Category: Cover Story

How would you describe your journey? Brief us on the inception story of your career.

I started my career as a Cobol programmer for The Bank of England, but I quickly realised that fixing the millennium bug issue was not that exciting so then I moved into consulting my first assignment was for a media company, and I loved the variety and excitement around this industry. I stayed in media for a while I even worked directly for the BBC for a number of years.

After this I moved to Accenture and was in the communications and media part of the business, and this is where I accidentally ‘fell’ into telcos. I worked for all the big ones, BT, Virgin Media, Three, Vodafone, Orange, O2 (or BT Cellnet as they were at the time) and I absolutely loved it fast paced, at the forefront of technology and doing good things connecting people. Things have moved on quickly its now not just about people it’s about ‘things’ too where we put sims in cows to check their location, video calling whenever we want and with 5G the possibilities are endless.  it’s an industry that keeps you on your toes, there is always something new, its fast paced and exciting. 

I am a huge advocate of business led IT, this started when I first joined KPMG and got the opportunity to be involved in how the code that I was programming actually helped the commercial business. From there I was adamant that you could not have technology and business in isolation. I think it’s taken until the last few years for this to become a reality where we are now seeing CIOs as business leaders and central to a company’s executive board rather than a ‘service’ to the business. My job today is all about transformation and building products and services that are aligned with Three’s objectives and company goals and I am central to that. When I joined, Three was very much a technology ‘in isolation’ business, but over the last 3 years I have worked very closely with the rest of the organisation to change not only our technology stack to make it more accessible to the business but to make us, the CIO team central to the organisation, We are now a joined up team, which help me provide the business with the right tools and technologies to actually make changes themselves rather than come to IT for everything. This in turn has made us a much more agile and adaptive business.

Enlighten us about your role in the organisation you are leading / associated with?

I am currently Chief Information Officer for 3UK. I am responsible for all things IT related, whether that be delivering new technology required for our new products or propositions across all channels, managing changes to our Call center technology, the digital estate and retail systems, Billing and CRM – so basically all things IT that make a connectivity company like Three operate. I work very closely with the commercial and customer experience teams to ensure that I can react very quickly when we see an issue that could impact customer experience, or new technology that could help us advance in certain areas. As well as this Business-as-usual role, I am also responsible for transforming not only our IT stack to enable us to give a better customer and agent experience, but also transforming our ways of working to enable us to work hand in hand with the rest of the organization. I am a firm believer in Business Led IT change and this is what I am advocating at Three. 

Where do you find inspiration? What motivates you to work harder?

My motivation comes from a need I must be the best that I can be. If I find I have a subject or area that I am not very good at, e.g., biology at school, I get bored and I don’t strive to achieve the best I can be, but where I have an area that inspires me, and I am really interested in, e.g., computer science at school, and Design, which I love and excelled at. So, the way in which I am wired comes from an early age, so I chose my career choices carefully, I must be in an area that interested me and motivates me daily.

My motivation also comes from others, I thrive on seeing other people in my team succeed, so I dedicate a large percentage of my working day to leading, motivating, and helping other succeed. Getting, my leadership team promoted and recognised as being brilliant makes me incredibly motivated to job my role, my team inspire my every single day to work harder to get my team recognised as a truly high performing team but also an honest trustworthy team who do what they say they will do. Authenticity and trust is so important to being in a great team, if my team are happy hen so am I.  

I also like to campaign in areas that I see and believe are wrong, and example earlier in my career when I was told I could not promote some because she was on maternity leave – this was company policy and clearly not right – so I went on a mission to get this changed. There was also a time when someone joined my team and I found out had been offered a lower salary than her peers due to just coming off maternity leave and therefore wouldn’t be as productive as the others’ – this obviously made me furious, and I fixed this. There are many many other examples where I have seen something that is not right, and I have made it right.  

I regularly talk about the importance of women in Tech and my views on Business led IT, I have been featured in the Sunday Times newspaper 3 times and recognised as the top 10 leader in telcos in 2022 by Raconteur, the most innovative CIO’s to follow in 2022 by Analytics Insight, the most influential women in tech by Bizclick media, CIO Top 100 by HotTopics.ht’s and UKTech50, and some other most influential leaders by various other forums. I have also made it to the ‘Top leaders in Tech List 2022 for the UK’ by computer weekly. I also regularly feature in various interviews, panels and talk at a lot of telco specific and IT specific events in the UK and also abroad.  (Lisa to update on 2023 accolades not embargoed)

I am also the chair of the women’s network at Three and is also part of the CIO institute schools initiative where we talk to students about getting into technology. I am also a member of the TechM cloud advisory board, the Tibco advisory board and also the Bain/Russel Reynolds advisory board. 

Kindly mention some of the notable recognitions and accreditations received by your person.

• Women in Tech Excellence awards 2022 – Finalist CIO of the year
  • 2023 Finalist (still voting) – MVNO World Congress Woman of the year 2023
  • 2022 Technology Magazine top 100 Leaders
  • Women to watch winner for 2022 by Cranfield school of Management
  • CIO 100 Winner 2022
  • Finalist for Network X Telco Women of the year Mobile Magazine 2022 – InformaTech
  • Recognised as UKTech50 2022 UK’s most influential Tech leaders – Top 50 List
  • 2022 Mobile Magazine Top 10 Women to Watch in Telco
  • 2022 Hotopics Winner – Global CIO 100 (HP)
  • Hottopics 2021 Global CIO 100 Winner
  • 2021 Harvey Nash mention in Womens History Month Recognised in UKTop50 movers and Shakers list
  • 2022 Tech Girl Mentor
  • 2023 National technology award finalists – winners yet to be announced (Digital Transformation of the Year and tech team of the year awards)
  • HotTopics’ Global CIO 100 2023 award, in partnership with Hewlett Packard Enterprise.

What is the one thing you wish you had known about women in your line of  work before you started working?

In my experience, it’s relatively easy to find experienced men who can give advice about personal growth or career choices. However, a woman mentor can give a different perspective, like experiences as a woman in tech, advice about running into sexism, mental health, work-life balance, and other resources. 

A good woman mentor will make you believe that you belong to the tech industry, encourage confidence, and inspire you. Women in tech like to support other women in tech.  

The biggest thing I wish I had known when I started out in my career was that it was ok to be me, I am introverted by nature, and this is totally fine, when I started on my career journey I lacked so much confidence because I was continually being told, mostly by men, that I need to speak up more in meeting and comment on things all the way through the meeting, not just when I was sure of the answer. I realised much later on in my career that talking all the time in a meeting is just another insecurity and a way, mostly men, but some women, like to think this will get them to succeed – what I know now is being authentically you will help you success, do not pretend you are something else, not only is it very stressful, but nobody will thank you for it or use it as a reason to promote you. 

