As a trusted partner to organisations across civil society and the public sector, Starfish has the privilege of working with change makers and thought leaders who directly influence the very fabric of society. Be that through campaigning and lobbying, direct interventions and outreach or transformation within the machinations of government itself, our clients are forces for good in this world.
With this privilege comes responsibility and Starfish recognise more than ever in these times of increasing polarisation that we have a duty and opportunity to advise and counsel those who deliver change on how to do so meaningfully, authentically and inclusively. Equality, Diversity and Inclusion are more than abstract concepts to us and using our platform to foster a more welcoming climate for marginalised people – be that through our recruitment activities, our advisory services or thought pieces like this one – is a core tenet for Starfish and one we are deeply committed to.
As Pride Month 2024 draws to a close, Starfish would like to offer some reflections on how, as both individuals and as organisations, a greater focus on year-round allyship and inclusion can be embedded into our actions so we can use the public profile and influence we have to counter the rising tides of exclusion and discrimination when it comes to gender identity and the broader LGBTQ+ Community.
Republican or Democrat? Conservative or Labour? Indian National Congress or Bharatiya Janata Party? African National Congress or Democratic Alliance? Wherever you look, 2024 is a year of election after election, held against increasingly polarised political landscapes. One side says the grass is green, the other claims its rival will charge you for it to be dyed red. But this polarisation isn’t just the travail of party politicians – arguments rage all around us, social media is ablaze and print journalism continues to fan the flames.
A community where this phenomenon is particularly, acutely felt is the LGBTQ+ community, the community that I call home. Without playing marginalisation ‘top trumps’, queer communities find themselves on the receiving end of a horrific amount of societal, and physical, violence.
Transphobia in particular (used as an umbrella term to denote the discrimination faced by those who are transgender, gender non-conforming and non-binary) has found itself a la mode. Indeed, for a group that, in the UK that makes up only 0.5% of the adult population[1], trans[2] people find themselves in the news and public commentary nearly every single day.
Sadly, the list of occurrences of trans people being a political football is a long and painful one.
These examples and many, many more have sparked a decline in support for trans people. In 2016, 58% of respondents to the British Social Attitudes survey agreed with the statement “a person who is transgender should be able to have the sex recorded on their birth certificate changed if they want”. In 2023, that number dropped to 24% – a marked drop. Similarly, between 2019 and 2022, 18% less people described themselves as “not prejudiced at all against people who are transgender” – a decline of nigh on 1/5th.
However, even with this worrying drop, 64% of people still declared this lack of prejudice. Sixty-Four percent. With some [very] liberal extrapolation of this data, this would mean circa 43 million people in the UK are, at worst unbothered by trans people. Even if only 1 in 10 of this grouping would consider themselves allies, that’s nearly 4.5 million voices fighting for the rights of the circa 300,000 trans people in the UK. That’s fifteen allies for every trans person in the country.
Yes, this statistical analysis certainly wouldn’t stand up to scrutiny if submitted to an academic journal. But what it does show is the immense potential of allyship and inclusion in these times of polarised politics.
As an individual, you might already consider yourself as an ally. If so, thank you, welcome, bienvenue. Allies are always welcome. However, please remember that allyship isn’t just adding pronouns to your email signature, it isn’t just changing your company’s colours in June.
Allyship is the energy you put into the world, the approach you take to embracing, uplifting, supporting, commiserating and celebrating your fellow human beings. It’s not performative, it’s not transactional. It is authentically and wholeheartedly showing up for the marginalised.
When nearly 1/5th less of the UK population would declare themselves not prejudiced against the trans community, the allies that remain are crucial and their voice needs to be louder than ever. Their love needs to be stronger than ever. Their support more authentic than ever.
In practice this could look like:
If the media and the political class are fuelling prejudice, then allies can fuel the winds of change. Allyship. It is the most powerful thing you can do.
I would posit that, as much as Duolingo and other marketing innovators like Mind and Ryanair might like us to consider them almost human entities through their [often] brilliant (and perhaps frequently unhinged) TikToks, businesses are not individuals.
