#15 - Serene Haddad: Leading through change and uncertainty

Serene Haddad is VP of Innovation & AI at Nestlé and a marketer at heart, with nearly 20 years of experience building brands across Europe and the Middle East. Having lived in nine countries, she brings a truly global perspective and thrives in complexity, transformation, and change. She works at the intersection of data, human insight, strategy, and storytelling to turn ideas into meaningful business growth. She is also passionate about continuous self-investment and empowering women to lead with both ambition and authenticity.

In this episode, Serene joins me after a chance meeting in Dubai to explore what it really means to lead through change in the current climate. With organisations shifting and roles evolving, she shares how she’s learned to stay grounded through uncertainty.

She reflects on how her international upbringing shaped her ability to adapt, build connection, and find opportunity in change. We also explore the shift from navigating change personally to leading others through it, where influence, clarity, and emotional awareness become essential.

At the heart of the conversation is Serene’s guiding principle: focusing on the value you can bring, even when circumstances feel uncertain or out of your control. She shares how this mindset has helped her navigate complex leadership moments, build stronger teams, and stay resilient through constant change.

In this episode, we talk about:

00:00 – Introduction and meeting Serene in Dubai

02:45 – Leading through change and uncertainty

05:03 – Control, influence, and letting go

11:11 – A global upbringing and life across countries

16:45 – Building connection, resilience, and relationships

21:36 – From manager to inspirational leader

23:30 – Winning hearts, minds, and trust

27:37 – Leadership, gender, and lived experience

35:19 – Feedback, bias, and finding your authentic self

41:10 – Growth, self-compassion, and advice to her younger self

45:56 – Ambition, burnout, and closing reflections

If you’ve ever struggled with change, complexity, or staying confident through transition, this conversation will leave you feeling more anchored and intentional in how you lead.

About the host

Sarah Perugia is an expert women-in-leadership coach and whole-person leadership transformation specialist, dedicated to empowering female leaders to thrive. With over 20 years of experience, she partners with organisations across the globe to develop and retain top female talent, strengthen the female leadership pipeline, and promote gender equality in senior roles. Drawing on her background in acting, neuro-linguistic programming, and Positive Psychology, Sarah empowers leaders to advance their careers, build confidence, enhance performance, and ultimately flourish and thrive. Her offering combines tailored leadership development programmes with one-to-one executive leadership coaching to unlock their full potential.

If you’d like to learn more about Sarah and her work with women in leadership, you can find out more here: https://www.sarahperugia.com/women-in-leadership/

In this show, we cover

Leadership Development, Female Leaders, Resilience, Mentorship, Navigating Change, Strengths, Trust Building, Emotional Intelligence, Feedback Bias, Self-belief, Mental Health.

Listen on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Amazon Music, and more!

Contact and Connect

Connect with Sarah on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sarah-perugia-leadership-coaching/

Connect with Serene on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/serene-haddad/