The other thing I wished I had known when I started my career and is one of the biggest pieces of advice I give my mentees and my team and that’s ‘know what you don’t know’ – it ok not to be an expert in everything, understand what you don’t know and be comfortable with that, don’t try and force your way through a meeting pretending you know everything about clou computing when actually you haven’t a clue and are having to google your way through a session. Again, this is really stressful, and you will get found out. You get so much more respect laying out what you are not familiar with than pretending otherwise. 

Do you believe it is compulsory for a woman to manage a household alongside her work?

I do not think this is a relevant question in today’s day and age and therefore I will not comment. 

As a woman, what has been the highlight of you career? What are the changes you wish to make for the better in your professional life post-pandemic?

My favourite moment of my career was not actually delivery specific, but it was when I fought really hard to get someone promoted when they were off on maternity leave. This was quite a number of years ago now but there was a policy in place that said if you were on maternity leave you couldn’t be promoted not until you came back to work and proved yourself again, well this was clearly utterly ridiculous,  so I worked really hard to get this policy changed and to get her promotion secured whilst she was off . A very proud moment for me that was.  

Another favourite moment for me was in my early career when I got promoted ahead of 2 bolshy individuals because I was willing to be ‘Me’, authentically me rather than pretend I was something I wasn’t – this got my promoted as people liked me, used me as a mentor, or ‘aunty Belinda’ is how I described myself at the time – the point is, I wasn’t pretending to be someone other than myself, an introverted shy individual with a huge desire to succeed. 

Brief us on the changes the pandemic brought to your sector and your market. Has the work-culture altered?

What we found was of course people’s desire for communications was even greater during the pandemic but of course you could not go into the store to ‘try out’ a phone before you made the purchase because the thought process for a mobile purchase phone is more ‘considered’. However, we saw a huge shift from retail and call centres to web chat. Pre Covid the split between Voice and chat was around 75% 25%, but this flipped over during Covid so we had to rapidly expand licenses expand our capacity and also implement new functionality and of course train voice agents into chat agents.   

The other thing we did was put our store online. I am not talking about our traditional online store here this is Three Store Now where you can have a retail experience online chat to an advisor and ask as many questions as you would like to as you would in a retail store, chatting to a real retail store agent, having a real retail store experience but actually online. This was a huge success for us. 

As for work culture this created a big change in how we work. We have as an organisation implemented our new hybrid working model from October 2021 with enormous success working from our offices in Reading & Glasgow and from home. Our employees are based in the office on average 2-3 days per week. We also reinvigorated our flexible working policy so our core hours 10.00-16.00 with the flexibility to start or finish earlier to suit our employees.  

We are still learning however we have implemented a remote first strategy for meetings by default – to ensure everyone has the same experience of the meeting if team members are in various locations. We encourage employees to think about the purpose of being in the office and how this might work best for the team (think about the 5’C’s – collaboration, connection, creativity, culture, communication) 

Whilst not one way of working fits all teams, we agree team principles around methods of communication including frequency and content of meetings and how often the team will physically get together for collaboration. MS Teams is a recognised business tool for online collaboration, however, consider as a team what information is shared where, ensuring adherence to Data Protection and retention guidelines. 

We are ensuring regular collaboration sessions are planned in to focus on face-to-face collaboration and support employee engagement, team building etc,  

This has only widened our attraction for talent as in my team now have employees based all over the UK rather than local to one of our offices as it had been previously.  

Within my own department we have introduced a number of initiatives over the last year to help development and empowerment. In order to empower teams and individuals more, we reorganised the entire CIO department to ensure that accountability sat in the right teams and the organisations and team structures allowed to empowerment of every single individual within the teams. Every single person within the organisation now knows what they are accountable and responsible for and more importantly feel they are empowered to make decisions to keep the flow of work flowing smoothly. The purpose of this move was not only to speed up decision making processes, but also to ensure it was documented and communicated that you did not need to be a ‘certain grade level’ to make key decisions. The outcome of this has been a tangible speed up of decision making, especially in financial and project decisioning. We no longer wait for the monthly steerco to make decisions; we make key important decisions every single day at every single level. 

In addition to this we have created the WLT, this is the wider leadership team, this is a group of individuals who do not sit at the top table but report into the ‘top table’ and are empowered to lead and change the CIO departments. 

What words of wisdom/ inspiration/ advice would you offer to the next generation of female leaders?

IT leadership is different today than it was only a few years ago. More and more, CIOs are being held accountable for: Designing and implementing digital initiatives, Managing cross-functional teams and Spearheading innovation.  

In other words, CIOs must become strategists as well as operational managers. There are several implications of this for the modern CIO. CIOs must, for instance: Learn leadership and management skills, understand business and strategy, and be able to identify growth opportunities in the marketplace.  

The most successful CIOs will be those who are comfortable in both the world of business and technology.  

Investing in leadership and development, therefore, should become a top priority for the modern CIO. 

One of the resources that were vital to me and encourage any female leaders to participate in, is mentorship. For me not only having a mentor or someone you can talk to is important, I think it’s imperative. As women we are very critical of ourselves and tend to over think things, worry, try and do too much, take too on much etc, we all know the juggles. I am not saying this is specific to women either, this could well be for men too. But having that outlet to talk to someone about what is going on and bouncing ideas off is vital.  

I did not have a mentor until I was very far into my career, but I’ve always had someone that I could bounce those ideas off and let off steam. I think early in my career I suffered very badly with confidence issues. I am an introvert by nature and being in a male dominated extroverted profession was certainly very challenging for me and time and time again my confidence would get knocked and I could go into my shell. I would get feedback from my bosses and peers that I should speak up more in meetings, have confidence in my voice and that I knew what I was doing, but for whatever reason I kept hiding in my shell, until one day when I had moved roles to work for Vodafone, I met my ‘boss’ and he had exactly the same personality type as me, and only by talking through what was going on in my head when I was quiet in meetings then sent emails after explaining what I should have done there and then it was confidence and it was my personality type. So, by learning some techniques to build confidence, have the downtime I needed to ‘refresh’ prepares for meetings in such a way that I was confident in what I was saying – and importantly drowning out the ‘noise’ of extroverted individuals who would talk for the sake of it, I found I was actually being listened to, my confidence grew and it went from there.

So, whilst a mentor is important, it doesn’t have to be an official one, it just needs to be someone who understands you and how you operate. 

Pop Singer/Songwriter Chesney Claire was born July 10, 2001 in Lake Charles, Louisiana. First vocal lesson was at the age of 9 with Tony Orlando’s Band in Branson, MO. At age 11 she was taking vocal lessons from Chubby Checker and his band. She graduated from Bell City High School in Bell City, Louisiana in 2019. Right after graduation, Chesney moved to Branson, Missouri to work and ultimately begin her music career.

