Leadership Stories

Ali Abdi, Partnerships Manager, Community Gateway, Cardiff University

How have your life experiences helped make you the leader you are today?
For as long as I can remember I’ve been passionate about having a positive influence upon young people and developing them to become active citizens and leaders. Growing up I had good role models in my life that kept me on a positive path.  I recognise today’s youth do not have those same role models and as such I’ve stepped up to be that leader that they can aspire to.

What have been your proudest moments since taking up your leadership role with Community Gateway?
Establishing the Grangetown Youth Forum where I regularly bring young people together and in contact with Cardiff University, academics, students and events. Made up of diverse young people, they have won local and national awards for their commitment to the community as active citizens. I am very proud that some members of the youth forum have gone on to study at Cardiff University after networking with academics and admissions staff.

What have been the most helpful things you have learnt from these times and from working with your colleagues?  
I’ve learnt that together we can achieve more and that our work very much compliments each other when it comes to making a difference to the communities we serve especially around equality and inclusion.  Furthermore, while there are many serious issues equally worthy of attention and support, I have the greatest pleasure when I focus on the challenges that my community are most anxious about and campaigning around them.

Tell us about a time or two when you have had to display courage in your leadership role
With Citizens Wales, I lead a campaign that influenced Nando’s to open the first mainstream halal-compliant restaurant in Cardiff city centre; at first they refused but after bringing young people in my area into the community organising process our campaign that lasted 18 months was hugely successful.  The win demonstrated to the community that change is possible if we act together with others for social justice and the common good.

What do you think are the biggest leadership issues facing us in Wales in 2019?
I think post-Brexit and what opportunities are going to be like for graduates, school leavers and young people are the biggest leadership issues facing us in Wales in 2019 and particularly for those furthest away from the job market and of BAME backgrounds.  Without well paid, decent jobs with growth opportunities the future will be bleak for those growing up in today’s society and will bring about frustration and disorder.

Which other leaders in Wales do you admire and why?
I admire Uzo Iwobi OBE who is the Specialist Equalities Adviser at Welsh Government and is also Race Council Cymru’s CEO where she challenges and holds to account organisations and businesses on race equality and inclusion; subsequently compelling them to embed equality and diversity principles throughout their institutions and establishments.

What is one word that sums up leadership for you?
Visionary

Jeremy Vaughan, Assistant Chief Constable, South Wales Police

How have your life experiences helped make you the leader you are today?
I watched my parents work hard and with integrity, values that have driven my 23 year career. A career that has included adapting to the management styles of many senior managers, to changes in national strategy and policy and being accountable at an operational and strategic level. I spent 5 years examining leadership theory and practice whilst studying for an Executive MBA, during this period becoming a husband and proud father.

What have been your proudest moments since taking up your leadership role with South Wales Police?

• Being appointed as the Head of Territorial Policing for South Wales responsible for 2500 staff.
• Becoming one of the 20 national Counter Terrorism Commanders.
• Doubling the number of BaME employees.
• Leading initiatives to achieve the highest ever percentage of females promoted to Sgt.
• Being honoured with the Blue Gown at the National Eisteddfod for services to Wales.
• Receiving the International Association of Women in Policing HeForShe award.

What have been the most helpful things you have learnt from these times and from working with your colleagues?

• To seek the advice of others and knowing where to look for that advice.
• To show humility and accept when you are wrong, looking to the support of your team.
• When under pressure the things you need are time to think and time with your team; the very things you tend to relinquish, so don’t!
• To trust your own intuition and judgement based on your experiences.

Tell us about a time or two when you have had to display courage in your leadership role
As Chair of the Early Action Together Programme for South Wales I resisted the temptation to deliver a small scale pilot (as elsewhere in Wales) to improve services to those subject of Adverse Childhood Experiences, preferring to engage with 7 Local Authorities and develop a model of co-location and cooperation to promulgate early intervention (trauma informed) services, working on the principle that we would collectively prevent harm and improve the outcomes for families and young people.

What do you think are the biggest leadership issues facing us in Wales in 2019?
Within Wales we have the opportunity to make service improvements across the whole of the public sector. To do this we need to be brave, take risks, challenge the status quo and give up individual (organisational) sovereignty for the greater good. This will require leaders to think long term and recognise that there won’t always be a forensic business case which supports collaborative working. Leadership will deliver success alongside policy.

Which other leaders in Wales do you admire and why?
Chief Constable Matt Jukes for his humility, intellect and use of soft power.

Retired Chief Constable Peter Vaughan for his commitment to communities and the workforce at times of austerity.

Mr Mark Polin, Chair of BCUHB, for his drive, determination and work ethic.

What is one word that sums up leadership for you?
Authenticity.

Sharon Williams, Managing Director, Pia

How have your life experiences helped make you the leader you are today?
Playing team sports from a young age has entrenched in me the belief that sharing a vision and responsibilities makes a more successful (and happier) team. I was captain in a number of the teams I played for, even though I was not necessarily the best player. Being captain of a team means understanding and celebrating individual strengths, respecting different opinions and personalities, and always playing your part.

What have been your proudest moments since taking up your leadership role with Pia?
Some of the proudest moments have come from incidental compliments, either from colleagues or visitors. Visitors often spontaneously remark on the good feeling when coming into Pia for the first time. The proudest business moment was turning a potential £80k loss in one financial year into just a £12k loss after a customer went into administration. The team pulled together brilliantly and we haven’t looked back since.

