'The Changing Face of the Workplace' by Vijay Tank

One of the most important things to remember is that you’re not a passenger in your career — you’re in the driving seat.

For me, that mindset underpins how we think about leadership, development and opportunity at E.ON. Careers are rarely linear. Sometimes the destination is clear, sometimes it isn’t. But whatever stage you’re at, taking ownership of your journey matters. That’s where mentoring can play a critical role.

A mentor can help provide clarity, challenge your thinking, or accelerate you towards where you want to get to. I’ve experienced mentoring in different ways throughout my career. Early on, people stepped in organically as they saw potential and helped open doors. Later, when I reached a point where I felt I’d stalled, I deliberately sought out mentoring support.

Mentoring works best when you’re clear on why you want it. That clarity ensures the conversation supports the outcome you’re trying to achieve, rather than just activity for its own sake.

Leading with values

When people ask about legacy, I always come back to values. I’m a very values driven individual, and those values come from growing up in an inclusive environment and one that didn’t look for reasons to discriminate but looked for points of convergence and opportunity.

None of us are without bias. But leadership carries a responsibility to recognise that and to act in the best interests of the whole, not just individuals or familiar groups.

From a business perspective, that means building something sustainable. We’re not just providing solutions for today. We’re building an organisation that serves employees, customers and communities, whether that’s in Nottingham, Coventry or Birmingham, for the long term.

On a personal level, legacy is about integrity. If I’m seen as someone who led with the right values, who acted to the highest standards, and who helped others go further than they thought possible — that’s something I’d be proud of.

Diversity as a performance driver

There’s often an assumption that leaders have to balance diversity against performance, but my experience tells me that’s a false choice. There’s strong evidence that diversity in teams and decision making drives performance and I’ve seen that proven repeatedly in practice. The most effective teams I’ve worked with are those with genuine differences — in experience, thinking styles and perspectives.

Those differences improve challenge. You get better decisions because you’re not all looking at problems in the same way. There can be a tendency to recruit people who feel familiar, who mirror ourselves, because it feels easier. But that doesn’t serve the team, the business or the communities we’re here to support.

You have to start with the confidence that diversity is an opportunity, not a threat. It’s not just an obligation, it’s necessary.

Turning intent into action through embRace

That belief is reflected in the work of embRace, E.ON’s colleague led network that is focused on advancing racial inclusion across the business. Through open dialogue, development initiatives and allyship, embRace supports colleagues while strengthening leadership capability across the organisation.

The impact of that work was recently recognised at the European Diversity Awards, where embRace was named Outstanding Ethnicity Network of the Year. With around 1,400 members, the network plays a key role in ensuring E.ON better reflects the people and communities it serves.

For me, that’s what inclusion looks like in action. Not statements of intent, but sustained effort that creates opportunity, improves decision making and strengthens performance.

Advice for future leaders

My advice to future leaders is simple: say yes to growth opportunities, even when they feel uncomfortable. You can achieve far more than you think is possible, but you have to be willing to try!