With the help of Music Producer Rich Brown and Atlantis Recording, Chesney would successfully record and release 6 cover singles. While in Branson, Chesney’s talents caught the eye (and ears) of several Las Vegas producers and songwriters. In March of 2020, Chesney and her “Momager” Kim Hebert found themselves moving across the country to “Sin City”, (Las Vegas) in order to be closer to more industry professionals. Immediately upon moving to Vegas, Chesney provided vocals for two original songs that were recorded and released. Mid 2020 (amongst COVID) proved to be the perfect opportunity to write music. With 47 original songs under her belt, she flew to Orlando, FL with a local Vegas producer and had her 1st original single, “15 Candles” perfected by Producer Tim Coons (Pres. of Cheiron Music Group/Original Producer of The Backstreet Boys). “15 Candles” was released June 12, 2020.

Soon after “15 Candles” was released, Chesney began working on her next release, “Moving On”.
By September of 2020 Chesney started making preparations to release “Moving On”, but Industry Awards poured in and demanded her attention. In 2020 alone, Chesney was nominated for an Independent Music Award for her Michael Jackson cover of “BAD”. She was also nominated for Best Upcoming Artist at the Las Vegas Music Awards, and she won Female Artist of The Year at Indie Star Radio in Hollywood, California.

Fast forward to December 18, 2020…. Chesney released “Moving On”.
Chesney’s single “Hours” was released February 1, 2021 and “Come Alive” was properly released right after the pandemic (May 14th 2021). Chesney released “Distracted” in 2021. Chesney started 2022 out right by the release of a song she wrote herself, produced herself, and directed her Official Music Video, “Not In The Mood”.

She continues to write music to add to her “Magic Book of Spells” (as she calls it). She has a catalog of over 200 songs.
You can be expecting MORE NEW ORIGINAL RELEASES in the very near future. As of December 2021, Chesney was nominated for (25) music Industry awards and has become a TOP 5 charting artist with thousands and thousands of FM radio spins! 2021 has brought many surprises. (3) WORLD-WIDE songwriting awards, a coveted Josie Award nomination and a 2021 ISSA GOLD WIN for Female Vocalist of the Year! In 2021 Chesney was a prestigious nominee for the 2021 Hollywood Music in Media Awards as an Independent Musician along side huge names  associated with Sony Pictures, Walt Disney and others and continues her quest for music placement in feature films, documentaries, and other media sources. She has worked with Asia Brands for sync placement in a New York City Hulu series and Mac N Me- a Las Vegas Comedy Sitcom.  Chesney purchased Zeiss Records (an independent record label producing charting hits such as “Come Alive”- 2021 and “Distracted”- 2021). Chesney’s released “The Problem” on  August 26, 2022 and “Cruisin” (a duet with Korean K-Pop star Holynn) in the first week of January 2023 and “Out Of Love” (The theme song for the feature film “The Sand Runner- 2023) was released  January 27th, 2023.

Chesney considers her music her business. She owns her own Publishing Company (CC Publishing), and is a BMI Publisher who works hard every day making new contacts and fostering new business relationships. Chesney is working with other artist/producers daily and still writing!  Chesney ‘s last tour in October 2021 was with the “Break The Silence Extravaganza” featuring actor Danny Glover, The Amazing Howard Hewett, JonJon from Troop, Juanita Wynn, Rodney Allen Rippy and more. Chesney continued touring with the Break The Silence Extravaganza in Stockton, California in 2022. In August 2022 Chesney was a PRESENTER @ The LaJolla, CA International Film and Fashion Festival where she presented “Best Set Design” and walked the red carpet and she is just back from Atlanta, GA where she walked another red carpet and was a PRESENTER @ The International Singer Songwriter’s Association. Chesney is the Josie Awards “Female Rising Star of the Year” in 2022. Chesney has also just been asked to STAR in two feature films (along side several A-listers) that will begin filming in Arizona in Jan 2023. She will be the subject of a Film documentary in 2023 called “Recording In Progress II”. She stays busy making soundtracks for film and was in Consideration for (5) Grammy Nominations in 2022.

Chesney has worked with NPA Management, Limited in the UK. She has worked with Producer Tim Coons (Backstreet Boys, N’Sync, JoJo, etc), Producer Rich Brown, Producer Luis “The LP” Pacheo (Jason Derulo, 50 Cent, Alicia Keys, Five Finger Death Punch, Lady GaGa), David Davidian (Tour Manager for Alice Cooper and The Hollywood Vampires), Nashville Producer Ryan Lau, Award-winning songwriter Keegan Bost, (NBC’s Songland),  Producer Mikheil Rusishvili (the Country Georgia), Ron Lawrence (www.thisisRon.com), Grammy winning Producer Raphael “RJ2” Johnson ( Flo Rida, Lil Wayne, Snoop Dogg,  Chris, Lil Snupe, Master P, Lil Romeo, Juvenile and more).

How would you describe your journey? Brief us on the inception story of your career.

An influencer, an entrepreneur, mother of two, and Ambassador of Hope, donning multiple hats gives me a sense of true achievement. It all began when I went around speaking to my followers in Ras Al Khaimah, without revealing my face. Back then people only knew me by my voice.

Starting in 2016, little did I know that I would scale heights of success growing from a mere 99 followers to a whopping 700K+ followers today. Given my interest and passion, I was determined to prove my mettle in an industry then dominated by only male influencers.

It was important for me to connect better with my audience and build trust which was the reason behind my decision to reveal my face. I started off with simple, step-by-step blogs on beauty and travel that showed my followers how to use a makeup kit and ace a look or plan a particular trip.

I enjoy being a part of every woman’s everyday life and stick to the mantra of ‘less is more’. The content I share is simple yet relatable and in resonance with all women out there. As a lifestyle influencer in RAK, it is of paramount importance for me to authentically showcase all that I believe and do. A true influencer, I believe focuses on not just one aspect but shines bright in all roles she plays as a woman. Therein lies her true nature and that’s how she embodies the spirit of true strength and empowerment.

Enlighten us about your role in the organisation you are leading / associated with?

• Social Media Influencer
• Entrepreneur
• Founder of Blink Cosmetics
• Ambassador of Emirates Football Club
• President, Ladies in Business Magazine, UAE Chapter
• Speaker
• Certified MC (Master of Ceremony)
• Moderator

Where do you find inspiration? What motivates you to work harder?

