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In this month’s Leadership Lens, we spotlight Jenny Watson, a BPS-registered psychologist and global HR expert, whose strategic insights are transforming leadership and organisational culture across multiple continents.  Jenny Watson is the visionary force behind JWC, a leading consultancy offering strategic business solutions across Europe and beyond. A BPS-registered psychologist and certified psychometrics practitioner, Jenny has extensive experience working in senior HR and OD roles across the globe. She has partnered with clients in the Middle East, Africa, the UK, and Europe, advising on strategy, growth, organisational improvement, and leadership development. Known for her pragmatic approach and results-driven mindset, Jenny works closely with executive teams, counselling them on setting overall direction, building high-performing leadership teams, and embedding supportive people and culture processes throughout the employee lifecycle. Her blend of psychological expertise and strategic acumen has made her a trusted advisor to organisations seeking transformative change.
Q: How do you cultivate a growth mindset within your organization, and what specific practices or habits do you encourage among your team? A: I place huge emphasis – and value – on psychological and physical well-being at work. Concepts like growth mindset come with the caveat that one must be healthy and safe first before effectively reframing setbacks as opportunities and engaging in development. For this reason, I strive to role model and create space for psychologically healthy habits around work-life balance, managing stress, and engaging with feedback. Q: Can you share a pivotal moment in your career that significantly shaped your leadership philosophy? How did it influence your approach to leading others? A: Early in my career, I was hired into a very fast-paced and successful organisation, where I realised that despite consistently “winning” in the market, nearly everyone was miserable and genuinely disliked the company. This experience shaped my belief that while results are important, bringing your people on the journey with you is critical. Since then, my approach to leadership has centred around creating and communicating purpose while removing as much interference for people as possible. And then, the results tend to look after themselves… Q: In what ways do you stay ahead of industry trends and ensure your mindset remains innovative and growth-focused? A: I read. Everything. Voraciously. From very serious sources like the BPS or CIPD to blogs from influencers I find entertaining. When I come across something that piques my interest or a perspective I hadn’t considered before, I make a point of discussing it with my team to get their views and opinions. Q: What daily or weekly habits do you practise to maintain and develop your leadership mindset? A: At least once a week, I set aside time to work on my communication with myself so that I can communicate effectively with my teams. Sometimes I do this through yoga, sometimes with structured reflective practice or journaling. Q: How do you balance the need for results with the well-being of your team members? A: As I mentioned earlier, I firmly believe that if you look after the health, well-being, and safety of yourself and your people, the results will take care of themselves. As a leader, this often means role modelling and creating psychologically safe spaces for people to occasionally not be OK or not be able to bring their whole selves to work some days. My clients know that when I have happy and healthy people, it's often what keeps them working with us. Q: If you could go back and give one piece of advice to your younger self as a budding leader, what would it be and why? A: If I thought she would listen… I’d tell my younger self to embrace the power of being wrong! She tended to think that leadership was about always knowing what to do and having all the answers. But actually, some of the best work we’ve done has come from me being absolutely wrong about something, but willing to find out why and do things differently. Connect with Jenny on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jenny-watson-gmbpss-794a941b/ JWC website: https://jwconsult.pl/ Comments are closed.
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