Episode 159 – Authentic Leadership with guest David Enwright: The Post Office's Marketing Director on being brave and staying human leadership insight

Episode #159. Our first episode of 2026 is a personal understanding and leadership topic on authentic leadership with advice from a senior marketer on key leadership skills and finding your style.  Joining Abby is her guest David Enwright, Marketing Director at the Post Office and a long-time advocate for inclusive, human-centred leadership. With a career spanning HSBC, RBS, Allianz, and the Post Office, he has built a reputation for delivering commercial impact while creating environments where people feel safe, valued, and genuinely able to thrive. As a recognised role model for inclusive leadership, David leads with honesty and empathy, and brings lived experiences and candour to some of businesses most complex challenges.  In this episode, David shares his definition of authentic leadership, the importance of deep active listening, trust and psychological safety, and how he has developed his authentic leadership style. Plus, David's career highs and lows and advice for marketers of tomorrow.    00:00:00 Welcome and Introduction to Authentic Leadership  00:02:47 Defining of Authentic Leadership  00:05:00 David's Leadership Style  00:06:25 The Importance of Deep Listening   00:08:28 Creating the Right Environment for Conversations   00:09:46 Arriving at an Authentic Leadership Style  00:12:08 Learning from Mistakes and Personal Loss   00:16:05 Recognizing and Preventing Burnout  00:17:51 Building Psychological Safety and Trust   00:21:11 Benefits of Psychological Safety   00:23:09 Encouraging Bold Ideas and Growth Mindset   00:24:47 David's Career Highs and Lows   00:26:58 Advice for Marketers of Tomorrow   Host: Abigail Dixon FCIM/ICF | LinkedIn Guest: David Enwright | LinkedIn   The Whole Marketer podcast is here to support and empower the people behind brands and businesses with the latest technical tools, soft and leadership skills and personal understanding for a fulfilling marketing career and life as a whole. Did you know The Whole Marketer is more than a podcast and book? We're your trusted partners for marketing capability and transformation, providing consultancy, training & workshops, speaking, coaching, mentoring and trusted advisory service. Visit www.thewholemarketer.com to see how we support leaders to build marketing teams with the holistic skills to lead the long-term commercial agenda and deliver the true potential of marketing. Contact [email protected] to get in touch with Abby and the team