My Family / My Husband/ My Daughter

• Kindly mention some of the notable recognitions and accreditations received by your person.
• ‘Best Social Media Network’ by Sheikh Abdullah bin Khalid Al Nahyan- Al Mobdeoon Foundation
• ‘Superpower Award as Best Blogger’ from Sana Sajan, Director at American Aesthetic Medical Centre
• ‘She Award’ – Ladies in Business Magazine
• ‘Woman of Substance Award’ from St.Mother Teresa University
• Ambassador of Emirates Club – Ras Al Khaimah
• President, Ladies in Business Magazine Global, UAE Chapter
• Top (50) inspiring women by H.E Laila Al Rahal CEO I AM AFRICA
• Top (50) inspiring women in Arab Women Summit 2022
• RJ at RAK FM presenting Program (Tajarbi with Mona)
• Emirates Influencer Award (Lifestyle Category)
• Thriving Hijabi Award for social Impact
• Entrepreneur of the year 2022 by Hadarat Global
• Emirati women of achievements by Abaya Rally
• The most Innovative Entrepreneur at Global Women leadership conferences and awards 2022
• Industry Accelerators Award – influencer category
• Middle East’s Woman Leader at world leadership Congress and awards
• Social Media Influencer awards at world leadership Congress and awards
• Finalist at Beauty world Middle East awards as Up and Coming Influencer of the year
• Appreciation certificate from Abu Dhabi Air Expo for MC
• Appreciation Certificate from Exuberance Asset Management

What is the one thing you wish you had known about women in your line of work before you started working?

The Authority of being the best version of you, I think that if I realized that before that will be more helpful to create a difference in the future.

Do you believe it is compulsory for a woman to manage a household alongside her work?

Its optional according to the ability the woman have and the authority to build herself. Its mandatory once she realize that there is an ability to change.

As a woman, what has been the highlight of you career? What are the changes you wish to make for the better in your professional life post-pandemic?

Be simple have faith in you and go ahead, I believe that all the problems that we face is just a way to have the best work and to grow better.

Brief us on the changes the pandemic brought to your sector and your market. Has the work-culture altered?

As influencer, I gain a lot of patience to proceed with the social media but in the time of Covid I opened my own beauty line and now I am having a branch in Manar Mall beauty cotour and Boutiqaat.

What words of wisdom/ inspiration/ advice would you offer to the next generation of female leaders?

Keep going and growing, if you dream to fly with Eagles don’t waste your time by swimming with ducks.

Inception

Creativity and communication have been there since I was very young – writing long, fantastical stories, composing music, starting a class newspaper (which ran to one edition only!).  And I learnt the first habit of highly effective people according to Stephen Covey – “Be Proactive”!

Teenager

As a teenager, my dreams were aligned with my interest in the arts – at school I wanted to go into advertising, then I wanted to be conductor; at Cambridge I wanted to be famous writer.  And today I find myself involved in marketing, “conducting” all the different elements of a school and writing blogs and articles for both professionally and privately.

Aims and Ideals 

I recently updated our mission statement: “We reach out to provide excellence in individualised education, to nurture, extend and enrich young people to develop into the global citizens and leaders of the future.”  This encapsulates several key ideas for me: reaching out to the wider world, excellence and extension, individualisation in education, nurture and enrichment, global vision, citizenship and responsibility, leadership, the future.

I try to align my leadership style with these ideals – engaging with the world outside my school, setting standards for excellence, relating to individuals as individuals, promoting supportive and nurturing relationships within my organisation, seeking to enrich and extend students, staff and myself, thinking globally, ensuring all take responsibility for their roles, growing leadership, focusing on what’s needed to remain flexible for the future.

Innovation

One of the best books on creativity I’ve read is “Serious Creativity” by Edward De Bono.  He made me see that we can make creativity happen by being proactive.  I started to explore using mindmaps and discovered the power of giving time to lateral thinking.

I encourage the use of mindmaps amongst my leadership team, by sharing my own handwritten draft “think pieces”, to show them the value of sharing the process of thinking.  Some of them have started to do the same!

I also encourage regular personal development, with our “Tuesday Tips” for staff, and a regular book present for the leadership team at Christmas!  I set time aside quarterly for a few hour’s to focus on discussing the latest book – which is currently Develop the Leader Within You by John Maxwell.

Challenges and Obstacles

I have come to believe that the greatest challenges and obstacles are within ourselves.  You can find a way to approach nearly any external challenge, but it is often people who create either their own self-limiting barriers, or the possibilities of real lasting damage to others through their own personal issues which display as anger, negativity, hurtful comments and any kind of blocking or destructive behaviour.

What sets us apart?

What sets us apart as a learning community is our International Scholarship Programme, our global integration and ethos, and what we call our “Chase Passport” which is a way that students develop global citizenship, personal skills and leadership.  Our motto is “Expect to Achieve”, and that’s exactly what we do!

Accreditations

In 2019 our work on character and personal development was highlighted by the ISC (Independent Schools Council) as an example of best practice, and in 2022 our A Level results at A and A* were the best in Staffordshire.  

In Years to Come…

Our mission statement is relatively future-proof, though I would be surprised if it didn’t evolve further over the next few years. An economic downturn obviously poses a challenge for families wishing to choose an independent education, but I do believe that having survived a global pandemic – our team strength can survive anything!

Advice

I have 5 core beliefs about leadership.  The first two are foundational, and the last three are about what you do when you’re actually doing leadership:

Vision

You can’t lead without a own vision of where your team is going.  You then need to “paint a picture” repeatedly and vividly through words of that vision to those who should be following you.  You can’t do this without really understanding in depth where you are through talking to people, gathering data and watching perceptively.  This convinces people that you have credibility because you understand where they’re all at now, and they will want to follow you, because they are excited about where you can help them go.

Values

If you are don’t know what your values are, you are vulnerable to being exploited or taking unethical routes which appear to offer short-term success.  Ask yourself what your deepest values are.  I often give new leaders the task to sketch or write their “leadership journey”, which helps them get in touch with what really motivates them within.

Team Potential

“Get the right people on the bus” is Jim Collins’ advice in his book Good to Great, and it’s great advice!  How well do you know the potential of your team?  How good are you at assessing their existing strengths and where they could be even better?  How will you grow them?  

Competence and Creativity

Work out what competences you need to make your team a success, but don’t fixate so much on competence that you stifle creativity.  The best teams grow organically, and the best leaders listen to their team’s creative ideas and helps them grow.

Adapt and Intervene

Life is full of unforeseeables, so you must always monitor what’s going well and what’s not, then intervene decisively.  It’s almost always better to act than not to act, though also beware “knee-jerk”, short-term reactions – thinking about something overnight, or doing some fundamental thinking with a mindmap are ways I’ve found to move from obstacle or crisis to opportunity and creative solution.

 

Brief us about the inception of your career? What were your ambitions as a teenager?

As a teenager, I wanted to be many things. Pilot was first on my list, then every child’s dream; a doctor, but a lawyer? No, I haven’t had a thing for law, although I love literature, and a flair to speak. But when I got to Basic 6, my school invited a career counselor to put us through the various career paths available to us, then I decided to be a Biochemist because I loved the idea of wearing a laboratory coat. Long story short, I was able to look inward as I grow older at the values I hold, and the passions I have, together with the experiences I have had as a student. Reading further about Nigerian basic and higher education was what solidified my decision to be a teacher. It was a bitter pill to swallow for my family because expectations were high, but yes, this is whom I have decided to be. I am glad they allowed and supported me, now I am a Teacher that makes all the difference.

