Jump to navigation

Derek Bruce, DSM | Interview

Leadership is about so much more than KPIs and performance.

Derek Bruce has recently joined DSM as Global Lead, Performance Management and Learning Strategy. In this interview with iVentiv, he talks about the skills that leaders need in 2022 to make sure they can support individuals in the way they bring themselves to work. He talks about mindfulness, succession development, and especially purpose. These are the skills that Derek says are going to be especially important going forward, and he gives his advice on how to go about it.

What are the skills that leaders need in 2022?

Looking at the last two or three years, Derek says, "leadership as a skill and as a role has really changed". The key is how leaders manage performance. Derek explains that he doesn't mean performance in terms of KPIs, but in the way individuals bring themselves to work. Mindfulness, succession development, sense of purpose. "It's those kind of skills which I feel leaders are going to need going forward, especially with more synchronous and asynchronous working."

With virtual and remote working, Derek continues, "there's a need to reframe the role of leadership, but also make sure leaders and managers as well in the same context really have the ability to give their people a great employee experience as well."

That means coaching, communication and listening are key skills, "being able to articulate and also sense the non-verbal clues of their people as well".

You need to ask your people what they feel they're missing, Derek says. "It's not our role as HR to kind of think we know best. It's very much our role as HR to engage a lot of people, to engage with our leaders, to engage with the feedback, to engage in exit interviews and pulse surveys to see what people are saying they're really missing." Only then, he says, can you effectively support the business to fill those gaps. 

Derek thinks that the instability of recent years might continue. That means constant change and it means leaders have to develop "human-centric skills", they have to manage ambiguity. That means creating psychological safety, but Derek advises against using that phrase. "I think it's kind of way too HR-ey," he says, "but managers need to be aware that people do come to work for a reason and a purpose." Managers need to be "aware that individuals have different nuances which make them grow and perform better as well."

For leaders, that means being authentic. "If people see leaders behaving in a way where they're being authentic, it allows employees to also think okay well if I see this happening in the organisation I feel safe to come and do the same thing." 

How can organisations prioritise Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Belonging more effectively?

Derek also spoke about DEIB. To be effective, he says, DEIB initiatives have to be aligned with performance development and succession. You do that by giving managers the ability to talk about individuals, hire them, and rate their performance without bias. Embed that within the process around performance management, Derek advises, "but also along the whole line of the employee journey as well".

When DEIB exists in isolation, with one person or team struggling to put new ideas into practice, it tends to fail. "What I want to do," he says, "is make sure it's embedded in what we do anyway, and actually then this is just how we work."

Beyond that, however, Derek says he still has "a bit of a butterfly stomach moment where I see lots, or I’ve seen lots of movement of roles, and lots of promises and commitments, but I also don't see lots of it changing." Whether it's gender diversity, age diversity, or race diversity, he reflects, "it's not getting bigger".

That's reflected in the "Great Resignation", or the "Great Reflection" as Derek calls it. "I think there's also people thinking if I am one of these people in this, in the diversity community, is this the right place for me? No, I’m gonna try something which may be better." But also, Derek says, "if I’m somebody and I see this kind of stuff not changing, it doesn't fit with my values, my purpose." If people don't feel they can grow and contribute, they leave.

What really works in performance management?


Asked to put one question back to the iVentiv community, Derek looks at performance management. "When we look at the whole concept of performance management," he asks, "what one thing do you think really works, what one thing do you think really annoys people?"

"I have a daughter who's 25," he says, "and I hear lots of things about different age groups wanting and not wanting certain things. What I think I’ve learned over the last couple of years is that it's not specific to a generational age group, it's specific to a mindset or age of mindset. I see people who are in their 20s and 30s in a traditional way of working and I see people in their 40s, 50s being very focused around working remotely, not being focused on organisations which don't align their values." 

Derek thinks it's time to move "away from this labelling of generations and towards understanding that there are certain mindsets people have, but the person behind it can be different ages, different genders, different sizes, different whatever."

