Bossing It: Keith Ware's Human-First Approach

Keith Ware is the managing director of global strategy and design studio Dalziel & Pow, leading the executive board and managing strategic and in-house initiatives to develop the business. 

With a reputation for creating high performing teams, outstanding results for clients and delivering business transformation, Keith is actively involved in developing new business and growing D&P’s presence in new territories. Over a 36-year career, Keith has worked on global household name brands including Selfridges, Twinings, Next, Mr Price, Shoppers Stop and Primark.

LBB> Did you know you always wanted to take on a leadership role? If so, how did you work towards it and if not, when did you start realising that you had it in you?

Keith> I started off my career as an interior designer and after working on a variety of global retail design briefs for some major High Street brands I worked my way up to senior designer, later joining Dalziel & Pow back in 1995. 

I’ve always enjoyed the technical detailing and project management side of delivering work, as well as the ideation and creative development aspects, and this became something I increasingly explored at D&P. 

Throughout a 30-year journey, I shifted more and more into leadership, supporting David Dalziel (founder) and Ros Scott (previous MD) in leading the business into new territories and sectors, and eventually joined the Board in 2001. 

I was then honoured to be asked to step up into the managing director position in 2019 after Ros’ retirement. I’ve always believed that if you work hard, you can make your own luck and in this case, it was being in the right place, at the right time…(albeit after 25 years!). 

LBB> As you developed your leadership skills did you have a mentor, if so who were/are they and what have you learned? And on the flip side, do you mentor any aspiring leaders and how do you approach that relationship?

Keith> David Dalziel and Ros Scott have been my mentors over the years, but in completely different ways. David’s positivity and straightforward approach to tackling almost any challenge has been a huge inspiration. A naturally creative communicator and leader, he made the journey as much fun as the destination, constantly delighting clients and injecting joy into the process, which in turn helped to foster long-term relationships and build deep partnerships with our clients. 

Ros complimented David’s creative skills with her organisational and operational management of the agency - delivering a well-structured approach to the business, balanced with the emotional intelligence needed to manage an ever-growing team.

I learnt a lot from both of them; it’s allowed me to adapt my own management style with that valuable experience and knowledge in mind. 

LBB> What are the aspects of leadership that you find most personally challenging? And how do you work through them? 

Keith> The industry is always evolving, so there is definitely an ongoing challenge to remain agile and react to the market. Being flexible and open to the changing dynamics of the retail landscape, business and hybrid working has been key post-COVID.

At Dalziel & Pow we are fortunate to have a well-structured executive board, balancing operational efficiency with creative excellence. Not to mention an incredible amount of talent in-house, including a highly skilled group of creative directors who focus on client relationships and development, which allows me the freedom to focus on the management of the operational side of the business alongside our all-star commercial team. 

LBB> In continually changing market circumstances, how do you cope with the responsibility of leading a team through difficult waters? 

Keith> I became MD in January 2020, possibly not the best timing with Covid just around the corner! It was a baptism of fire, beyond which, no challenge has compared. 

There are no short-cuts to planning and hard work. But, in my experience, a calm and considered approach has always been the best way; we’re always looking ahead, planning for the next six months, comparing our performance against targets and course-correcting as we go. 

The economic environment has undoubtedly been difficult to navigate over the last few years with the retail sector hit particularly hard. Luckily our global reach has helped to insulate us from the ups and downs of the UK market. 

We have also reacted to this shift in the market by diversifying our offer, taking full advantage of the skillsets in-house to become a one-stop shop across brand, strategy, environments and experience. 

LBB> As a leader, what are some of the ways in which you’ve prioritised diversity and inclusion within your workforce? 

Keith> At D&P, we celebrate that everyone is different and aim to create a workplace environment that fosters inclusion and embrace different cultures. 

We aim to recruit staff from a vast range of backgrounds and countries and welcome the positive impact this has, across not only our internal culture but our work too, allowing us to bring different perspectives and ideas to our client projects - this is particularly valuable when working with our diverse global client base. 

LBB> How important is your company culture to the success of your business? 

Keith> In our proudly independent 40-year history, our culture has remained central to how we run our business and manage our client relationships. We are forever curious, always seeking to ask the right questions and are passionate about injecting joy into the process. 

I feel this human-first approach is largely responsible for building some of our long-term relationships - we are truly very close with our clients and care deeply about the work, with honesty at our core; essentially acting as strategic partners, not just a delivery team.