At a time of deep uncertainty and overlapping crises, I chose to step beyond familiar paradigms. After 12 years of working in the United Nations, I joined Oxford’s Executive MBA not just to build skills, but to learn alongside people who don’t think like me. Different sectors, different pressures, different answers. In other words, I came to Oxford to encounter a fundamentally different approach to problem-solving.
The urgency of deploying such out-of-the-box thinking came into sharp focus during a recent briefing, when UN Secretary-General António Guterres put it plainly: 'These are times of peril. But they are also times of profound opportunity and obligation.' His words hit home. The world is changing fast. Our response must change even faster.
For those of us working in sustainable development, the message was clear: the UN’s mission is more urgent than ever. Yet, what struck me most profoundly was the urgency and the implicit demand for innovation, openness, and courage to transcend traditional boundaries.
Like many international institutions, the UN is grappling with a polycrisis: simultaneous, interconnected crises creating a perfect storm – climate disasters fuelling displacement, economic instability exacerbating social unrest, and geopolitical tensions fragmenting global cooperation. These problems don’t have simple solutions. Traditional multilateral responses are frequently constrained by political divisions, funding shortfalls and eroding public trust. Simply put, the old models alone are no longer working.
The Executive MBA has challenged me to look at how we can approach things differently.
After 12 years of working in the United Nations, I joined Oxford’s Executive MBA not just to build skills, but to learn alongside people who don’t think like me. I came to Oxford to encounter a fundamentally different approach to problem-solving.
The Oxford shift: strategy, scepticism and the space to think
So far, my time at Oxford has been fascinating and thought-provoking. The strategic tools we’ve explored – scenario planning, agility frameworks and market analyses – offer valuable new perspectives that can significantly enrich our existing approaches in the public sector.
Private-sector strategy often prioritises flexibility, responsiveness and decisive action. Public institutions, conversely, excel in accountability, equity and long-term orientation, but often struggle to pivot quickly in rapidly evolving crises. Bridging these two worlds is not straightforward. Yet, my experience at Oxford has confirmed that these are precisely why we must try. Real innovation occurs at intersections, not in isolation.
Public-private partnerships (PPPs) represent our best pathway – perhaps our only realistic avenue to sustainable and equitable development.
From talking across sectors to building together
The challenge – and the opportunity – isn’t abstract. It’s real and it’s urgent. We need to get people from different sectors talking earlier before plans are locked in, and also borrow tools that work, such as how the private sector tests, adapts and moves. We must build spaces where governments, businesses, NGOs, and communities can work together. If we make our partnerships more flexible, we’ll be better able to try things, fix what doesn’t work, and grow what does. Yet, advocating for PPPs invites scepticism. Cynicism, especially today, protects us from disappointment. It masquerades as wisdom in academic and professional circles, but cynicism alone leads nowhere. It offers no path to solutions.
Conversely, unchecked idealism – ignoring complexity, politics, and practical constraints –risks oversimplification, unmet expectations, and disillusionment. Herein lies the balance required for genuine leadership: embracing idealism as our compass and cynicism as our map. The compass provides purpose, guiding vision and aspiration. The map identifies pitfalls, highlighting barriers and complexities.
Authentic leadership requires the humility to acknowledge complexity and the courage to act decisively. No single sector holds all the answers. The path forward must be collaborative, pragmatic and iterative – grounded in realism but propelled by optimism and shared purpose.
That balance hit me hard during an ethics class at Oxford. We were discussing the role of business in society. Should it just make money, or does it owe something more? What struck me wasn’t that we disagreed. Of course, we did. It was that everyone had stories – moments when business made a difference or failed to. And everyone had an idea on how to do better. We brought lived experience from so many professional, geographical and cultural backgrounds. We challenged each other, pushed back, and sometimes changed our minds. That’s the real value of this Executive MBA – offering a space to think, be wrong and get sharper. It’s sitting across from someone who sees the world completely differently and realising they might be right.
That’s the real value of this Executive MBA – offering a space to think, be wrong and get sharper. It’s sitting across from someone who sees the world completely differently and realising they might be right.
In responding to the polycrisis, our collective leadership must mirror this diversity and integration. Public-private collaboration is no longer optional; it’s essential. It will not be perfect, nor will it always be comfortable. But as UN Humanitarian Chief Tom Fletcher reminds us, ‘There is no good – let alone perfect – way to do this, and we will make mistakes. But we must look out for each other, stay as focused as we can on the mission, and start the fightback for the values we share and the people we serve’.
Let this be our guiding principle as we forge new partnerships, transcend old silos, and shape a sustainable future. The mission ahead is complex, urgent and profoundly hopeful. Together, we can – and we must – rise to meet this challenge.
Find out more about the Oxford Executive MBA.