Derek Bruce is the Global Lead of Performance Management & Learning Strategy at DSM, alongside his activities at Derek Bruce Associates. Previously he was Director of Leadership Development at Signify. Within this role he focused on three areas; deploying business related centralised learning programs for leaders; providing
consultancy services to management teams and HR to address business needs and be the organisations strategic thought leader on leadership development. Derek is an expert in communication, having performed at a TEDX conference in 2019, spoken at numerous global conferences and seminars as a keynote speaker, and coached and taught presentational skills. He also has extensive experience in Internal Communications.

Derek is also the Founder of Derek Bruce Associates, an organisation started in 2018 which provides coaching and learning anddevelopment consultancy. He also initiatedand runs the Extraordinary Mentors Network, a mentorship program which provides Black people with pro bono mentoring. This is an extension of his focus on improving inclusion and diversity, which has included embedding awareness of the benefits of DE&I to HR and Business communities, working as a Lead Ambassador in previous organisations, which involved developing DE&I communities, and introducing processes and policies to support the move to more inclusive HR ways of working Derek is Myers Briggs Type II certified, NLP Master Practitioner, and a Scrum Master. Outside of work, Derek is married to Floriana who lives in Milan, Italy, and his passions are men’s fashion, riding motorbikes, playing, and watching football, films and travelling.

More Insights

How AI is Transforming L&D from a Content Factory to a Performance Engine

For decades, Learning & Development has been organised around a familiar production model; a business identifies a need, L&D designs a programme, content is created, employees complete it, and despite a genuine desire to measure business impact, success is often reported through attendance, completion rates and satisfaction scores. But the advent of AI is beginning to dismantle that model, not because it can generate a course, produce a video or build a presentation faster, but because it allows L&D to move beyond producing learning assets and take greater responsibility for workforce performance.

Few leaders are exploring this shift as practically as Julie Stone, Chief Learning Officer and Group VP at TTEC. Drawing on more than 20 years of experience across global organisations, Julie is helping to embed AI, adaptive learning and performance-based development into the flow of work. Her perspective challenges many of the maligned assumptions that have shaped the way L&D is perceived for decades, particularly the idea that the function’s primary role is to produce training content.

In this blog, we explore Julie’s view of an AI-enabled L&D function that is faster, more adaptive and more commercially relevant, while remaining deeply human. It is a vision in which AI takes on repetitive and production-heavy work, enabling Learning professionals to focus on judgment, coaching, context and the complex work of changing behaviour. Watch it now.

Top Priorities for L&D and Talent in 2026 So Far

At the start of 2026, we shared the top priorities for Global Heads of L&D, Talent, and Executive Development in the annual iVentiv Pulse Report. 

Six months into 2026, we can now share a brief update on the top priorities as selected by attendees at iVentiv events so far this year. Already, more than 250 senior L&D and Talent leaders in multinational organisations have told iVentiv about the most important topics for their function right now.

In this blog, you can see the top topics, with quotes from survey respondents and analysis on the trends behind the numbers.

How Expedia Group is Rethinking AI Learning, Leadership, and Workforce Transformation

Artificial intelligence is reshaping the workplace faster than most organisations can comfortably adapt to. For Chief Learning Officers and Talent Leaders, the challenge is no longer whether AI will transform work, but how to prepare people for that transformation in a meaningful, sustainable way.

During a recent iVentiv interview, Fabio Sacoman (VP, Learning & Development) shared how Expedia Group is approaching AI capability building across its global workforce. The discussion explored everything from AI literacy and organisational agility to leadership transformation, learning measurement, and the future of the LMS itself.

One message emerged repeatedly throughout the conversation: traditional approaches to Learning & Development are no longer sufficient for the pace of change organisations now face. Watch the interview now to find out how Expedia Group is adapting its practice to keep up with that ever increasing pace of change.

Upskilling and Reskilling: What 500+ Learning and Talent Leaders Say About the Future of Skills

For several years, Learning and Talent leaders have talked about skills-based organisations, skills marketplaces, skills taxonomies, reskilling strategies, upskilling at work, and the shortening half-life of skills. The question is whether all that language reflects a passing trend or a deeper shift in the way organisations and employees learn.

iVentiv’s latest report, Skills, Skills-Based Organisations, and L&D, suggests that ‘skills’ and their associated buzzwords have become often career-defining priorities for senior Learning and Talent leaders.