What are the aims and ideals that guide you as you run your company?

There are lots of ethical ideals that guide me as a person, as well as a Team leader. But generally, I am a big fan of people owning to their creativity, I believe that if people are engaged on a basic human level, in a safe space, and in an environment where mistakes are an avenue to get better, they would not only love what they do, they will do their tasks well and with a touch grace and confidence.

As an innovative leader, how do you manage to inspire your team to innovate and think outside the box?

A leader in my exemplary understanding is a person who serves right in front of a goal, mission, or vision, a concept known as servant leadership; I simply go first. As an innovative team in the space of systems and design thinking for contextual problem solving and systems change, we embrace that there are no absolutes to creativity, everyone has a brilliant part to play, therefore, everyone is allowed to express themselves, and be a part of the jig saw puzzle. The contributions of each member make a whole, from different perspectives. Embracing this simple approach has practically helped us a lot at GIDDY2SCHOOL NIGERIA to develop, ideate, and execute a lot of projects for national development.

What were the challenges and obstacles you faced along the way?

Because of the turf of social entrepreneurship, we found ourselves, we leverage a lot on volunteering. Volunteering as we know impedes a lot of workflow prioritization because we cannot be entitled to people’s time. Also, another major challenge is time synchronization, I can mention specifically Katherine, one of our ambassadors at GIDDY2SCHOOL NIGERIA from Australia, she always hop in our meeting at midnight hours, let’s say 1 am, or 2 am because she’s 10 hours ahead, I feel amazed most times meeting her in the meeting sometimes before everyone else. This tells vividly the caliber of people that share our vision in the organization, and how passionate we all take this business.

What sets your company apart from the rest of the market? Do you believe in diversifying?

GIDDY2SCHOOL NIGERIA is a nonprofit organization that provides access for kids, teenagers in low-income communities towards achieving quality, and equitable education, and also extended to adults in their respective professions. Recently, we completed the Giddy Mentorship Forum for cohort 1 for 20 high-impact professionals in their fields a few weeks ago, the mentorship program was designed to develop the human resources of our nation by exposing young leaders to soft and hard skills needed in the 21st century. This value proposition makes us one in town, there isn’t anyone else in this business of high impact.

Talking about diversity, this session would not be complete without making mention of the 9 GIDDY2SCHOOL Ambassadors from all over 4 continents of the world contributing to the successes we have recorded so far; Connor Woodall from the United States, Dhruti Dhedha from South Africa, Akinbobola Busola, Bakare Oluwatosin, Opeoluwa Makinde, Steven Loya, and myself; from Nigeria, Katherine Feng from Australia, and Hafiza Samath from Malaysia. When we talk about unity in diversity, this is it. I am so proud to be working with these amazing people. 

Kindly mention some of the notable recognitions and accreditations received by your person and organization.

I have received various awards, here are a few; as a Teach for Nigeria fellow- for outstanding community impact. As an Education Officer, I have received two times commendation recognition awards for stellar performances in the Lagos state education commission. Furthermore, I was selected to be on the International Teachers and Educators Program organized by PILECKI Institute in Poland, the international conference was around five cities in Poland unravelling the history of totalitarianism. I recently received the Global Education Influencer Award from Education Influence in Australia. And I most recently have been named a Global School Program’s Advocate of the month for outstanding performance throughout the United Nations Sustainable Development Solutions Network (UN SDSN). Giddy2School however, has received some recognition in terms of grants, and recently finalized some partnership announcements with some organizations with similar outlooks, because we believe that together is better than alone.

Where do you see your organization in the years to come? How do plan to respond to the lows that followed the pandemic?

Our traction of community engagements this year is commendable, despite little or no funds, we were able to reach over 1200 children in low-income communities with our programs, in the coming years, as an organization, we have the goal to reach thousands of children, and established more sustainable partnerships to help us do more good. In terms of operations, we want to attract more professionals to offer quality engagements to more Nigerian students under our initiative. In summary, we wish to hit a 100% literacy rate in Nigeria.

What is your advice to budding entrepreneurs who wish to kick-start their careers?

Entrepreneurship is a risk, by now I know you know. But above this, as an entrepreneur, I will remind you every day that our world needs you because you are solving a pressing challenge with your idea, be it for-profit or nonprofit. My advice for you is to not give up what is achievable for fear of failure or probability of success. On this journey, you always learn, not necessarily fail.

Brief us about the inception of your career? What were your ambitions as a teenager?

As a teen I wanted to fly for the Air force. Fast jets and power excited me. But a not so perfect vision moved me to engineering, rather electrical engineering in MIT Manipal. There my affinity for control systems and math bloomed and got me to become analytical with a desire to solve complex issues. A desire to Strategise or to plan always existed. A flair to think big while taking risks with new ways to establish a business drove me to try innovative selling solutions. In 1990 I dabbled with leasing capital products in the electrical power systems industry to industry and electricity boards. After a 2-year hiatus from studies I went back to do my MBA in marketing from Jamnalal Bajaj Inst of Mgmt Studies, Mumbai. Post my MBA I moved out from the electrical industry from selling complex power system solution to selling edible oil and soaps as head sales and marketing for Postman oil at the age of 27.  Concepts of TQM and processes for ISO 9000 were indoctrinated in our working in the first few years of work life.  These systems probably have helped in given a direction to my future values and behaviour.

There after I have been Head sales and or Marketing for Pidilite,  Beiersdorf ( Nivea), Cavin Kare VP Marketing and Usha International as CMO. 

Thereafter in 2013 we started Evolution Strategy Advisors LLP with an objective to cater to the mid and large sized organisation in the B2C space to identify growth strategies as well as to partner our clients in executing them. We have now extended our services into Business Transformation, Building Excellence in Sales and Marketing and Building Business Alliances as well as bringing in International brands to India through JV and licensing. 

What are the aims and ideals that guide you as you run your company?

Our clients give us a mandate for their growth only when they trust us. We are tasked with identifying challenges in a dispassionate and unbiased way without identifying the individual creator but looking at solutions. We believe there is no point in going into who did what as both success and challenges are created by a team and not an individual. Our focus is the issue and its quick solution. We focus on identifying the blind spots in the business, identifying strategic and system gaps as well as competencies required. We link problems with solutions, which can be easily implemented. Most importantly our solutions come at no increase in cost (men, money or materials) to our clients, we reallocate the resources.

As an innovative leader, how do you manage to inspire your team to innovate and think outside the box?

