The programme had almost 40 participants, from all over the world – you get different perspectives that challenge your understanding of how you do something, how you think about something.
From starting in aeronautics engineering to holding senior finance roles in major global business in cities across the world like New York, London, Geneva, Zurich and Brussels, Mark’s transition into his first public Chief Financial Officer role at Proximus marks a significant milestone in his career.
With this move, Mark oversees a comprehensive portfolio of finance business partners, a central FP&A team for consolidating financial results, and departments for mergers & acquisitions, investor relations, procurement, treasury, tax, and facilities management, certainly no mean feat! It is no wonder that upon entry, he prioritised understanding the business environment, the organisational and local team dynamics and leveraging his international experience to align with the organisational culture.
Sharing candidly about his role as the CFO of Proximus, Belgium's leading telecommunications organisation, an ongoing challenge is navigating the complex commercial environment within the sector and finding paths to support sustainable growth. Mark strives to grow the business through strategic international investments and allocating capital effectively to identify and pursue growth opportunities. Together with his leadership team, Mark has led Proximus to significant progress, becoming one of the fastest-growing telecommunication companies in Europe over recent quarters.
Originally from Scotland, Mark currently resides in Brussels with his family, with his eldest about to enter her final year of high school before heading off to university. Beyond his professional responsibilities, Mark serves on several boards, using his extensive experience to provide strategic guidance and support to various organisations.
Developing A Personal Leadership Style
Having worked with many different people throughout his career, Mark’s approach to leadership has always been to observe and learn – adopting best practices that align with his values and avoiding those that do not. His time at Virgin Media in the UK, for instance, taught him the importance of assembling a strong, motivated team capable of achieving remarkable results. Mark learned valuable lessons in team building, motivation, and effective communication during his time there.
“Something that became clear as I progressed is that I can’t be good at everything,” Mark reflected, “So I had to make sure that I spend the time and energy where I can make a difference. I have had to learn to build a team that is complementary to me and are really motivated to serve each other to multiple each other’s results into something greater.” This mindset, influenced by various leaders throughout his career, guides Mark's leadership style and long-term vision at Proximus.
A Deep Commitment to Continuous Learning
Throughout his career, Mark has actively sought out challenging experiences, including moving countries every few years, which consistently placed him outside his comfort zone and provided new learning opportunities. Professionally, Mark recognises the importance of staying current with evolving leadership practices, especially in the wake of significant changes like those brought about by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Observing shifts in how people work and lead, he began exploring programmes that could provide fresh insights into different leadership approaches. With a multitude of options available, INSEAD stood out to Mark with Collaborative Leadership, a programme designed with a modern take on leadership.
He approached the executive education programme with a clear goal: to learn from the latest research and theories in this area and deepen his practical application of collaboration- a critical area of focus in both Belgium and within his own organisation.
“The programme had almost 40 participants, from all over the world. I enjoyed speaking to people from Australia, Holland, USA – you get different perspectives that challenge your understanding of how you do something, how you think about something,” Mark shared, noting that his open-minded approach allowed him to benefit significantly from the programme.
A framework that had stood out to Mark during the programme was the concept of ‘story 1 and story 2’, a dual approach to problem solving that helped him understand and contextualise problems. “It helped to understand the context for myself, and after that, take the ability to stand back and ask, ‘well, what is really going on in this situation/problem?’ It allowed me to dissect and contextualise the problem in a much deeper way.”
The second significant takeaway was the framework for examining assumptions, commitments, and contradictions that might hinder goal and team achievements. Mark found this framework not only applicable to his professional life but also valuable for personal goals, such as improving his fitness regime, sleep habits, and work-life balance.
I think you’ve probably hooked me with INSEAD when it comes to experience.
Walking away with his own significant learnings, Mark encourages others to consider an executive education at INSEAD, citing the programme structure, facilities, and overall setup that created an encouraging and safe environment.
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