Based on survey responses from more than 500 Heads of Learning, Talent Management, and Executive Development, the report explores how organisations are approaching upskilling and reskilling the workforce, why AI is accelerating the skills agenda, and where skills-based organisations are beginning to succeed.

Beyond Burnout: How Energy Management Drives High-Performing Leaders at BorgWarner

What does sustainable leadership really look like in today’s high-pressure business environment? For Amy Cribb, Head of Learning, Development & Culture at BorgWarner, the answer starts with a mindset shift: resilience alone is no longer enough.

In this conversation with iVentiv, Amy explores why organisations need to rethink burnout, recovery, and wellbeing as critical leadership capabilities rather than employee “benefits”. Reflecting on BorgWarner’s journey through intense transformation, post-pandemic pressures, and rapid industry change, she shares how a deeply human approach to leadership development helped spark meaningful cultural change across the organisation. Watch our Interview with Amy now.

From Prediction to Practice: How Global L&D Leaders Are Navigating 2026 in Real Time

Earlier this year, we released iVentiv’s 2026 Predictions video which set out a clear direction of travel for Learning, Leadership, and Talent functions based on insights shared from iVentiv’s own Hannah Hoey (Content Director), Kristy Kitson (L&D Strategist), and Richard Parfitt (Marketing Director). Skills-based organisations, AI governance, and evolving learning cultures dominated the conversation, but predictions only really matter when tested against reality.

A few months on, and following Executive Knowledge Exchanges across Paris, Atlanta, New York, and London, a more nuanced picture is emerging. The themes themselves have not dramatically changed but the way organisations are engaging with them has. What we’re seeing now is how the conversation has shifted from what matters to what works. Watch the video now.

From LMS to Generative AI: How Learning and Talent are Evolving

As AI reshapes the workplace at unprecedented speed, learning leaders are being called to rethink not just how learning is delivered, but how work itself is structured.

In this conversation with Gordon Trujillo, VP of Enterprise Talent Management & Learning & Development at DaVita, we explore how AI is transforming learning, leadership, and organisational design, and why curiosity, experimentation, and human capability remain at the heart of it all. Watch the interview now.

Why Learning Culture Starts with Habits, Not Training Programmes

In today’s rapidly evolving business landscape, the ability to learn continuously is no longer a competitive advantage, it is a necessity. Yet many organisations still rely on traditional training models that struggle to keep pace with change.

So, what does it really take to build a learning culture that lasts?

In this interview, Laura Medina Escolano, Head of Global Learning & Development at DEKRA, explores the shift from training programmes to habit-driven learning. She shares why curiosity must become a daily behaviour, how leaders shape learning through small actions and why creating a safe environment for experimentation is critical to success. Watch the interview now.

From Individual Leaders to Atomic Teams: A New Approach to Organisational Performance 

Across organisations, leadership development has long been treated as an individual pursuit. High-potential programmes, competency frameworks, and executive coaching are all designed to elevate the individual leader. Yet as organisations face increasing complexity and pressure to perform, Charles Jennings and Tue Krabbe-Juelsbo ask a fundamental question: what if the true unit of value is not the individual at all, but the team? 

Watch our interview with Charles Jennings, Co-Founder, 70:20:10 Institute, and Tue Krabbe-Juelsbo, Senior Lead, Head of Leadership & People Development, Nuuday, to get their take on the power of atomic teams in your organisation, based on their upcoming research.

Inside Fanatics Commerce’s Talent Strategy: Scaling Leadership in a Hypergrowth Business

Is scaling leadership in a hypergrowth business just about doing more, faster? Or does it require a fundamental rethink of how leaders operate, how Talent functions deliver value, and how organisations balance structure with agility.

In this conversation with Richard Parfitt, Marketing Director, iVentiv, and Yulia Denisova, VP Talent & Development at Fanatics, we explore what it really takes to build leadership capability at pace in a business that has grown to 20,000 employees across 200 countries. From redefining prioritisation and decision-making, to introducing structure without bureaucracy, Yulia shares how Fanatics is evolving its talent strategy in real time.

The discussion also dives into the role of AI in leadership, the importance of maintaining human connection at scale, and why Learning and Development must shift from control to enablement. Watch the interview now.

Pages