All things that happen in industrial societies are a result of people’s efforts. The bigger and more complex the task the greater number of people that will be involved and the more diverse the skill sets required. Nuclear power stations require, in their design, construction, commissioning and operation, large numbers of people with diverse skills. In order for them to be success­ful in what they do, they must be organised into a cohesive workforce with a clear vision of what they are seeking to achieve. The role of the leader in any organisation is to define that vision and create an organisation capable of delivering the vision.

Successful leaders are characterised by their behaviours, their honesty, integrity and competence that enable them to command respect and engen­der trust. The way they treat people will influence the sustainability of the organisation.

Leaders will exhibit their characteristics in both conscious and uncon­scious ways. The people who work for them will be looking for signs of their values, standards and expectations in everything they do and they will interpret them into their own actions and behaviours. Thus the corporate culture and in particular the safety culture in an organisation is promul­gated. The culture of successful organisations will be characterised as one in which people want to do things right, want to work together to achieve shared objectives. The choice of leaders is probably the most critical deci­sion of any organisation.