Every leader starts out with an idea of what leadership is supposed to look like. For some, it is about power. For others, it is about presence. For Ross Keating, growing up, the word was simple… Authority.
But authority is not the whole story. In this week’s A Love Letter to Leadership, Ross shares how radical transparency, long-term thinking, and human-centred systems shape the way he leads today.
Growing up, what single word best described your perception of leadership?
Authority. It was the clearest marker I had as a kid. Leaders were the ones who had it. They were the voices in the room everyone listened to.
What’s one belief about leadership that you’ve held onto, even when others didn’t?
Radical transparency. All of it. People trust you when they know the full picture, even the uncomfortable parts. If you want buy-in, you don’t protect people from the truth, you bring them into it.
Beyond skills, what mindset shift do you believe is crucial for aspiring leaders?
Moving from short-term actions to long-term strategy. That means thinking not just about what gets done today, but about people, culture, and go-to-market in a way that sustains over years. It is not about the quick win. It is about the compounding one.
If you could bottle one essential quality of great leadership, what would it be and why?
Communication. Done well, it does not just align people, it unlocks them. Great communication lets you get the absolute best out of others because it creates clarity, trust, and momentum.
What do you want your leadership legacy to be?
That I built high-performing people, not just high-performing businesses. If I can help someone get better at work and outside of it, that is a legacy worth leaving.
Anything else you’d like to share on the topic of leadership?
Leadership is not loud. The best leaders I have worked with were not the ones commanding attention, they were the most consistent. People followed them because they knew exactly what they stood for and they acted accordingly
And one more thing: you do not rise to the level of your goals, you fall to the level of your systems. Leadership is about building systems and standards that raise the floor for everyone.
Thank you for reading.
Ross’s reflections bring us back to something I find essential in this series: leadership is not about chasing perfection, it is about setting the standard and then building the systems and culture that allow others to thrive within it.
That is the heartbeat of A Love Letter to Leadership. Gathering these truths so that those aspiring to lead don’t just learn what leadership looks like, they learn what it feels like.
With care,
Emma
September 6, 2025
