THE 200th anniversary of the Battle of Trafalgar has focused our minds on leadership. The Nelson Touch: What is it, who has it?

Lord Nelson inspired his men to achieve things almost above and beyond their ability, or at least the ability they saw in themselves. That made them perform better in the heat of battle.

He combined clever tactics with a personality that resonated with the ship’s company and his fellow officers. He was prepared to lead them into battle, not remain behind the lines. One suspects he oozed charisma.

Nelson also captured the public imagination. He was fallible, he liked the ladies, as Emma Hamilton would have testified. His weaknesses made him human.

Good leaders bring out the best in people. Bad leaders have the opposite effect. You only have to look at schools and how inspirational heads manage to turn things around. A generation of talented school leaders is about to retire, leaving a huge challenge for the future.

Political leaders need special qualities. Which of David Davis and David Cameron has the Nelson Touch? Perhaps neither. Blair probably has it. Will Brown have it? Michael Vaughan has it. Winston Churchill certainly had it in spades.

Margaret Thatcher had it, handbag and all, although she alienated almost as many people as she attracted, not always ideal in a leader. Or is it? Consensus is a modern managerial style. Inclusion, empowerment - all buzzwords designed to aid leadership and performance.

The example of sporting management suggests the UK does not produce enough leaders. Mourinho, Sven, Duncan Fletcher, Wenger, Benitez - all foreigners helping success.

How many business leaders have the Nelson touch? We can think of a few - Sir Richard Branson, of Virgin, and Sir Digby Jones of the CBI come to mind. Entrepreneurs like Simon Woodroffe of Yo Sushi do promote business leadership.

How many managers in your organisation display genuine leadership qualities?

We need more inspirational business Nelsons to fire a young generation.

But that is easier said than done with a sometimes flawed education system and a society that often frowns on bold leadership.