ABOUT ME
I am a passionate people leader with a specialism in talent and development. I am known for my inclusive leadership style, my passion for innovation and change and my firm belief that the HR, Talent and L&D leaders have a unique opportunity to influence and drive the strategy and overall results of an organisation.
I am a seasoned thought leader for the HR, Talent and Development world, regularly speaking at conferences and participating in networking events.
MY EXPERIENCE
Background & Expertise
Experienced, future focused, commercially led, HRD professional specialising in Global Talent Strategy, Innovations in Learning, Change Management, Virtual Leadership and Strategic People Planning
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I have experience in the Retail, Finance & Travel Sectors, with a proven track record developing operationally aligned talent strategy, driving global change and achieving metric driven targets, through effective relationship building, influence and coaching.
January 2022 to Date
GLOBAL ONBOARDING LEAD, CBRE
Leading one of the pillars of our global EVP and brand activation campaign, owning the talent integration process for CBRE globally, leading a large-scale employee onboarding transformation project across the global enterprise and business segments to deliver a seamless, engaging and world class onboarding experience. Supporting 30,000+ new hires p/annum and 115,000+ employees across the business.
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Achievements
Global Onboarding Programme Launch across 10 global countries, content development, portal & community launch * automated communications. 17,000 portal views in first month. Employee Engagement 5 key indicators all improved between 1-5points 2023 v 2022.
People Enhanced Communications Strategy, launch of dedicated people team site. Employee Engagement ‘my colleagues share best practice and knowledge’ increase 3points 2023 v 2022
People Aspire Programme participation in executive leadership development programme
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September 2020 - December 2021
HEAD OF TALENT LEARNING & DEVELOPMENT, CBRE, GWS
Leading a team of 8 Talent and Learning professionals, accountable for creating, implementing, and leading the Talent, Learning & Development Strategy which determines the delivery of effective tools, programs and resources to support the achievement of learning and development targets as required to achieve the People & CBRE Strategy and GWS|Local & DCS Business (28,000).
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Achievements
Global L&D Steering Committee established to ensure a robust channel of communication, providing clear line of sight to TLD activities & prioritise global requirements.
Mentor programme established to support Employee Networks supporting 156 mentees across EMEA
Business Unit Director programme success profiles created, needs analysis complete and programme designed and launched for 300+ senior leaders globally. Data driven insights providing targeted development opportunities
Employee Engagement Survey developed and launched globally for 17,000+ employees, driving participation to 84% (+11 points) with 11pt improvement for our female population (following recent DEI activity)
September 2018 - August 2020
GROUP HEAD OF LEARNING, DEVELOPMENT & TALENT, DOMESTIC & GENERAL
Leading a team of 11 Talent & Learning Professionals, to define and execute on the Talent and Development Strategy across an Insurance organisation with international reach (3,000) to drive performance, improve employee capabilities, reduce succession risks, retain key talent, drive our D&I agenda and ensure the organisation is appropriately skilled for our future business needs.
Achievements
Succession plans established talent pipeline for exec & SLT, incorporating our D&I objectives to ensure a strong pipeline of diverse talent and reducing risk linked to SMCR responsibilities
HIPO Talent programmes, developed and deployed, incorporating future generational thinking linked to coaching diverse talent and leadership readiness to develop the workforce of the future
Team Leader Development Programme, a blended programme of activity that focuses on 70:20:10, incorporating the colleague voice, with playlists of activity which encourage a coaching culture, putting leaders at the heart of the programme building engagement & connecting their teams to the broader vision
Innovation in Learning; Shortlisted for Best Learning Game in the Learning Technology Awards 2019
IDD (Insurance Distribution Directive) programme of activity identified with innovative L&D initiatives to address a 15hr CPD requirement across the business; partnering with a new start up to create an Insurance specific suite of content and incorporating AI to support personalised learning, enhance knowledge retention and reduce time off the phone. Ultimately moving completion for non-agent population from 38% to 98% complete within 2 months.
June 2016 - August 2018
HEAD OF LEARNING, DIXONS CARPHONE
Leading a central learning organisation of 25, developing and executing the overall learning strategy for all frontline employees (33,000). Supporting all learning and development requirements. Responsible for an innovative yet balanced learning environment to develop knowledgeable experts supporting strategic business objectives, driving customer satisfaction and business results utilising the latest digital technology
Achievements
Culture Change (Team Knowhow Launch) – New brand launch driving cultural, behavioural and operational change across the entire organisation (40,000). Introducing social and gamified learning, developing coaching and leading change skills and putting the Exec and SLT at the heart of the programme
Pilot of a new Customer Experience Model, driven through a blended learning approach including social learning, learning bytes, gamification, blogs and vlogs - resulting in 8.8% uplift in conversion rate, 4.4% improvement in margin & 2.7% NPS improvement
Elevate, a leadership development programme for 1,000 contact centre & supply chain leaders focused on resilience, influencing skills, change management and coaching skills
Digital Compliance Strategy, focused on personalised, risk-based learning, introducing learning bytes and testing out creating more engaging content that provides relevant learning at the point of need. Retail completion rates increased from 68% to 98%, time to complete halved from 45mins to 20mins (a cost reduction of >£100k)
August 2014 - May 2016
DIRETOR, GLOBAL LEARNING & DEVELOPMENT, AMERICAN EXPRESS
Developing and executing Delivery Strategy linked to the key business objectives for the Global Travel & Lifestyle services network (circa 6,000 contact centre employees), providing meaningful learning experiences for our Travel Consultants enabling extraordinary service for premium customers. The team comprised 8 regionally based managers, 80+ Learning Specialists, 10 quality analysts and a Learning Analytics & Innovations team.