Yes, they hire individuals, and those individuals can use their position, their platform and their voice to carry out acts of allyship, but how often is such action down to the goodwill of individual ‘activists’, delegated to an ‘EDI Officer’ or solely platformed during Pride Month or Black History Month? I will leave these questions rhetorical, but I think a lot of us from marginalised communities would provide a rather cynical answer…
And yet, as I sit and type this, I can see a City of London Corporation building, flying, not only a pride flag, but the updated Intersex Inclusive Progress Pride flag, out the window of our office. Someone took the time to review and purchase the most recent iteration of the pride flag. Someone decided to go above and beyond and rather than using an old rainbow flag, decided to ensure anyone walking by would see the chevrons representing intersex and trans folks and people of colour, as well as the traditional rainbow.
Now, this may all be a happy accident that I am reading too far into. However, for arguments sake, let’s say this was deliberate. This summarises the above and beyond attitude to inclusion that queer and specifically trans people, need to see from businesses and organisations across the board.
I’m not saying that all a company has to do is buy a new flag and all their sins will be absolved, far from it. Inclusion must be active and authentic, just as allyship cannot be superficial and performative. However, it is when organisations take the time to question themselves, to question their actions and to question the systemic and societal structures in which they operate, that is when inclusion can be a truly radical force for good.
In practice this could look like:
Whilst these points are obviously much easier when we think of larger organisations with budget to spare, this doesn’t mean that SMEs and the microbusinesses of this world don’t have a role to play or that they can’t make an impact.
At this scale it might look more like:
If businesses adopt a ‘thinking above and beyond’ approach to inclusion and keep themselves on the front foot, then they can authentically and legitimately make a difference in fighting the normalisation of marginalisation and discrimination of trans people and the broader LGBTQ+ community.
Inclusion. It might just be the most powerful thing your organisation can do.
Please reach out to Elisha Savidge, a Consultant in our Board Practice, if you would like to discuss this article in more detail.
elisha.savidge@starfishsearch.com
Footnotes:
[1] According to 2021 England and Wales Census data, 0.5% of the population aged 16 years and over reported that their gender identity was different to their sex registered at birth
[1] Trans is used as an umbrella term to indicate the inclusion of gender identities across the spectrum, including but not limited to those who are transgender, gender non-conforming and non-binary.
Starfish Search were delighted to partner with City CV in their most recent webinar – Incredible Interviews. It’s a subject which is important to everyone who is active in the job market, and we had an enthusiastic audience of 130 people, ready to share their experience and hear some top tips for success.
Interviews are precious and they present us with a golden opportunity to tell a compelling story about ourselves and how we are the best person for the job. Victoria McClean from City CV shared some research to show that on average it requires more than 20 job applications to get through to the final interview stage. Therefore, after such a competitive process to win an interview, we deserve to invest in some focused preparation to ensure success.
As people we are creatures of habit – we love routine and what is familiar to us and therefore it is all too easy to fall back on tried and tested methods, even when they are not working for us. In this webinar we looked at some new approaches to break the mould.
Top Tips
#1 Know your Pitch – your CV, Linked in Profile, supporting statement – all of these documents should align to the core message about who you are and how you can bring an incredible return to the interviewer if they hire you.
#2 Do your company research – demonstrate your commercial or sector awareness. Network with people you know in the company or aligned sector before your interview so that you can demonstrate relevant knowledge and insight.
#3 Research what your interviewer needs – read the job spec and candidate pack and be clear on what will the KPIs of this role be. Ensure you convey the skills and experience you have to meet those KPIs and be clear on what makes you different.
#4 Be clear on your own agenda throughout the interview – what are the key things that you need to tell them and weave these into your answers. Don’t wait for the interviewer to ask you the right question to get your points across – they are the golden thread running across your answers and they underpin your own personal brand.
#5 Treat every question as an opportunity to bring in your agenda and ensure your differentiating points, skills and experience are made.
#6 Be a -STAR – Lead with Situation, Task, Action, Result.
#7 Showcase your motivation – what is it about the role, the company, the sector that excites you. Use the opportunity for questions to link in information about your own skills and experience.
