Employee Stories

Matt Read

A career shaped by curiosity and resilience

Can you share your career journey to date and the key moments that shaped your progression into leadership?

Every leader’s path is different, but the turning points are often similar. I didn’t finish high school and spent my first ten years in hospitality and frontline sales before going to university. I started my corporate career on General Electric’s Management Development Programme, then moved through operations and compliance before returning to sales. Over the past 20 years, I’ve been Sales and Distribution Head at several organisations and have served as a country head twice. The most important moments have been senior leaders pushing me to stretch while giving me opportunities to grow.

Was there a point in your career where you questioned whether senior leadership was possible for you? What changed?

Honestly, no. I always believed that if I worked hard, took challenging assignments, and build strong relationships, I’d make it to a more senior role. Just as importantly, however, I always made sure that I was interested in the role, worked with great people, and maintained a positive attitude so no matter the outcome I would feel fulfilled.

Who played an important role in sponsoring or advocating for you along the way?

I’ve had many wonderful sponsors throughout my career. Twenty years ago, I made the transition from being a Regional Compliance Head to a Regional Sales Leader. At the time, this transition was unheard of. However, my leader trusted my intent and ability to execute. Not only did they champion the transition, but they ensured its success through advocacy, coaching and encouragement.

Have you made any lateral moves, international moves, or role changes that accelerated your development?

These moves are crucial to your development as a leader. I’ve lived and worked in four markets and across multiple functions. Every time you make a move your perspective shifts, you recognise that challenges are perceived differently depending on the organisation, local market, culture, seniority and job title. Most problems will have multiple solutions, and a diversity of experiences helps you engage in meaningful discussions and identify appropriate solutions.

What challenges did you face as you progressed, and how did you overcome them?

Work-life balance is the biggest challenge. I love my work, but I also have four children, plus strong friendships and interests outside of work. At times, I’ve felt overwhelmed and struggled to maintain balance.

Over time, I’ve become more realistic and view work-life balance through a “longer lens”. If I strive for work-life balance daily, I’ll fail because businesses have cycles. Some days are super busy, and it’s impossible to do everything. To combat that feeling, I view work-life balance over a longer time horizon. For example, this week is busy, but next week I can spend more time to restore balance.

Humans are like computers. If you unplug them for a short while, they’ll reset!!

What does inclusive leadership mean to you in practice, and how do you role model it in your team?

The foundation of inclusive leadership is participation and authenticity. It’s making a conscious effort to ensure that not only are you building diverse teams, but you’re also creating an environment where you harness the benefits of that diversity. As a leader, you want to ensure your team feels encouraged to share ideas in a safe environment and incorporate a wide range of perspectives. You don’t always have to understand or agree, but it’s incumbent on you to engage with authenticity and intent so everyone feels heard.

During my career, I’ve found that my experience as an employee is highly dependent on my leader. If the leader works to elevate and support your growth with integrity, authenticity and empathy, you have a chance of success. That’s the type of leader I hope to be…

What advice would you give to someone who feels there may be limits to how far they can progress?

I’ve had the good fortune to work with some of the industry’s best leaders. Interestingly they are not always the most educated or the most intelligent and the attributes that separate them are available to everyone…hard work, curiosity, integrity, reliability, empathy, tenacity, adaptability, accountability, pro-activity and a positive mindset. If you remove the limits on these attributes your potential becomes unlimited. The momentum of your career has to be “built” and your consistency will compound over time…

Looking back, what do you think people misunderstand about career progression at the bank?

I’ve seen many smart people work hard in a corner waiting for someone to notice. They misunderstand that hard work is the baseline and career progression is their responsibility. They have to find opportunities to engage with those who can elevate them and demonstrate visible impact on important problems. They also mistakenly believe that the strongest individual contributors will get promoted. They fail to recognise that senior leaders shift from doing to enabling – they must elevate their skillset and demonstrate their ability to lead others positively.

What keeps you here, and what excites you about the next stage of your leadership journey?

The application of AI is what excites me. Our clients have access to more information than ever so the baseline of our conversations has been elevated along with their expectations. I’m incredibly excited by the prospect of AI to augment the client experience while simultaneously driving productivity. Throughout my career I’ve witnessed the introduction of computers, mobile phones, internet, email to name a few. AI is the next technology that will fundamentally change everything and that is exciting!!