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Achievements
Implementation of ‘Extraordinary Care’, customer servicing ethos, deployed across 23 global markets
Global GDS (travel) Platform, introduced communication strategy, ‘just in time’ learning bytes, ‘flip the classroom’ learning, digital eLearning content & Virtual Webinars. Platform deployed in 19 global sites.
Global Learning Specialist Development Program, incorporating Observation Process, peer to peer feedback, on the job learning, external webinars, badging/gaming and social capabilities – elevating Learning Specialist performance and ultimately driving business results
Digital ‘pre-engagement’ activities, connecting with our colleagues before they join the organisation through social networks & digital content. Improved speed to competence (by av. 1 week per class)
Global learning transformation activities, migrating customer servicing from Finland to Sweden, Spain to Mexico, Australia to US and Netherlands to UK: developing cultural awareness training interventions, ongoing knowledge management tools, expert blogging & performance support
Global learning analytics reporting strategy, providing learner and L&D dashboards, demonstrating value add from learning interventions for executive reporting.
January 2011 - August 2014
GLOBAL LEARNING STRATEGY & DEPLOYMENT MANAGER, AMERICAN EXPRESS
Developing and executing on Global strategic initiatives for the World Service Organisation (Finance – circa 40,000 employees), to drive change, enhance performance and improve speed to proficiency; incorporating new and emerging digital technologies to further engage our learners and enrich their learning experience. Supporting a network of 20 Delivery Managers, across 21 Global Sites (EMEA, LACC, US, JAPA, INDIA), to standardise and align our learning approach to enhance operational excellence and customer satisfaction
Achievements
Standardised Global Onboarding 17 sites, 6 Lines of Business to align learning interventions, incorporating mentor and apprenticeship models, aligned to business goals, reduced classroom duration by 4wks, improved speed to proficiency, and elevated performance standards
Virtual Classroom strategy – developed in-house virtual certification curricula, reducing T&E costs, improving Learning Specialist productivity achieving re-engineering targets, providing greater flexibility across time zones and development opportunities for our learning professionals.
July 2007 - January 2011
EUROPEAN LEARNING SITE LEAD, AMERICAN EXPRESS
Developing and executing on European Learning initiatives for the World Service Organisation, to drive change, enhance performance and improve speed to proficiency
September 1999 - July 2007
TESCO PLC
HR Director (circa 6,000 employees)                                                              1/2007 – 7/2007
Living Service Coach (Change Agent/Business Consultant) (Circa 1,600 employees)                                           4/2006 – 1/2007
Project Manager (Circa 1,600 employees)                                                          4/2004 – 4/2005
Personnel Manager (Multiple stores, Circa 400 employees)                                                                                     5/2001 – 4/2004
Training Manager
Checkout Manager
EDUCATION
What I’ve Learned
I am a lifelong learner who is always eager to get involved in new activities and gain new skills and knowledge. Here are the professional qualifications I've achieved
November 2021
ADVANCED CERTIFICATE IN EXECUTIVE COACHING
UWE
June 2020
NLP MASTER PRACTITIONER (DISTINCTION)
Centre of Excellence
April 2020
COGNITIVE BEHAVIOURAL THERAPY LEVEL 3 (HIGHER DISTINCTION)
Oplex Careers
October 2014
CIPD UPGRADE TO CHARTERED FELLOW
Watson Martin
December 2012
CIPD ADVANCED LEVEL 7 DIPLOMA IN HRD
HRM in Context Merit
Leading, Managing and Developing People Merit
Designing Delivering and Evaluating L&D Merit
Organisational Design and Development Merit
November 2010
INTRODUCTION TO SOCIAL SCIENCES
Open University
MY SKILLS
I am firm believer that the people function can only be successful if fully aligned to the business objectives, focusing on how our interventions add real value and support the needs of the business and enrich our teams.
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I am passionate about new and innovative ways to evolve our talent, exploring opportunities for our top talent to experience alternative boardroom environments, and looking at ways to prepare leaders for the workforce of the future.
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I am keen to ensure that we understand how technology can enhance what we do for our people, improving their experiences, providing communication channels and making all aspects of their working life feel more relevant and current.
MY SKILLS
What I Do
THOUGHT LEADER FOR THE INDUSTRY
Training Journal Spotlight Article
TALENT SPECIALIST
Building Talent and Succession at all levels
COMMERCIAL AWARENESS
Aligning People Strategy to Business Strategy and driving results
INNOVATION IN LEARNING
Social, Games based and  On-Demand Learning, Influencers & Champions, Communities, AI & Blended Learning
ONBOARDING
Engaging onboarding driving brand loyalty and retention
EMPLOYEE ENGAGEMENT
Bringing our colleagues together, understanding their needs, and building a culture of inclusion and support
CULTURE CHANGE
Building vision and values establishing, developing or shifting a company culture to support merger, leadership change, brand launch, growth and future business requirements
FUTURE FOCUSED
Staying connected to the external world, understanding the requirements of the workforce now and for the future building and sourcing appropriate skills
"If you always do what you've always done, you'll always get what you've always got"