Every client has unique strengths and culture. They also have challenges which are unique to the industry, in fact no 2 competitors are similar and thus the solution for one cannot be applied to another. Every client issue is a challenge in innovation as the solution has to work in the existing culture. At times we face a wall and have then to look at different industries on how do they solve similar issues. We have cross pollinated ideas from pharma to automobiles (both use IT based tablets for detailing their products). Further we have used solutions from durable industry on value creation in building material industry. Innovative solutions are also required during execution, specially when we set systems for IT or HR and even Route to Market. For ESA innovation is in our DNA and it’s the vast exposure and experience of our Managing Partners who have been at CXO levels in different industry which gives us this ability. IN fact there are hardly any challenges which our experienced team has not lived through.

What were challenges and obstacles you faced along the way?

As we had a unique solution creating a customer base for the same took us a bit longer. Clients were not used to handing over their challenges to a consulting company unless forced by top management. Disclosure of business issues and cultural issues could only happen once trust is built. We had identified a specific segment of customers who could benefit greatly but reaching out to the decision makers there often took long. Internally we had to evolve on our systems as we had to be miles ahead of our clients capability for them to learn from us and deliver success for them.

What sets your company apart from the rest of the market? Do you believe in diversifying?

We are amongst the very few growth consulting and business transformation practice who strategies and execute. We put our skin in the game and collect a part of our fees only when we deliver. The difference is in our success we have delivered from 20% to 65% growth within a year and more than 70% of our clients come back to us. Our high success rates in delivering for our clients is driven by practical solutions delivered by a senior team of ex CXO’s. To support them we have unique tools which use digital diagnostic and analytics. These tools have proven success across Industries. We are already diversified in delivery covering a wide range of industry sectors: automobiles, auto components, durables, building materials, fmcg, OTC and Pharma 

Kindly mention some of the notable recognitions and accreditations received by your person and organisation?

Our recognition comes not from the awards which are plenty but from the success of our client and them coming back to us for new challenges. We have a > 70% repeat business from our clients. Our clients trust in our delivery and genuine advisory which delivers for them is our recognition. We have done multiple projects for the Tata Motors, Titan, Murugappa group’s Parry & Carborundum, Mahindra’s, Pfizer, Abbott, Pepsi, Faber Castell, Saint Gobain and close to 50+ clients

Where do you see your organisation in the years to come? How do plan to respond to the lows that followed the pandemic?

We have expanded our team of Managing Partners to take on more projects across different industries. This would make us ready for a 3x growth in the coming year. Post the pandemic the lows were felt only during the 1st year thereafter most companies have realised the fragility of their business in the context of external factors. Many businesses are now more than willing to consider a transformation so that they can be future ready.

We have further added Business Alliances as a separate vertical where in bring in international companies to India through JV and licensing. For India we partner LMCA a leading Global Brand Extension organisation headquartered in the US. They represent HP, Cummins, Castrol and many other brands for licensing.

What is your advice to budding entrepreneurs who wish to kick start their careers?

Consulting is an area which requires nurturing and patience. Its important that consulting entrepreneur’s identify a key customer segment where they can deliver excellence, as market is segmented into startup’s, MSME, Family managed conglomerates and MNC. The delivery has to evolve as problems get complex thus it has to be a learning organsation.

Enlighten us about your role in the organization you are leading/associated with?

Currently, I am serving as the President of the International Space Alliance. One other heavy focus is being the Organizer, which in our structures is called a Local Lead of the NASA Space Apps Challenge Cleveland, held at NASA Glenn Research Center in Cleveland, Ohio, as well as NASA Space Apps Challenge Mountain View, held at NASA Ames Research Center at Silicon Valley, California. Of course, with my background I constantly do research, but most of it is under NDA, for example, currently, I am aiding a company called Alvar.is. However, the focus always falls on the outreach programs I am a part of, and I always tend to highlight and prioritize their visibility because everyone can get involved and contribute and through that improve their community. Making change through STEM and Space Exploration is important to me, and I always ensure I spread the word. Juggling so many activities that contribute to the community, bearing a lot of responsibility, while having a job, and doing research, is exhausting. If you add outreach on top of that, giving interviews or attending conferences, it’s definitely overwhelming. Oftentimes I ask myself how I do it, and then I remind myself it’s because of the team that is constantly there to boost me forward. 

Where do you find inspiration? What motivates you to work harder? 

Improving our world through my initiatives that impact the community is a really big driver. I always said I have no role models. I think that’s because I never truly recognized myself in someone. That’s exactly why I overwork myself this much. To become that beacon of hope for those who are like me, but feel oppressed, dismissed, or are conditioned to narrow the scope of their shine.

Kindly mention some of the notable recognitions and accreditations received by your person. 

The latest recognitions are that I became a Space Generation Advisory Council Delegate. SGC serves in support of the United Nations Programme of Space Application, as a professional network. I also became an Emerging Space Leader for the International Astronautical Annual Congress organized by the International Astronautical Federation. I am really excited to present two papers there, and the connection to the industry through these channels has been a truly incredible experience. I am glad that the world can recognize my talent, especially since I am the first one from my country to gain access to these renowned organizations. I hope that with all of my efforts, I am paving the path forward for future generations, and I am already enabling access to my space-obsessed team, helping me organize all the STEM and Space initiatives, especially in critical regions that have close to no access.

What is the one thing you wish you had known about women in your line of work before you started working? 

What I wish I knew is how rough this industry can be. People are so passionate and the projects are so demanding. It can be exhausting and it needs so much devotion. If you don’t find the time to rest and recover, or balance your life out, you will have burnout, fast.

What I personally experienced in a more serious, negative connotation, is that this industry is still not ready for opinionated women that can be disruptive and vocal. Women are still so limited in how they are supposed to behave, and softness is favored whilst being direct is considered challenging. That’s funny, because the same characteristics make men honest leaders. It’s been shown repeatedly, through personal experiences, or experiences of my peers, that we collectively witnessed.

Another noticeable misfortune is that the industry does not allow differentiation of any kind, even having a different style or a different look than the industry’s preferred standard, can be offputting to many. And it’s so unnatural because this is the space sector, people should be allowed imaginative liberty and creative outputs. The unconventional should be welcomed in space, not the other way around, whether that is ideas or looks. Luckily, Gen Z is out there, being vocal and bringing the much necessary change. If we don’t change the perspective, we won’t burst that space bubble, we will just replicate it in other areas and help it grow.

 

Do you believe it is compulsory for a woman to manage a household alongside her work?

I come from a traditional upbringing and that same kind of society too. But no matter how shocking this might be to many, my answer is no. It should never be compulsory. We’re not slaves, objects, or property, and we should not have compulsory household pressure.

As a woman, what has been the highlight of your career? What are the changes you wish to make for the better in your professional life post-pandemic?

The highlight of my career is enabling opportunities to people that otherwise won’t have access to them, and allowing them an actual space in the Space Sector and a voice that is heard. Whether that is true education,  work opportunities, initiatives, or outreach programs, I educate regions that have no access or prior knowledge.
Post-pandemic I hope western society learns why we need breaks and remote working. How enjoyable and crucial flexibility is, and that we should not be trapped or defined by our job. It should not be our primary focus, it should be an asset to our character and personality.

