Motivational SpeakersWill Greenwood MBE is a Rugby World Cup Winner.
He was an integral member of the England Rugby World Cup-Winning team in 2003.
Not one to shy away from high pressure, highly competitive situations, Will started his working life on London’s City trading floor.
He went on to become the second-highest try scorer in English rugby history, (Jonny May crept past him in 2021, Will relegated to third) and helped power England to victory at the Rugby World Cup in 2003.
He is widely regarded as one of England’s greatest ever rugby players, as well as one of the sport’s most engaging, intelligent and entertaining characters.
Greenwood made his debut in 1994 for Harlequins, before progressing to Leicester in 1996 from where he was handed his full England international debut in 1997.
Injury marred his first couple of years in International rugby but the 2000/01 season saw him establish himself as an England regular under the tutelage of Clive Woodward and accolades swiftly followed.
He won three man-of-the-match performances in one Six Nations alone, in victories over Scotland, Wales and Italy in 2002.
Selected for England’s World Cup-winning squad in 2003, Greenwood finished the tournament as the joint top try-scorer with five to his name. In 2005, in the culmination of an outstanding career, he picked up his first Test cap for the British & Irish Lions in the 2005 tour of New Zealand.
In total, he toured 3 times with Lions, in 1997, 2001 and 2005.
Throughout his 11 years playing professional rugby, Will was a dedicated professional combining a fantastic work ethic with a desire to continuously learn and improve his game. Despite injury setbacks and occasional moments of self-doubt and personal tragedy his focus, determination and perseverance led him to the top of the national and international game.
Off pitch, his focus has remained undimmed. With a reputation as a bright and articulate personality, he was snapped up by Sky as a regular match day presenter, working for them for 16 years. During that time Will drove the hugely popular ‘School of Hard Knocks’. The series gave at-risk youngsters the chance to train, grow and shine through sport. Alongside this, he pens a weekly opinion column for the Saturday Telegraph and is a dedicated supporter of the premature birth charity Borne.
In 2018, Will Greenwood was a member of a team along with Jason Fox who trekked to the North Pole led by Alan Chambers to raise funds for the charity Borne.
Will is also a successful businessman in his own right, having set up Legend Holidays & Events, a company providing family holiday experiences.
In September 2016, Will combined his knowledge of numbers and working with children to take up a voluntary role as a part-time maths teacher in a secondary school in Berkshire for five years.
In November 2020, Will took up the position of Chief Customer Officer at data and software company Afiniti. Will is Chief Customer Officer in the UK at Afiniti, an artificial intelligence company that helps organisations use data and AI to have better conversations with their customers.
World Class – How to Lead, Learn and Grow Like a Champion
Along with Ben Fennell, Will has written ‘World Class‘. The book demonstrates how much elite sport can teach us about high-performance leadership by uncovering the principles that unite all top-level performance, both on and off the pitch.
Will and Ben prove that the secret to great leadership is unity, not uniformity. After speaking to leaders across all areas of sport and business – from Rio Ferdinand and Sir Clive Woodward to Dave Lewis and Kate Richardson-Walsh – they reveal how the guiding principles of celebrating difference and forging togetherness are the fastest way to accelerate growth
Will Greenwood – Keynote Speaker:
Will’s prior career as an HSBC trader has given him an insight into themes that permeate both fields.
The perfect storm of leadership, discipline, motivation and teamwork that led England to World Cup victory in 2003 provides an inspirational demonstration of what it takes to achieve peak performance, for a sustained period of time.
A complete change in mindset and behaviours opened the door to a performance gear change.
Combined with the lows of injury setbacks, personal tragedy and also self-doubt, will provide a gripping insight into the studied determination that is needed to achieve in any arena.
Speaking topics include:
- Leadership (Vision, Environment, Removing Obstructions)
- Trust/Teamship (Unity, Standards, Spirit, Culture)
- Attitude/Confidence/Belief (Removing Luck)
- Attention to Detail
- Responsibility (TCUP – Think Correctly Under Pressure)
- Managing Change
- From Good to Great
- Sustaining Peak Performance
After-Dinner Speaker:
Will’s career has furnished him with an endless supply of stories and anecdotes which can be adapted to entertain any audience – rugby fans or not. With a great sense of humour, he has established himself as one of the UK’s leading rugby after-dinner speakers.
