A 35-year career in the army unsurprisingly had a profound impact on Colonel Richard Maybery’s leadership style.

“The Armed Forces is a people business,” he says. “You learn very early on that you have to trust and get on with your people.”

After nearly four decades in the Forces, Colonel Maybery took on a leadership role of a different kind, becoming chief executive of the West Midlands Reserve Forces & Cadets Association (WMRFCA).

The organisation supports the reserve forces and cadets from the Army, Royal Navy, Royal Marines and Royal Air Force, as well as conducting engagement and advocacy to help the Armed Forces connect with the local community.

In this special episode recorded ahead of Armed Forces Day, Colonel Maybery tells Henrietta Brealey about the valuable lessons he learned from his early days as a teenager based at Sandhurst, right through to high-pressure roles such as leading a bomb disposal team.

Colonel Maybery also discusses the leaders who have inspired him, the importance of the engagement between the Reserve Forces and the business community and how the conflict in the Ukraine has demonstrated the importance of the Reserve Forces.

Armed Forces Day takes place on Saturday 25 June and is a chance to show support for the men and women who make up the Armed Forces community - from currently serving troops to Service families, veterans and cadets.

Find out more about the WMRFCA:
https://www.wmrfca.org/
https://twitter.com/wmrfca
https://www.linkedin.com/company/west-midland-rfca/

Find out more about Armed Forces Day:
https://www.armedforcesday.org.uk/