Dr Marcellus Baz BEM – Building relationships and making a difference

Nottingham Business School Business Leaders

Episode 66

Dr Marcellus Baz BEM – Building relationships and making a difference

SUMMARY

Dr Marcellus Baz BEM had his early years shaped by hardship, violence and run-ins with the police. But he emerged to become a respected community leader – founding two boxing gyms and a social enterprise that provides education and mentoring for scores of young people.

In Episode 66 of the Nottingham Business School’s Business Leaders’ Podcast, Dr Baz tells Visiting Honorary Professor Mike Sassi about the “transferrable skills” he learned during a youth spent dodging knife gangs in inner-city Nottingham.

“I learned how to communicate and build relationships,” he says. “That’s how you make a difference.”

INTRODUCTION

• Marcellus Baz was born in the Meadows area of Nottingham. His early years were shaped by hardship and violence, with mental health struggles, run-ins with the law and the ever-present pull of gang culture.

• He found an escape through a local boxing gym, where he threw himself into training for a professional boxing career.

• At the age of 23, his dream was cut short after a knife attack by local gang members left him with life-threatening injuries. He recovered – but never boxed professionally.

• He enrolled at college, secured a job at a local sports centre and became a mentor to the young people around him.

• In 2014 he set up and registered the Nottingham School of Boxing as a charity. In 2022 he set up the Mansfield School of Boxing. Both organisations are now part of umbrella charity the Marcellus Baz Foundation.

• In recognition of his community leadership, Baz was awarded the British Empire Medal in 2017. He was named BBC Sports Personality of the Year’s Unsung Hero in 2016. He received his trophy from HRH The Prince of Wales, Prince William. In 2022 he received an Honorary Doctorate from Nottingham Trent University.

• Baz also founded Switch Up – a social enterprise that provides jobs, education, mentoring and counselling to scores of young people in and around Nottingham.

• Baz’s Five Pillar Model of help and training has become internationally recognised, inspiring similar programmes across Europe and America. The five pillars are mentoring, counselling, physical activity, education and employability.

• Baz is currently bringing together local businesspeople, charities, and public figures to drive social change, under the banner, Uniting Nottz. The group is writing a report about the problems of Nottingham that local MPs have promised to take to Parliament.

LEADERSHIP TAKEAWAYS

Eleven leadership takeaways from the podcast conversation with Marcellus Baz

1. Your environment shapes your destiny…

"Your environment influences your thinking. Your thinking influences your feelings. Your feelings influence your actions. Your actions influence your habits. And your habits influence your destiny."

2. The best leaders are authentic…

“You're a human being, and you can be vulnerable."

3. Understand your ‘Why?’...

"Every leader who really has achieved something, understands their inner values, their drivers and why [they do what they do]"

4. Good leaders build relationships across boundaries…

"It's about treating people with respect and having that humility… not coming with an ego, not coming with pride."

5. Great leadership is underpinned by moral leadership…

“It's really important to be a courageous and authentic leader, to understand what your mission is, and to be able to stick to that."

6. It’s important for leaders to listen…

“It’s how you get people invested in your vision."

7. Seek counsel from like-minded people…

"Have people with similar values around you… people that are on the same page as you. Having the fellowship of people you can seek counsel from, is really important."

8. Constantly build teams and alliances…

“Leadership is about respect, communication, and having a collective mission."

9. Always have hope…

“Hope comes from stories of people that have made transformations."

10. Surround yourself with expertise…

“If I was going to build a house and I wanted the best roof, I'm not going to go to a vet for advice! I'm going to go to a construction consultant – and the best one."

11. Practice self-reflection…

“Always look to yourself. Get to know who you are."

RELATED LINKS

• The Marcellus Baz Group website is here

• In 2018 Marcellus Baz did a TED talk entitled Your tribe is your vibe…

• There’s more about the Marcellus Baz story from Sport in criminal justice…

If you enjoyed this episode NBS Business Leaders’ Podcast with Dr Marcellus Baz, listen to previous episodes with…

• The MD of Via East Midlands and Arc Partnership Dan Maher

• The Chief Executive of Nottingham Building Society Sue Hayes

• The Managing Director of Morgan Sindall Sean Bowles