We turned back time last week in the Cotswolds.  In 1972 I went to Lebanon for the first time as a rookie Marketing Manager for Gillette.  Beirut – the Paris of the Middle East, the Casino du Liban, the St Georges, The Phoenicien – and was super impressed by the work being done for detergent brand Yes in the retail trade.  Three years later I was in Beirut as a rookie Marketer for Procter & Gamble – the owners of Yes.  And it was there I met the most impressive leader you can imagine – Nuhad Es-Said.  Cultured, courtly, handsome, urbane, naturally warm and tough as heck.  He owned P&G’s Lebanese distributor Transmed.  What a man.  I was blessed to work with him before his premature passing at the very early age of 47 – and I was fortunate to help him establish Transmed in the UAE where we introduced brand after brand from P&G and led the FMCG revolution in the Gulf.

50 years on – I’ve been working with Nuhad’s visionary son Fouad for a few years now as he has led Transmed into 10 countries – including Turkey, Germany and South Africa.  A chip off the old block despite being an avid Liverpool FC supporter!!

Fouad and seven of his top leaders joined me in one of my favourite venues – Thyme – a village within a village in the Cotswolds, for two days in The Passionate Pursuit of Perfection – a never-ending quest.

We covered the 4 H’s (History, Heroes, Heartbreaks, Hopes), Thriving in a Downturn, Purpose in Action, Mental Toughness, True Grit, WOOP and Peak Flow.

Great company, great leaders, great people, great venue, great memories.

The Road goes on Forever.  The Party never ends.