in now to learn how to build agile, high-functioning teams that can outpace the unexpected.

Episode 141 - Influencers #25 - Richard Branson - The Cult of Cool and How He Made Business Fun

In this episode of Battling with Business, hosts Gareth Tennant and Chris Kitchener explore the life and leadership lessons of Sir Richard Branson the entrepreneur, adventurer, and founder of the Virgin Group. Branson’s story is one of audacious vision, relentless optimism, and authentic leadership that continues to inspire generations of business leaders.
What does it take to build a global empire while staying true to yourself, and still have fun along the way? Leadership isn’t about control, it’s about curiosity and courage. Failure isn’t fatal; it’s feedback for the next attempt. Passion and fun can drive exceptional performance. Authenticity builds loyalty faster than authority ever can. Vision, optimism, and risk-taking create lasting impact.
From selling records and surviving a near-drowning in the Atlantic to building airlines and space ventures, Branson’s journey reveals how courage, curiosity, and compassion can coexist with commercial success. Gareth and Chris unpack his philosophy, from hiring to your weaknesses and putting people first to embracing failure as a path to learning.
Tune in to hear how Branson’s life of adventure mirrors the principles of great leadership, and why “Dr. Yes” might just be the ultimate example of leading with positivity.

Episode 140 - Red Teaming : Stress Testing Leadership and Strategy

In this episode of Battling with Business, Gareth Tennant and Chris Kitchener take on the challenge of Red Teaming, a structured way to challenge assumptions, stress test plans, and think like competitors or critics. They put the concept into practice by running a live exercise on air.
Listeners will learn why Red Teaming is different from everyday critique or boardroom debates, how it helps organisations avoid blind spots, groupthink, and overconfidence along with real examples from military operations, business transformations, and the COVID-19 crisis and then finishing up with a quick discussion about practical tools for applying Red Teaming in organisations of any size
Whether you are a CEO, team leader, or individual contributor, this episode will get you thinking differently about planning and resilience. Imagine a business where Red Teaming is a habit rather than a rarity. That's a business far better prepared for the unexpected!
Listen in to learn how Red Teaming can sharpen your strategy and strengthen your leadership.

Episode 139 - The Military Planning Combat Estimate - 7 questions that will change your business - Part 2

Gareth Tennant and Chris Kitchener reveal the second half of the UK military’s seven-step planning model, and show how every business can boost resilience and performance with clear, communal frameworks.
This episode focuses on turning strategy into execution: allocating resources, orchestrating timing, defining coordination, and establishing practical control measures. The discussion tackles cross-departmental alignment, reporting cycles, culture, and learning how to manage through real-world complexity and unexpected change. Listeners will discover how the discipline of “chunked” planning and cascading communication connects even the most junior team members to the outcome.
If you’re serious about building agile, winning teams in any industry, don’t miss this practical, engaging conclusion to the Combat Estimate series, and walk away ready to apply a proven template for smarter, faster business execution.

Episode 138 - The Military Planning Combat Estimate - 7 questions that will change your business - Part 1

Unlock the secrets of robust planning and flexible leadership by learning from both the battlefield and the boardroom.In the first episode of our exploration of the British military’s Combat Estimate, Gareth and Chris kick off a two-part deep dive into the UK military's renowned 'Seven Questions' Combat Estimate — a practical, repeatable approach for building resilient teams and effective management strategies.
This episode charts how military planning models, built for complexity and clarity, can transform business practices. Explore why a decision is better than indecision, and why planning is not just about the document but the discussion and alignment across every level. Key takeaways include the power of context, the importance of communicating intent, and the principle that adapting is winning — whether you're leading eight people or a thousand.
Don’t miss the engaging debate on why organizations often rush into execution over thoughtful strategy, and how adopting a repeatable planning framework can drive competitive advantage. Listen now for insights and prepare for Part 2, where Gareth and Chris unravel the remaining questions and reveal how every business can use the Combat Estimate to win in fast-changing environments.

Episode 137 - Influencers #24 - Dwight D. Eisenhower

Episode Summary: Dwight D. Eisenhower – Leadership Lessons for Business and Beyond
In this Influencers episode of Battling with Business, Chris and Gareth explore the leadership legacy of Dwight D. Eisenhower — Supreme Allied Commander during World War II and later the 34th President of the United States. Known for his calm authority and strategic thinking, Eisenhower shaped the course of history through coalition building, careful planning, and decisive action.
The conversation unpacks how Eisenhower managed complex teams, balanced powerful personalities, and made critical decisions under pressure skills as relevant to today’s business leaders as they were on the battlefield. 
From military command to political leadership, Eisenhower’s legacy offers timeless insights into delegation, organisation, and building trust. Whether you’re leading a team, a business, or just looking to sharpen your decision-making, this episode reveals what modern leaders can learn from Eisenhower’s example.

Episode 136 - Rerelease of episode 6 - What are Command, Leadership & Management?

Rerelease: Command, Leadership & Management
We’re taking a step back into the archive to revisit one of our most listened-to episodes of Battling with Business: our deep dive into command, leadership, and management.
In this conversation, Chris and Gareth unpack the often-confused but vitally important differences between these three concepts. Drawing on both military and business experience, we explore how they overlap, where they diverge, and why understanding the distinctions matters for anyone trying to get the best from their team. Crucially, we highlight why being clear about the differences is especially important in the military, where lives can depend on the balance between command authority, leadership influence, and effective management.
We look at questions such as:
What makes a good commander versus a good leader or manager?
Why do organisations so often blur these roles?
How can clarity improve performance in business, teams, and on the battlefield?
This episode is a straight rerelease — no edits, no new intro — just the original conversation as it was recorded, highlighting lessons on leadership and management that are as relevant today as when we first released it.

Episode 135 - The Philosophy of Leadership with Professor Damian O'Doherty: Lounges, Bureaucracy, and the Myth of the Hero

In this special episode of Battling with Business, Gareth and Chris are joined by Professor Damian O’Doherty, an academic at the University of Liverpool whose work explores leadership, organisational culture, and critical management studies.Together, they dive into the philosophy of leadership and management, exploring ideas like: Reconstructing organization: moving beyond modern vs. postmodern management thinking. Loungification of society: why our workplaces (and even leadership styles) might look more like lounges than factories.The myth of the heroic leader: why hero-worship in leadership can be dangerous and how bureaucracy might be due for a comeback.Ethnography in business: what we learn when we actually live inside the organizations we study.
This episode is less about practical frameworks and more about challenging ideas that shape how we see leadership today.