What have been the most helpful things you have learnt from these times and from working with your colleagues?
Being open and transparent with the way you are running a business gives your colleagues confidence and creates a loyal and hardworking team. Having trust in your teammates and valuing everyone as an individual generally rewards you with great service, both to you as a leader and to your customers. And it’s usually easy to see which of your colleagues will need additional support to meet those standards!

Tell us about a time or two when you have had to display courage in your leadership role
One of our largest customers went under two months into our financial year, leaving us forecasting an £80k loss. The biggest decisions I made was to not make redundancies and to invest our resources in equipment and training to develop a new service. Our work environment is very inclusive, therefore, colleagues were instrumental in those decisions. We survived and the ‘new’service is now a significant part of our portfolio.

What do you think are the biggest leadership issues facing us in Wales in 2019?
For small businesses, the continual challenge is retaining and nurturing specific talents while being levered on cost by much larger organisations. Pia’s challenge is also to maintain the quality we want to produce while getting the unit price low enough to compete for larger contracts. Brexit, and the uncertainty around it, is a more universal challenge that will no doubt have huge ramifications for organisations in Wales if it happens.

Which other leaders in Wales do you admire and why?
Leanne Wood and Cerys Furlong (Chwarae Teg). Leanne Wood was a strong and principled leader and gave Plaid Cymru a real prominence in UK politics. I’m fortunate enough to be a Board member for Chwarae Teg and have great admiration for the poise, strength and steady hand of Cerys’ leadership.

What is one word that sums up leadership for you?
Commitment

Alicja Zalesinska, Director, Tai Pawb

How have your life experiences helped make you the leader you are today?
I owe much to my parents who brought me and my two brothers up in the spirit of hard work and commitment coupled with respect for people’s efforts and contributions – irrespective of their social standing. I get sad and angry when I don’t see it around me and leadership for me has been about learning how to channel this into passion and motivation for me and people I work with. My experiences of migrating to the UK, coming out as a gay woman in Poland and a tough journey into motherhood have all taught me the importance of challenge, dialogue, compassion and optimism- I would like to think that these things shaped me as a leader.

What have been your proudest moments since taking up your leadership role with Tai Pawb?
Working with my board and team to develop our new, ambitious strategy and putting it into action. We wanted to work with others to shape the change we want to see and make it happen. I think it has been transformative for the organisation – turning us from an often-reactive support organisation to a proactive leader with big ideas on how to advance housing rights, tackle inequality and foster excellence in equality and diversity in the housing sector. It enabled us to do things like: starting a conversation and a campaign on the need for human right to housing in Wales with significant support from the sector and cross party consensus, develop an impactful and prestigious sector quality mark – QED Award – and break new ground with our Open Doors project – which promotes equality in the private rented sector – both award winning programmes of work.

What have been the most helpful things you have learnt from these times and from working with your colleagues?
There are so many. I am on a constant learning trajectory and I love it. I have certainly learnt how to strategise and how not to be afraid to think big. I’ve learned so much on how to choose the right people, teams and partnerships to work with and how to nurture and utilise them and ask for help. I am naturally quite action focused and have a lot of ideas on how to ‘make things happen’, ideally by yesterday but I have really come to appreciate the importance of reflection, talking and, more importantly, listening to people and really taking on board what they’re saying, though I  think I still have a lot of learning to do there:).  I have let go of some of my perfectionism when its unhelpful. Last but not least I have learned a lot about the importance of  optimism and having some space for fun and laughter – our line of work can really bring you down.

Tell us about a time or two when you have had to display courage in your leadership role
Launching our quality mark was certainly a big risk for me and took a lot of courage – I remember thinking: we have put some much heart and work into it and what if nobody is interested, what if it doesn’t have the intended impact? It was also the first time we talked much more confidently about what we had to offer as an organisation, if felt rather uncomfortable: what if people thought we were ‘too full of ourselves’?. It took a lot of courage, but it was definitely a turning point for me and for Tai Pawb. I am so grateful to my board back then as they really helped harness my confidence, through support and constructive challenge and it was a turning point for me and for the organisation. In general, I think that equality and human rights work requires a lot of courage, we often convey difficult messages and are a small organisation – I am always conscious of how this can affect my team.

What do you think are the biggest leadership issues facing us in Wales in 2019?
Lack of shared vision and ambition – I think that the challenges of cuts, Brexit, disenfranchisement, mental health and poverty issues require large scale collaboration and aspiration. Unfortunately, I think that these challenges also mean that a lot of people feel disempowered/threatened or simply do not have the time or capacity to think how they are going to work beyond their established limits.

Which other leaders in Wales do you admire and why?
I am constantly inspired by all the people on my team and board –  I have learnt and am still learning so much from them and I love working with them.

Michelle Reid, CEO of Merthyr Valleys Homes – for being a great motivator, communicator and influencer and for her values

Julie James – Minister for Housing and Local Government – for her ambition, commitment, passion and authenticity

Lindsay Cordery-Bruce – CEO of the Wallich – for her ambition and intelligence

Jennie Bibbings, Campaigns Manager from Shelter Cymru – for her integrity, relentlessness, compassion and the impact her work has had on so many people’s lives

Clare Budden – CEO Penaff Group – for her values

What is one word that sums up leadership for you?
Fearlessness