#8 Be smart – ask smart questions and avoid questions which are too general or bland. Show your interest and appear informed.
#9 Your voice is your friend – use it effectively. Avoid speaking too quickly and allow pauses to emphasise what you are saying. Breathe deeply and ensure you have a rhythm to your voice which will give authority and gravitas to what you are saying.
At Starfish Search we’re proud to support so many people on their employment journeys. If you would like to connect with us to discuss how we might help you, we would love to hear from you.
This webinar is available until 20th July: https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/register/2455623321232149079
We are delighted to be teaming up with City CV for a series of Webinar Masterclasses throughout the year. Please follow us for all the latest news and events https://www.linkedin.com/company/starfish-search
I recently attended the DigitALLeeds Health and Care Event, bringing together stakeholders from Local Government and the NHS to discuss how digital technologies can positively impact health outcomes, which ties in with Leeds City Council’s commitment on being a Marmot City. The key theme this year was the use of and impact AI which is becoming a crucial component to help address the inequalities in health and care.
Studies show that those with health inequalities are more likely to become sick with chronic conditions 25 years earlier than others. So how can AI help and what are the benefits not only to the vulnerable but also the wider population?
AI is revolutionising health and care from both an NHS and Local Government point of view. It can be used in identifying and allowing early intervention to diagnose diseases, can help us understand the population health data to help personalise vaccines, and it can identify geographical areas where the population are more likely to visit A&E allowing pop walk-in centres to be deployed. However, one of the biggest uses of AI is in the deployment of Virtual Wards (where the UK leads the field), with results in Coventry and Warwickshire showing over a 4 week period a saving 876 bed days and only 5% readmission rates to hospital, alleviating the stress not only on the NHS but also Local Government Social Care particularly Adult Social Care – a statistic that I am sure will be welcomed up and down the country.
Another significant benefit for Social Care from the use of AI, is using the digital monitoring solution for in-home care. Newer more advanced systems as well as identifying falls in residents (falls are the largest mitigating factor in elderly mortality) can monitor room temperature, moisture and gas levels and link up with the Local Authority in situations where there is danger to the population which then also supports Smart City plans. From a personal point of view, as someone who has cared for a vulnerable relative, these advanced systems using AI would have made a great impact not only on the quality of life of my relative but also myself and I am excited to see where this development goes.
But the effect ripples wider still across regions and the nation as those with health inequalities tend to be economically inactive, thus by reversing the inequalities this means more people in paid employment and contributing to the local and national economy.
Whilst this all sounds ideal, the problem is often the skills gap, both on the side of the Local Authorities and the NHS in driving and delivering the digital transformation agenda. We have a fantastic network of candidates in Digital including AI, and if you are looking either now or in the future for any interim or permanent leaders in this space, we would love to hear from you. Similarly if you are a candidate with experience in these sectors, please reach out to discuss potential opportunities.
Ben Manojlovic shares his reflections on the UKREiiF conference and what it could mean for the North of England.
Since the cancellation of the second phase of HS2 in October 2023, those of us in the North have been eagerly anticipating what the future holds for businesses, commuters, and residents. The UKReiiF conference in Leeds last week was the first major infrastructure event following the HS2 announcement, bringing together leading figures from both public and private sectors to discuss investment plans for the future. A key theme that emerged from the conference was the role of Northern Powerhouse Rail (NPR), crucial for driving economic growth, fostering innovation, and achieving net-zero goals for the North with councils leading the charge to promote NPR.
One of the most significant benefits NPR would bring is economic growth. By improving connectivity between key cities like Manchester, Leeds, Liverpool, and Newcastle, NPR will make it easier for businesses to operate and expand. This enhanced network is expected to attract substantial investment, creating job opportunities in these cities. For residents, this means not only more employment options but also the potential for higher wages and better career prospects right in their hometowns.
Another immediate benefit close to people’s hearts would see a revolution of daily travel for commuters. The current rail network in the North famously suffers from frequent delays, overcrowding and long travel times. NPR should fix the problem, providing faster, more frequent train services. Imagine cutting your commute time in half, with trains that run on time and have plenty of capacity – sounds too good to be true!
