Excellent people management is a combination of common sense and good manners

Roger supported me over a number of years while I was building Faraday, and his contribution went beyond simply offering general business advice. What I valued most was his methodical approach, his ability to listen carefully, and the way he consistently asked the difficult but necessary questions that helped me think more clearly and make better decisions. He challenged my assumptions without ever being dismissive, and he had a real ability to help me step back from the day-to-day pressures of running a start-up and focus on the bigger picture, my own development, and what I was capable of achieving. Roger was also willing to get genuinely involved when it mattered; I particularly remember him making the effort to attend national exhibitions with us, where he was quite happy to roll up his sleeves, speak directly with customers, help hand out samples and then use those real-world observations to inform our later discussions. Now we're in talks for my 2nd venture, MyBacha, good man!