John leads the Leadership Centre's work on the ground-breaking Total Place initiative, which grew from the Leadership Centre's successful work with over 150 local authorities across England. Total Place has attracted the support of senior leaders from across the public sector and Whitehall and has the potential to be a catalyst for fundamental change. John is also responsible for the Leadership Centre's overall strategic direction and its work within the Local Government Association Group. As the Leadership Centre's director of operations, John was instrumental in developing the Leeds Castle Leadership Programme, widely regarded as the foremost development programme for top leaders and chief executives in local government. Before coming to the Leadership Centre, John ran his own very successful leadership development business working with both the public and private sectors, including several of the world's largest companies.