Brief us on the changes the pandemic brought to your sector and your market. Has the work-culture altered?

I learned this beautiful thing when you operate in the Space Sector online, and that is that zoom calls don’t discriminate. You don’t really have a barrier of entry for certain initiatives, which is usually there, just because you’re a non-US Citizen. Through that online example, which was a silver lining in the pandemic, I was able to contribute to international cooperation and change or impact certain structures to loosen up and be more open internationally. After those structures were finally exposed to the multiple benefits of international cooperation, and when they saw what that brought to the table, we were finally able to create change with a physical presence and bring more non-US Citizens on board. 

What words of wisdom/ inspiration/ advice would you offer to the next generation of female leaders?

Be the underdog that never lost hope. We live in a really brutal world, and kindness is so exploited nowadays. But no matter what anyone else says, or if all odds are against you, keep at it, and wonderful things will happen if you’re persistent. Will the path be difficult? Unimaginably. Is it worth walking? Absolutely.

How would you describe your journey? Brief us on the inception story of your career.

Growing up on one of the roughest council estates in my hometown my childhood was filled with bullying and abuse, I was determined I would make something of myself. I fell into entrepreneurship almost accidentally. I had a talent for creating great tasting healthy cakes and my first business in the health industry started whilst studying for my social work masters.

After the birth of my son in 2016, I decided to leave my employment as a social worker and fully commit to impacting the lives of other women through my business.

My business grew and evolved rapidly and before long other women were asking for my advice and support in business. I began taking on clients and coaching them to support them to become more confident in themselves and their businesses. My clients had amazing results and became incredibly successful and through recommendations and referrals my business continued to grow rapidly. Since then I have founded and grown two companies with zero investment to multi-millions in revenue in the online coaching, healing and therapy industry and I now split my time between my two businesses, my personal brand Natasha Bray and my School of Healing Mastery.

Through Natasha Bray, I continue to provide business support and transformation to female entrepreneurs around the world through my Ultimate Uplevel Academy as well as working with women one-to-one to heal childhood traumas that could be negatively impacting their businesses and relationships. The School of Healing Mastery trains other therapists in my powerful revolutionary healing modality, HeartHealing.

Enlighten us about your role in the organisation you are leading / associated with?

I am the CEO of two rapidly growing businesses and have a team of ten supporting me to achieve my vision of creating a safer world with more love and money for all women and children.

Where do you find inspiration? What motivates you to work harder?

My biggest inspiration comes from my two young children, Jenson, 5, and Oscar, 1. My vision of a safer world with more love and money for them – a world I never had. But also my vision for all women and children to have that too. Everything I do in business is driven by this vision.

 

Kindly mention some of the notable recognitions and accreditations received by you.

I am a self made millionaire by the age of 35, and have two businesses that impact thousands of women across 56 countries worldwide and generate over a million per year in revenue. I have been widely recognised for my work and have won a number of awards in Wales and Great Britain, including most recently Management Today’s ‘35 Women Under 35’ as well as highly commended in the Women of the Future Awards. In addition to this, I am a bestselling author and co-author and I have been featured in numerous magazines and newspapers across the UK. I am currently Soul & Spirit magazine’s ‘Rising Star’ and have a monthly column with them.

What is the one thing you wish you had known about women in your line of work before you started working?

Before I had started working in this field I wish I had known that all us women are the same. We all have the same hopes and dreams and the same fears and saboteurs stopping us from achieving our dreams. It doesn’t matter whether you are just starting out in business or you are hitting 6, 7 or 8 figure years, the same hurdles will keep popping up for you.

Do you believe it is compulsory for a woman to manage a household alongside her work?

Not at all! My partner and I have quite an unconventional dynamic in our relationship, with him taking 6 months paternity leave after our son was born and me being the higher earner. As women we are often made to feel that we should be the ones looking after the household and the children, but this is an outdated idea and I truly believe we get to revolutionise what it means to be a woman in today’s world.

When my partner returned to work we hired a housekeeper who helps with our cooking, cleaning and food shopping and this has been a huge help, she is such an important and valued part of my team. We also have a gardener, a Personal Assistant and use childcare for our son. I wouldn’t be able to dedicate myself to my business in the same way without this support.

As a woman, what has been the highlight of your career?

Definitely seeing the changes in the women I work with. I have worked with thousands of women over the years, but the women who find their strength to break the cycle of the legacies handed down to them and create a new financial and emotional legacy for themselves and their children really inspire me and motivate me the most.

What are the changes you wish to make for the better in your professional life post-pandemic?

I want to make sure that I have a bit more balance in my life. I love my work so much that I can sometimes forget to carve out time for myself in my diary. I am becoming much better at setting boundaries and sticking to them than I have been in the past and we are in the process of installing a gym in our garden!

Brief us on the changes the pandemic brought to your sector and your market. Has the work-culture altered?

I think that lots of people have reevaluated their work-life balance and want more flexibility and freedom around their families. As a result, more women are taking this into their own hands and are starting their own businesses.

What words of wisdom/ inspiration/ advice would you offer to the next generation of female leaders?

If it scares you then it’s worth going after! But don’t let those fears hold you back in your business. Show up authentically, trust your intuition and don’t do things that you don’t feel fully aligned with.

How would you describe your journey? Brief us on the inception story of your career.

Everyone’s career journey is unique,  I left school at 15 to study hairdressing, and by 18, I was running a successful salon. However, my illness forced me to sell the business and choose a new career path. I moved into financial services, spending the next 25 years working my way up to the board level. I became a coach and now work with organizations worldwide to help them build brave beliefs, have unstoppable sales and turn their leaders into talent magnets, which is also the topic of my forthcoming book.

Enlighten us about your role in the organization you lead/associated with?

Every business is different, just like every leader. And yet, certain principles of effective leadership and management remain constant, no matter the size or type of organization.  I’ve worked with various businesses, from start-ups to Fortune 500 companies. I’m also serving as the interim Chief Operating Officer and Chief Financial Officer for two organizations in the United States. In all my work, my goal is to help organizations and leaders unlock their potential to achieve their goals. Whether developing a more effective team or communicating more effectively with stakeholders, I love seeing businesses thrive.

Where do you find inspiration? What motivates you to work harder?

I have always been driven to leave things better than I found them. Whether it is making a difference in my community or simply teaching my daughter the importance of kindness, I believe it is our responsibility to make the world better. I am also passionate about lifelong learning and have always been curious about the stories of others. I believe that we can learn so much from hearing about the experiences of others and that we can use those lessons to inspire positive change in our own lives. As a mother, I am driven to set a good example for my daughter and to show her that there is nothing we can’t do if we work hard and swap judgement for curiosity.

Kindly mention some of the notable recognitions and accreditations received by your person.

