Transformation is now the baseline in business. Whether you’re overhauling legacy systems, embracing AI, or embedding inclusion into your culture, change is no longer optional. Few leaders understand this reality better than Dame Inga Beale, speaker, the former CEO of Lloyd’s of London and one of the most respected voices in financial services today.
Lloyd’s of London is a specialist insurance and reinsurance marketplace where multiple financial institutions come together to underwrite complex and high-risk policies, often for global clients and industries.
Her leadership at Lloyd’s offers a masterclass in how to modernise a heritage institution without losing its identity. When Inga took the helm in 2014, Lloyd’s was still operating with paper-based systems that hadn’t fundamentally changed in 325 years. Her task? Digitise the global insurance marketplace — not with cutting-edge AI or quantum computing, but with basic tech foundations that could enable electronic trading.
The challenge wasn’t technology. It was culture. Resistance was high, not because people didn’t understand the tools, but because they didn’t see the need. As Inga said in a recent interview with Risky Women Radio, previous efforts had failed because people weren’t included in shaping the journey. She learned to build buy-in by listening closely, piloting small changes, course-correcting publicly, and creating an emotionally intelligent culture where feedback was not only welcome, but expected.
Inga’s first major promotion came through a 1990s talent programme targeting women — a move that sparked her leadership career. Throughout her tenure, Inga demonstrated a rare combination of strategic boldness and emotional intelligence. She embraced agile development long before it was standard in financial services, and she made a point of owning her missteps — a move that built trust, not diminished it. Her view: credibility grows when leaders admit what isn’t working and adjust based on real input.
Today, Inga chairs the board of South Pole, a well-respected climate consultancy, and serves on the boards of NN Group and Willis Towers Watson. She is also an influential speaker and advisor on leadership, transformation, and inclusion — particularly for organisations and teams trying to modernise without losing their soul.
In an era of constant disruption and technological innovation, her message is clear: inclusive leadership isn’t a ‘nice to have’ — it’s a strategic advantage. That means listening, being vulnerable, and trusting others with expertise you don’t yet have.