NPR will make small towns and areas more accessible too, encouraging tourism and boosting local economies. Residents will hopefully see a revitalisation of their communities, with new businesses opening, existing business thriving and an overall increase in the standard of living for locals.
The NPR project is undoubtedly a bold vision for the North of England, aiming to create a connected, prosperous, and sustainable future. It represents a commitment to levelling up the region, ensuring that the North can compete on an equal footing with the South.
As a resident of the north, I left UKReiiF feeling a sense of excitement about what this meant for our future. I believe that a truly connected North, featuring world-class electrified rail, will benefit us more in the long term than the now-abandoned HS2 mainline from Birmingham. Listening to keynote speakers passionately discussing the role their councils are playing in this, investment opportunities, and the ambitious proposals of NPR was truly inspiring. The question now is, will we finally see the delivery of this enormous levelling up opportunity? Steve Park from Warrington really captured the mood when talking about the new Warrington Bank Quay Station and the positive impact it will have on Warrington.
From the conversations I had last week with senior stakeholders at the conference, one of the consistent messages coming back to me was the anticipated need for experienced project and programme directors with backgrounds within rail, infrastructure, regeneration, and transport sectors to help organisations deliver on this agenda. We have a fantastic network of candidates in this space, and a proven record of delivering key hires for our clients. If you expect to need any interim or permanent leaders in this space, we would love to hear from you, and similarly if you are a candidate with experience in these sectors, please reach out to discuss potential opportunities.
On this edition of Starfish Sessions, Tim Farr sat down with Stephen White, a former Chief Executive within Housing and the Social Sector who currently serves on the Board for several organisations. Stephen discusses the impact a very serious injury had on him at the age of 19, the role of employers with their staff, his mindset to work and how he keeps himself active in his spare time.
Please do introduce yourself, who you are, recent career history and organisations you’ve worked with recently?
My name is Steve White, I’ve been an interim manager for over 30 years and spent most of my career working in housing associations and non-profit organisations in a variety of senior leadership roles. I’m currently in a transitionary period moving away from interim management towards a full focus on non-executive work.
Can you tell us a bit more about the work you’re doing currently?
I’m working with a few organisations across housing and the third sector. I’m the chair of Moat, a large housing association, I’m a board member of another housing and care provider in Suffolk, Orwell Housing Association and I’m the vice chair of a military charity called Blesma (British Limbless Ex-Servicemen’s Association), a charity dedicated to soldiers who have lost limbs whilst serving and helping them come to terms with living a fulfilling life despite their injuries.
I’m very careful with my time and I choose to dedicate it to supporting organisations which are personal to me and close to my heart. I still remember growing up in dreadful temporary accommodation in Bethnal Green, so I really understand the impact housing has on people. I also served in the military which led to the loss of my leg in a training incident in the 1980s.
Can you tell us a bit more about that, how long ago and the impact it had on your life and career?
I was injured at the age of 19 while serving in an army regiment. I suffered very serious leg and knee injuries, leading to over 30 surgeries to try and salvage my leg but ultimately it had to be removed. I lost 3 stone overnight, a much better weight loss plan than Weight Watchers!
I had to find a life outside of the military and I was very lucky to get a job in the city, someone took me under their wing leading to the start of my career in business.
How did you find the transition into the professional working world from the military?
Once you’re out of the military, you’re out. There’s very little support provided which remains true to this day. You also don’t develop many life skills in the military and there are plenty of men and women who are injured on duty so cannot remain in the military and they lose their friends, job and network. You are thrown into the outside world without much support and that’s the position I found myself in back in the 80s. It was a difficult economic climate in the UK back then, I was desperate for work and had just left the military with a leg injury, I was really fortunate someone took a chance on me.
How did you come to terms with your disability and not let it become a barrier to you?
I’ll start by saying that losing your leg is not something I would recommend to anyone as a life experience. What it did afford me was an opportunity to build a degree of resilience and look at life in a different way. Technology is incredible these days but when I lost my leg I was issued with a crude mechanical piece of kit – I fell over constantly.
