Leadership, When It Matters Most
Clarity, judgement, and composure for leaders operating under pressure.
I work with CEOs, founders, and senior leadership teams navigating complexity, change, and consequence — helping them strengthen decision-making, align culture with strategy, and act with courage when the stakes are real.
Speaking • Executive Coaching & Advisory • The Premium Lounge
What this work changes
- Decisions become clearer — and faster
- Trade-offs are named, not avoided
- Culture becomes a value driver, not a soft concept
- Leadership rhythm reduces drag and restores focus
Start point
Clarity before commitment. If it’s a fit, we’ll recommend the right next step.
When this work matters
This work is built for moments where leadership stops being abstract and starts carrying real consequence.
You’re likely in the right place if:
- You’re responsible for people, direction, or capital
- You’re navigating complexity, change, scrutiny, or growth
- You want clearer thinking — not louder motivation
- You value discretion, depth, and practical insight
- You’re making decisions without obvious answers
What this work isn’t trying to be
- Motivational content designed to energise without follow-through
- Generic leadership advice or one-size-fits-all frameworks
- Public performance or personal branding theatre
- Quick fixes for structural or systemic challenges
If you’re looking for clarity, judgement, and composure when it matters most — you’re exactly where you should be.
Most leadership problems aren’t visible until they’re expensive.
By the time issues show up as culture drift, talent loss, strategy confusion, board tension, or execution failure, the cost has already compounded.
The work is designed to surface what’s really happening — and create a path forward grounded in context, consequence, and behavioural reality.
How we work
One leadership system with different entry points — depending on what you need to shift.
Speaking
Keynotes and masterclasses for rooms where the stakes are real — designed to recalibrate how leaders think and act.
- Executive offsites, conferences, leadership summits
- Practical frameworks leaders can use immediately
- Optional post-session pathways (diagnostic / deeper work)
Best when you need a shift in the room
Executive Coaching & Advisory
Confidential thinking partnership for leaders navigating complexity — grounded in diagnosis, not assumptions.
- Begin with the Executive Edge diagnostic
- 6–12 month coaching engagements
- Strategic advisory retainers for ongoing access
Best when decisions carry consequence
The Premium Lounge
A private space for leaders who want to stay sharp between decisions — depth over noise, discretion over visibility.
- Monthly briefing + strategic themes
- Member-only sessions
- Small curated library of tools and prompts
Best for continuity and rhythm
Start here
Clarity before commitment.
The Executive Edge is a structured diagnostic designed to reveal where leadership performance is actually breaking down — not personality, not preference: pressure, context, and consequence.
- Decision-making under pressure
- Strategic clarity and trade-offs
- Culture and behavioural signals
- Authority, influence, and trust
- Risk, resilience, leadership load
- Priority focus areas + next steps
Trusted by senior teams in high-performance environments
I work across finance, insurance, technology, professional services, and mission-driven organisations — particularly where leadership decisions carry consequence.
“Calm, sharp, and deeply practical. This wasn’t motivation — it was strategic clarity.”
— Senior Leader“The diagnostic named what we couldn’t articulate. The value was immediate.”
— ExecutiveFeatured Insights
Culture as Capital: Why It’s Already Priced In
Most organisations treat culture as “soft” until the market punishes them for losing trust.
Read →7 min read
The Lounge Briefing: Leadership, When It Matters Most
A monthly synthesis of what matters — patterns, frameworks, and practical moves leaders can use immediately.
Join the newsletter →One email. No noise.
Decisions Under Pressure: The Real Work Isn’t Technical
Why executive decisions are often existential — and what changes when leaders stop hiding behind expertise.
Watch / Listen →12 min
The BRAVE Leader
The BRAVE Leader distils the core ideas behind my work with senior leaders — clarity under pressure, ethical courage, and leadership that holds when the stakes are real.
It provides the conceptual backbone for my speaking, coaching, and advisory work, and introduces the BRAVE framework as a practical lens for decision-making, culture, and leadership behaviour.
- Why most leadership failure is misdiagnosed
- How pressure changes judgement and behaviour
- The BRAVE model: Bold, Resilient, Agile, Visionary, Ethical
- Leading when certainty isn’t available
If you’re carrying the room, let’s make the next decision a good one.
Start with diagnosis, or share your context and I’ll recommend the simplest next step.
Prefer email? hello@davidmcqueen.co.uk
Quick routing
- Need a shift in the room: Speaking
- Need clarity under pressure: Executive Edge Diagnostic
- Need ongoing partnership: Coaching / Advisory
- Need continuity: Premium Lounge
One system. Different entry points.