To Influence and Motivate: The Craft of Leadership with Emily Gray-Heath

With over 12 years in strategy, marketing and customer experience, Emily Gray-Heath has worked across client-side, agency, and start-up environments in the UK and Australia. She has built teams, led global accounts, and co-founded a London-based strategy studio working with some of the world’s most ambitious brands.

Her career began at O2 in digital product before moving into customer experience at TalkTalk. In 2014 she relocated to Melbourne, joining Omnicom agencies TBWA and Proximity BBDO, where she led award-winning work for ANZ Bank, Schweppes Asahi, RACV and Vanguard. Highlights included Cannes Grand Prix and Gold Effie-winning campaigns for ANZ Bank, and D&AD Pencil-winning work in pet insurance for RACV.

After returning to the UK during covid, she became head of marketing at the health start-up Tonic, before rejoining Omnicom at Critical Mass, where she drove growth for Bank of New York and Diageo.

In 2023, she co-founded Untangld Strategy Studio, which has since grown steadily with clients including Salesforce, Aviva, City & Guilds and Warner Music Group. The studio was founded on the belief that strategy should be evidence-led and actionable, not theoretical. In a market where businesses are under pressure to deliver both commercial outcomes and cultural impact, Untangld fuses senior expertise in data, research, brand, CX and design to help clients achieve both.

From repositioning global pop stars to defining how to win in the fast-evolving embedded insurance category, the work balances creativity with commerciality, building strategies that don’t sit on shelves but shift behaviour, reputation, and growth.

Emily sat down with LBB to discuss early trails by fire in agency life, lessons in resilience, and the mentors who shaped her management approach.

LBB> What was your first experience of leadership?

Emily> It was probably in a sporting context. Year Seven Netball to be precise.

I started out in the B team, but through a combination of grit and tenacity, I was moved up to the As and made captain. It was my first taste of how persistence and consistency get noticed.

Professionally, it came when I was promoted to account director on the Schweppes account at TBWA/Melbourne. I’d been desperate for a stretch role, and suddenly I found myself parachuted from a huge financial services team into leading a brand-new client and category.

It was trial by fire: I was accountable for everything, from big shoots to the grind of community management. And it didn’t always go smoothly. My first re-pitch didn’t land, but it taught me resilience, and how it might be best to orchestrate a team so everyone played to their strengths

LBB> How did you figure out what kind of leader you wanted to be – or didn’t want to be?

Emily> Mostly through trial and error. I’ve always had a strong sense of self – occasionally to the despair of my bosses. Early on, sharing my opinion was wielded like a blunt instrument, rather than a finely tuned tool. Over time, I learned that leadership is a craft: the ability to influence and motivate.

My style now is authentically still me: direct, honest, and open. I believe in feedback early and often. I’ve had plenty myself, some pieces easier to swallow than others, but all invaluable. And feedback, in my mind, goes hand in hand with supporting the person. Leadership is about creating high performance, yes, but more importantly, trust and psychological safety. Back your team, challenge them, and remember we’re all learning together.

LBB> What experience gave you your biggest lesson in leadership?

Emily> There hasn’t been one thunderbolt moment. It’s more a series of small but defining ones. Like being honest with a direct report about poor performance, but pairing that with a clear plan. Watching them not only turn things around but excel and get promoted? That’s gold.

Equally, the leaders I’ve admired most taught me through how they handled adversity. When something went wrong, they didn’t waste time on blame. They rolled up their sleeves, solved the problem, and moved forward. That pragmatic, solutions-first mindset has become one of the signatures of my own leadership style.

LBB> Did you always want to lead?

Emily> Yes. Even as a junior manager, I aspired to lead whether CMO role client side or agency CEO. I liked the idea of setting direction and creating momentum.

I’ve always been confident sharing a point of view – sometimes right, sometimes wrong – but over time I’ve learned that real leadership is knowing when to listen and when to direct. I encourage my teams to do the same: develop informed perspectives, challenge the work, and go deep into the client’s world. With curiosity and graft, almost anything is achievable.

