"If you are ferocious in battle, remember to be magnanimous in victory"
Colonel Tim Collins OBE delivered the now infamous speech to his troops of the 1st Royal Irish Battle Group on the eve of battle in Iraq, March 2003. Such was the notoriety of this particular address it is believed that a copy of the speech hung in the Oval Office of the White House. From the moment Tim Collins' speech in Iraq was made public, Collins became a hero and an inspiration to world leaders and infantrymen alike.
Tim was commissioned into the Army and joined the 2nd Battalion, Royal Irish Rangers in Berlin. He took command of the 1st Royal Irish in the aftermath of the Sierra Leone hostage crisis. After completing several tours including Northern Ireland and the Falklands, he became aide to the UN Chief of Staff in Cyprus. Promoted to Lieutenant Colonel, Tim took on the role of Project Director for the Peace Support Training Centre in Sarajevo, before returning to HQ Land Command with responsibility for training. Tim Collins' book, Rules of Engagement, was published in 2006.
Tim is a naturally inspiring speaker, combining extensive experience of active service with broad knowledge of military and political history. An authority on teamwork, leadership and motivation, his speeches show a clear parallel between military problem solving and the challenges faced by leaders in any walk of life.
Tim's philosophy can be summed up in a handful of rules. Know what your objectives are and have a plan; pick the right team; make sure everyone has a role and that it has been communicated clearly to them; understand your responsibilities as leader but learn to trust your team.
Transformational Leadership
Risk
Overcoming Adversity
Teamwork
"Inspiring, funny and above all practical about what gets people committed"
Shell"Very well received by the audience - comments were that they found it very refreshing and inspirational."
Thales"Our senior management have been cascading the messages down and I have heard several of them give direct quotes from Colonel Collins' presentation."
Camelot Business"Tim was the most popular part of the day. His speech really struck a chord and provided an incredible amount of perspective."
Deloitte"Tim gave a very entertaining after dinner speech which he pitched perfectly to our young people who were receiving awards for their completed apprenticeships. The adventures he recounted were put in perspective for the audience, providing real life lessons with great humour. Highly recommended."
TTE Training LtdIn short he was fantastic; if we were a little younger some of us might be interested in joining the Royal Irish!
Liam D'Arcy, Senior Business Development Executive EMEA, Walkers Global, Dublin‘Colonel Tim Collins OBE was the keynote speaker for our CIMA West Midlands prestige event ‘Inspirational Leadership for board members and aspiring leaders’, Tim was inspirational and provided great insight into his philosophy with some entertaining examples of where they have worked well and not so well in various military conflicts. Timhad the audience engaged throughout the speech for over an hour and provided some thought provoking answers through the following Q&A session. It was also very pleasing to have a keynote speaker who was available for one to one discussions with our attendees in our after networking session, this provided a real personal touch and ensured our event was a great success.’
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