Congratulations to Yusuf Sodal GGECL on achieving a distinction in his final module and Graduate Status

The Guild of Ethics, Culture & Leadership is delighted to congratulate Yusuf Sodal on achieving a Distinction in the final module of the Transforming Leadership & Culture programme. 

Having completed all three modules, Yusuf has been awarded Graduate Membership of the Guild and conferred the GGECL designation.

The following personal account has been adapted from Yusuf’s final reflection and edited for length and clarity.

At the age of 32, I have already had the opportunity to work in education, healthcare administration, finance and banking. Each role has taught me something different about people, responsibility, leadership and decision-making.

Before beginning this programme, I understood ethics mainly as doing what is right, following rules, being honest and avoiding misconduct. These things remain essential, but my understanding is now much deeper.

Leadership is not only about holding a position, meeting targets, giving instructions or solving operational problems. It is also about the way we treat people, the values we demonstrate, the decisions we make under pressure and the culture we create through our daily behaviour.

Previously, I often depended on personal values, professional experience, organisational procedures and instinct when making difficult decisions. While these remain important, I now understand that instinct alone is not enough.

Ethical dilemmas require me to gather the facts and listen to different perspectives. I must consider my duties, the possible consequences and whether my emotions are influencing my judgement. The final decision should be one I can explain and defend.

Another important lesson is that compliance and ethics are related but not identical. Good intentions alone are not enough if we fail to consider how our decisions may affect others. Ethics requires both principles and judgement.

Emotional intelligence has also become central to how I think about leadership. I am more aware of the need to pause before responding and to recognise when stress, disappointment, loyalty or personal preference may be influencing me.

Empathy helps me understand another person’s situation, even when I do not agree with them. Active listening is equally important. Employees and customers do not always need an immediate answer; sometimes they first need to feel that they have been heard and understood.

As a banking professional working with small and medium-sized businesses in Somalia, I have seen that financial decisions affect real people. Behind every SME account or financing request, there may be a family, employees, suppliers and a wider community.

This has strengthened my belief that banking leadership should combine commercial responsibility with human understanding. For my final assignment, I developed an ethical decision-making framework called the FAIR LEAD Process.

The name reflects the leader I want to become: fair, responsible, emotionally intelligent, accountable and willing to serve others.

This programme, or as I now realise unique leadership learning journey has also changed how I think about organisational culture. Ethics should not sit within a separate policy or occasional training session. It should influence how people are recruited, developed, supported and encouraged to make decisions.

I have considered practical ways of applying this learning, including a culture charter, ethical dilemma discussions and a simple decision-making guide based on FAIR LEAD. 

My aim is to help create an environment where people can ask questions, share different perspectives and understand that how results are achieved matters as much as the results themselves.I am still developing and have much more to learn. 

I want to become a leader who listens, applies standards fairly, supports others and remains consistent when decisions are difficult.

For me, ethical leadership means doing the right thing, in the right way, for the right reasons, while remaining accountable for the impact on others.

Yusuf Sodal GGECL

On behalf of the Guild of Ethics Culture & Leadership, and all our members worldwide, congratulations, Yusuf.