Allison Kirkby, BT’s chief executive, appointed JMW on the recommendation of BT’s human resources department - Pau Barrena/Bloomberg

BT (BT-A.L) spent more than £1m to bring in a leadership guru for its senior managers who repeatedly fell asleep in meetings owing to medication he was taking.

Dan Spiwack, the chief executive of US-based JMW Consultants, was brought in by Allison Kirkby, BT’s chief executive, on a nine-month, £1.3m contract shortly after she took charge early last year.

Alongside colleagues he ran a leadership event for senior executives and then attended their committee meetings for months afterwards, with the aim of providing feedback on their interactions. However, multiple sources said Mr Spiwack repeatedly fell asleep in the meetings and missed significant decisions.

One source said: “It was ridiculous and became a running joke among some people and their teams. He was openly asleep.”

A spokesman for JMW said Mr Spiwack had fallen asleep as a result of heart medication which had made him drowsy and had stopped taking it when this became clear.

While Mr Spiwack’s drowsiness was not related to the length of the meetings, BT is notorious among even its own staff for its culture of lengthy discussions and PowerPoint presentations.

Executive committee meetings can last up to nine hours, with each attendee handed papers running up to 500 pages. By contrast, Amazon (AMZN) is famous for the succinct six-page memos which are read by everyone at the start of every meeting.

It is understood that Ms Kirkby appointed JMW on the recommendation of BT’s human resources department following an open procurement process. The contract was not renewed.

One its website, JMW says it has an “unapologetic focus on the human element in organisational and operational success” and that the “the mindset and behaviour of leaders, aligned across and within divisions, is the most powerful multiplier of impact”.

Slow-moving culture

Ms Kirkby is the latest chief executive of BT, a former state monopoly, to attempt to shift its slow-moving culture. She is seeking to increase collaboration between departments and break down long-standing barriers to growth. Several of the company’s senior leadership have been replaced or are in the process of moving on.

She is now under pressure to deliver change from number one shareholder Bharti Global, the Indian conglomerate controlled by billionaire Sunil Mittal. Ms Kirkby is continuing a programme of significant job cuts; by November BT had cut 16,000 roles in two years.Billionaire Sunil Mittal controls Bharti Global, BT’s number one shareholder - Angel Garcia/Bloomberg

A spokesman for JWM said: “Mr Spiwack was dealing with a heart condition. He was put on medication to treat it, unfortunately drowsiness was a side effect.

“When Mr Spiwack realised the impact the medicine was having, he informed the client of his condition and why the drowsiness occurred. The condition has since been addressed.”

A BT spokesman said: “BT Group works with external advisors to support strategic programmes, and following a competitive procurement process engaged JMW Consultants to deliver projects focused on enhancing leadership performance. These projects took place over the course of 2024, and concluded at the end of year.”

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