LBB> How much of leadership is natural personality, and how much can be learned?

Emily> I genuinely believe anyone can learn leadership with the right mentors and mindset. That said, certain traits in my personality make it feel natural for me. I thrive under pressure, I enjoy shaping direction, and I’m very loyal. Loyalty matters because it builds trust: when people know you’ll back them, they’re more willing to follow you into new ideas or unfamiliar territory.

The best part of leadership for me is putting forward ideas, shaping a vision, and persuading others to get behind it. And when it works, when you feel the team moving together towards a shared goal: it’s magic.

But I don’t buy into the myth of ‘born leaders.’ Everyone can learn to generate ideas, to influence, to motivate. Those skills are teachable and buildable, if you’re open to learning and willing to practise. But it should be said, not everyone wants to learn to lead, and that’s more than fine too.

LBB> What aspects of leadership do you find most challenging?

Emily> Adaptive leadership. I have my style, but teams are made up of wildly different people with unique personalities and motivations. Learning how to flex my communication style so the same vision inspires rather than overwhelms has been my steepest curve. Understanding how to get the best out of people requires more listening so I’ve had to work harder at that.

LBB> Have you ever failed whilst in charge?

Emily> Of course. Try running your own business. Failure is part of the daily diet. The trick is how you metabolise it. Sometimes you just need to let yourself feel rubbish for a minute. Then, the next morning, you make it joyous and productive; music on, fresh air at lunch, momentum restored. Failure is inevitable and temporary. Resilience is the real skill.

LBB> What’s your approach to openness and transparency?

Emily> Transparency is essential, but timing and tone matter. Don’t dump bad news on someone on a Monday morning when they’ve got no space to process it. Don’t let critical feedback feel like a personal attack. For me, honesty and consideration aren’t opposites; they’re a pair.

LBB> Did you have mentors? Do you mentor others?

Emily> I’ve been lucky to have brilliant mentors who shaped how I lead. From Lorenzo Bresciani and Katy Hely I learned the foundations: how to sharpen critical thinking and hold a room with clarity and conviction. From my GAD at TBWA, Claire Tenzer, I learned something harder: how to hold my opinions more lightly. That lesson in humility and adaptability took time to stick, but it’s been invaluable.

My current business partners: Jamal Cassim, has taught me the power of atmosphere in leadership, how building trust and energy in a team can be just as important as setting direction.

James Needham has shown me how to make everyone feel valued, turning even shaky ideas into collective progress.

Danish Chan reminds me daily of the value of ingenuity, moving fast, thinking laterally, and keeping curiosity alive.

And at home, my husband, and brilliant CX leader, models a different style altogether: empathy. His nurturing approach shows me how powerful it is when teams feel cared for as much as they’re challenged.

As a mentor myself, I try to combine all of that: curiosity, confidence, humility, and empathy. I’ll always back someone who’s willing to take a risk and learn in public.

LBB> How do you lead through difficult times?

Emily> You keep going. Get up. Go again. Innovate. Give it your all. That’s how you grow.

LBB> How have you prioritised diversity and inclusion?

Emily> In strategy, diversity of thought is non-negotiable. We want people bringing their lived experiences into the room. It makes the work sharper, the discussions richer, and the culture more open. We seek that out in our hiring, and we make space for respectful dissonance.

LBB> How important is company culture to your business?

Emily> It’s everything. We’re a talent-led business. We’re only as good as our people. Culture is what empowers people to do the best work of their careers.

We’ve built Untangld as the kind of place we’d want to work forever: high flexibility, high accountability. It’s liberating for some, but not for everyone, and we’ve learned to be clear about that. The wrong cultural fit isn’t a diversity issue; it’s about honesty upfront about how we work, and finding people who thrive in that environment.

LBB> What resources have been most useful to your leadership journey?

Emily> Conversations, above all. If you admire someone, go talk to them.

Develop a strong personal network so you can turn to peers for advice, and offer it in return. Since launching my own business, having peers who’ve navigated the same highs and lows, and are willing to share their stories openly, has been both validating and deeply rewarding