In Conversation with Shevaun Haviland
3 years, 10 months, 24 days, 21 hours
26 August 2025
Leading with optimism.
In this conversation, I speak with Shevaun Haviland, Director General of the British Chambers of Commerce, about the real pressures UK businesses face and the responsibility they still carry to act on climate and social challenges.
Shevaun challenges the idea that business leaders are indifferent to climate or social impact. ‘Businesses aren’t abstract entities,’ she says. ‘They’re people. And people do care.’ She speaks candidly about the economic headwinds businesses face, but insists that optimism is a core leadership quality, and one she sees in action daily.
For her, business is not the problem, it’s part of the solution. With 80% of UK jobs in private enterprise, she argues that work gives people purpose, and innovation gives society hope.
This film is a reminder that leadership in crisis requires not just resilience, but belief, and that businesses, when led with conscience, can be powerful forces for good.