I am thrilled to be a member of the Woman of the Year Alumni and Extraordinary Entrepreneur of the year 2022 for the Speakers are Leaders awards. I am a three times International Best Selling Author on Amazon and am privileged to be doing a TEDx talk next month.

What is the one thing you wish you had known about women in your line of work before you started working?

I wish someone had told me about the importance of relationships. In my line of work, it’s not just what you know but also whom you know. Building strong relationships with sources is essential to getting the best story. And yet, it can be challenging to do when you’re just starting. So, if there’s one piece of advice I could give to someone just starting in my field, it would be to focus on building solid relationships.

Do you believe it is compulsory for a woman to manage a household alongside her work?

In my experience, managing a household alongside a career for women is not compulsory, but it is often unavoidable. I have found myself in the position of having to do both many times throughout my life. As a single mum, I appreciate that it is not an easy task, but you can achieve it with some planning and organization. The key is to set priorities, delegate tasks where possible, and be kind to yourself and others. With some planning and organization, it is possible to manage a household and a career simultaneously.

 

As a woman, what has been the highlight of you career? What are the changes you wish to make for the better in your professional life post-pandemic?

I’ve had many highlights throughout my career, the one that stands out is the amount of work I get from previous colleagues. It’s a true accolade to my impact and a testament to the relationships I’ve built. As we move into a post-pandemic world, I’m focused on making changes that will allow me to continue positively impacting those around me. Specifically, I’m focusing on the outputs for myself and my team and ensuring we are working towards a common purpose.

Brief us on the changes the pandemic brought to your sector and your market. Has the work-culture altered?

The pandemic has forced all of us to re-evaluate the way we work. For many of us, working remotely has become the new normal. And while there have been some challenges, it has also shown us that it is possible to be effective remotely. Moving forward, I believe we will focus on task-based locations. We will come together in person for activities like team building, but we will optimize the remote working experience for individual tasks. Allowing us to take advantage of the best of both worlds – the flexibility and productivity of working remotely, with the connection and community of working in person. Moreover, it will help us create a more sustainable and efficient workplace.

What words of wisdom/ inspiration/ advice would you offer to the next generation of female leaders?

When I was younger, I constantly doubted myself. I didn’t think I was intelligent, talented, or worthy enough to achieve my dreams. So, I would always hold back, never really going for it. But then something changed. I realized that I had to start believing in myself if I wanted to achieve my dreams. And that’s when things began to change for me.

I started taking risks, reaching out for help, and opening my mind to new possibilities. And you know what? It worked. I started achieving things I never thought were possible. So, if you’re doubting yourself right now, know that anything is possible if you’re willing to work hard and ask for help along the way. Just believe in yourself and go for it!

In case it is helpful here is a brief bio : Kim-adele Randall is a renowned master coach, international bestselling author, inspirational keynote speaker, and face whisperer, coupling 25 years in the corporate world, with lessons she has garnered throughout her journey to help others achieve sustainable transformation for professional and personal success.

Currently writing the forthcoming book Authentic Achievements – The 7 Secrets to Building Brave Belief, Unstoppable Sales, and Turning Your Leaders Into Talent Magnets for Guaranteed Sustainable Growth, this show shares advice, stories and inspiration to help you achieve exponential growth personally and for your business.

• How would you describe your journey? Brief us on the inception story of your career. My journey started back in 2015 when I got made redundant . I knew this was an opportunity to finally step out on my own and start my own business. I didn’t want to let anyone determine my destiny other than myself and I knew that working for myself would let me be in control of my life, my finances and my life by my design.
• Enlighten us about your role in the organisation you are leading / associated with? I am the Managing Director of Savvy Creations PR which is a PR and Social media marketing agency. We help clients grow their authority and digital footprint through the use of social media. In todays tech savvy world it is more important than ever for businesses to have their own voice and to be able to share this online. We are passionate about our clients growing their business to new heights.
• Where do you find inspiration? What motivates you to work harder? My inspiration comes from my overarching mission which is to help people. I think if you have money as your main source of inspiration then that will fizzle out, your inspiration needs to be backed by have a stronger mission. My inspiration is also derived from other woman and seeing the amazing things that they have been able to achieve .
• Kindly mention some of the notable recognitions and accreditations received by your person. I was nominated as a Woman of the future a few years ago
• What is the one thing you wish you had known about women in your line of work before you started working? Things take time, success takes time. Its easy to look at woman in your line of work, or any work for that matter that have succeeded and to compare yourself, but the reality is success takes time and it’s an ongoing journey. It’s important to stay within your own lane and focus on your own goals and try and not get too distracted by external factors. Business and success takes time and I think in society today we want everything right now but having a 5-10 year strategy is vital to keeping you on track with where you want your business to go.
• Do you believe it is compulsory for a woman to manage a household alongside her work? Absolutely not, it should be a shared role with the partner. Most woman and men work full time today therefore the household tasks should be managed equally. The stereotype of woman should cook and clean and do everything is definitely one of a dying age, all roles should be shared equally within a household.
• As a woman, what has been the highlight of you career? What are the changes you wish to make for the better in your professional life post-pandemic?

The highlight in my career is that I have been able to grow my business beyond what I thought was possible when I started. The woman I have become through the process of running my business is far greater than any financial success or accreditations that I have obtained throughout the years. I have also had a beautiful daughter who is now 3.5 years so being able to juggle a business and motherhood has been a big highlight to my life not just my career.

Its not so much any changes that I want to make but rather a continuation of being the best me through education and training. I am always reading books, attending seminars and webinars in order to stay up to date with what is happening around the world. For me I look at it like it’s my obligation to be my best self so that I can serve my family, my staff and my clients at the highest standards.

Brief us on the changes the pandemic brought to your sector and your market. Has the work-culture altered? There has been an increase in people understanding the importance of going digital. Before the pandemic some people were on the fence about “ do we need social media” to grow our business but during and after the pandemic most people realise that yes we need to have an online presence as this is where peoples attention is . My business grew by 50% in the last 2 years as the demand for online presence increased greatly.

People are also a lot more happy to have meetings online rather than in person so the way that we conduct meetings has definitely changed and people have become a bit more relaxed in that sense.

• What words of wisdom/ inspiration/ advice would you offer to the next generation of female leaders?
• Don’t ever settle for anything less than what you know you were meant to do in this world. The strong voice in your head that is telling you ‘ there is something bigger and better for you” needs to be listened to. Every single hurdle and mistake that you have encountered has strengthened you to become the woman you were meant to become. Don’t let any rejection put you down and make you question your worth, remember rejection leads to redirection and it’s the universe pushing you in the way that you are meant to follow.
• Another bit of advice is to not get too impacted by external factors, don’t try and do what everyone else is doing, but rather do it your way.

Another bit of advice is NEVER stop learning. Life and business is an ongoing process and even when you reach the level of success you are desiring you owe it to yourself and to those around you to keep learning and keep growing.