Every business has a story – but what story are today’s most ambitious companies really living? The Dreamers is an interview series exploring how senior leaders understand the deeper narrative behind their work and how it shapes the way they lead – through the lens of the Human Story of Business framework and its four archetypes.

Mountains don’t bend to ambition. They demand respect from those who wish to be part of their grandeur. 
 
For Michelle Leavesley, Chief Sustainability Officer at financial services company Admiral Group, that mindset began in South Wales, where she grew up surrounded by nature. Today, it underpins her approach to leadership: navigating complexity rather than trying to dominate it, and embedding sustainability into the everyday decisions that shape Admiral. 

We spoke to her about humility, leading with respect for nature, and making it easier to do the right thing. 

Who or what inspires you?  

Mountains. I spend as much time as I can in nature – hiking or snowshoeing – because they really take my breath away. They can be dangerous too; I learned that the hard way after being helicoptered off a mountain once upon a time. You have to respect them. They’re humbling, and they remind me that I’m part of something much bigger. 

Mountains shape my thinking around leadership. You can’t dominate complexity. Whether it’s nature, people or organisations, you must understand the conditions, prepare carefully and move forward with humility. The leaders who inspire me most combine ambition with respect – for the terrain they’re operating in and for the people they’re travelling with. 

What’s the story you return to again and again?   

Felicity Axten’s solo crossing of Antarctica. She was the first woman in history to ski solo across the continent. She was alone for 59 days in temperatures of minus 30, winds of 80 kilometres an hour – just incredible. But what stays with me is that she described it as a battle with her mind. You can’t overpower Antarctica. You survive by respecting it. It’s a hugely powerful reminder that endurance, humility and purpose matter. 

How does this relate to you personally?   

I can only dream about doing an expedition like travelling across Antarctica. But I look at my career as one long expedition. You come across a challenge and think: what resources have I got to deal with this?  

I grew up in South Wales, surrounded by nature, so that sense of respect for the environment has always been part of my DNA. That’s shaped how I approach challenges – you don’t try to dominate them, you work with them. 

I’ve learned that bringing people with you on that expedition is so important – a range of people that understand the terrain, who act as a sounding board, to lift you up when you fall.  

At Admiral, was there a moment you thought, “I’m supposed to be a part of this story?”  

Admiral is very well known in South Wales, especially for what the founders have achieved in social impact. But there was one moment early on when I realised I’d found my tribe. When you join Admiral, you’re given a piece of jigsaw from the group CEO, Milena Mondini. It’s given as a reminder that there is a bigger picture. Our success can only be achieved when there is a great team in place who work towards a common goal. And everybody is a fundamental piece of the puzzle. 

We also have an upturned structure. Milena puts herself at the bottom of the organisational chart and the people who talk to our customers are at the top. They have the best view from the building. As leaders, we are here to inspire them to be the absolute best they can be – by serving to lead.  

What’s that bigger story that Admiral is telling?    

The big picture from where I sit – because we all have slightly different perspectives – is we’re here to do good.  

The company was set up as a disruptor in the market; we’re 30 years old, which is young as a FTSE. But we carry the expectation of a far more mature organisation, and in many ways an entire nation, because we’re the only FTSE headquartered in Wales. People say, “you must be forgotten because you’re outside London.” But in reality, this puts us in the spotlight. In Wales, we talk about Calon – the heart.  You hear Calon Lân (a pure heart) echoing from the Principality Stadium. That pride and sense of place really matters.  

That’s also the story at Admiral: holding our nerve, staying rooted in Wales, but with global ambition and drawing strength from our landscape and culture. We’re proving that growth doesn’t require imitation or losing what makes you feel special.  

That reminds me of the Rise to Greatness story. The underdog mentality, with Admiral’s Welsh identity being its superpower. Which of the four story archetypes would you say Admiral is living in?    

That’s partly right. But because we have so much ‘leave your ego at the door’, it feels uncomfortable to say that. I would have said the quest, because conditions are constantly shifting in the places we touch due to climate change.  

What stories are being told internally?   

We talk about our journey to better, which we promote through ‘imperfect environmentalism’. When I joined Admiral, sustainability was something that people misunderstood. They thought it meant that they couldn’t wear certain shoes; eat certain food; or go on holiday or travel. People would even come up to me and apologise. 

What we’ve tried to do is turn that into positive action. People just need to act. For example, we are on a net zero transition deadline of 2040. It’s ambitious, but by having it there, it feels just within reach. It’s about people showing up every single day, looking for ways that they can act and turning the theory into action. 

What stories are really resonating with people right now?  

Our partnership with the National Trust. I love it. Reintroducing beavers as part of our flood prevention measures is something that has captured the imagination of our people. We have little beaver watch cameras in the office. But beavers are brilliant at slowing down the flow of water, a fantastic nature-based solution for flood resilience and prevention.  

It’s all about small contributions of action. Any colleague at Admiral can apply for funding for something that matters to them and their local community, which is really powerful.  

What do you think Admiral’s next chapter is? 

We are moving from intent to instinct. In Sustainability teams, people make lots of promises, targets, talk a lot of talk – but a lot of it still lives in the realm of conscious effort. We’re so lucky that our new core business strategy has sustainability at its heart. The goal is for people not to have to stop and think about sustainability, but to act with it on instinct. 

What comes next is a deeper connection between business resilience and societal resilience. It’s not just about environmental impact, but also social purpose and financial inclusion – recognising that we are part of the communities and ecosystems we operate in, not separate from them. That’s the next chapter. 

Find out more about the Four Archetypes of the Human Story of Business here.