I was actually working as an interim when my leg was removed and 6 weeks later I was back working again. I remember being in a hotel room on crutches, hopping to the wardrobe, hopping back to the bed to pick up all my things so you certainly learn a set of new life skills which I view as a positive.
Do you view yourself as disabled? Do you feel the need the raise it during an interview, particularly now so many interviews can be done from home?
I’ve never declared that I have a disability unless I’m specifically asked, I’ve never volunteered this information because I don’t really see myself as disabled and I’ve never felt the need to mention it during an interview.
Do you think employers are doing enough to support people with disabilities?
Most organisations these days do now try to do what they can and welcome people with impediments, I’ve certainly seen this improve over the years and I genuinely believe the world has moved in a positive direction with this. Having said that, disability is very personal. There will be people with similar injuries to me but will have very different life experiences and different needs so there’s really no one-size-fits-all model.
As a former CEX yourself, what advice would you give to employers to manage the individual needs of people as part of a process?
To not make any presumptions about people. It’s reasonable to ask someone if they need assistance but don’t presume because I’m an amputee that I need x or y. I tend to be quite flippant and light-hearted about it and I often make a joke about it to break the ice, but for other people it might be different. It can take a while to come to terms with your disability, both physically and emotionally.
You’ve worked in so many different sectors – third sector, public sector, higher education and private sector. How did you manage this, any advice you’d give to someone looking to move into other sectors themselves?
I’ve always focused on results, and I can honestly say that I’ve had more good results than bad results so people have always kept close to me. I’ve found on each of my assignments, irrespective of the sector, the issues were usually the same – a lack of clear strategy, a lack of leadership or a lack of communication. If I could get those three things right, performance issues would usually resolve themselves and results would follow.
I’ve been tapped on the shoulder quite a few times because former colleagues I’ve worked with have formed a positive view of me, know what I can do and deliver and turned to me when needed. I’ve never been an active networker myself but I certainly recognise the importance of having a strong network to facilitate moving to different sectors or into other roles.
Did you find the transition from executive to non-executive a challenge?
Interim management is incredibly stimulating and intellectually challenging, but you do pay a price staying away from home in hotels which I have done all over the world throughout my career. Moving away from this towards advisory and non-executive work hasn’t been a cliff edge for me because I started developing my portfolio over time, so it all blended together which was a conscious choice for me.
What advice would you give to someone thinking about moving into non-executive work themselves?
The advice I’d give here would be the same advice I’d give someone moving from permanent to interim work. You need to be comfortable with the uncomfortable, you go into new organisations regularly, there are different cultures, management structures and ways of working and you need to adapt to these different environments.
In the non-exec world specifically, don’t mark your own homework. Interims tend to be solutions focused and non-exec work is about governance, it’s not about imposing your views on the solution. You need to understand what good governance means – challenging, scrutinising and supporting executive teams relative to whatever their challenges might be without imposing your view of the world.
What advice would you give to your younger self?
Wind my neck in a bit. I was a gobby young teenager. Always be curious too.
Tell us about what you’re doing in your spare time right now?
I’m a really keen swimmer and I’ll be swimming the English Channel for the second time this September with 3 other members from Blesma. We completed the swim in 12 hours 14 minutes the first time and we really want to beat that time this year!
Starfish Search were delighted to once again partner with PPMA and City CV to deliver our latest webinar – Redundancy Resilience for HR Professionals. This webinar focused on those tough talks, the best ways to handle the conversation around redundancy and the importance of putting people at the heart of it.
It’s an uncomfortable topic for so many of us and almost certainly the area of any manager’s job they enjoy the least, with participants highlighting feelings of anxiety, uncomfortableness and even mistrust from other employees.
City CV has carried out some private research and some fascinating statistics were shared which highlights how underequipped many of us are. Their studies indicate that 45% of HR professionals enter HR via non-HR career paths, and 82% of HR professionals have had no training on how to handle redundancy conversations. 82% of HR professionals with no formal training are expected to deliver messages that can change someone’s life and deliver it in a way that is both empathetic but also clear, concise and to the point.
It’s natural to think about the impact redundancy will have on the person on the other end of the conversation, the one whose life is about to change, and members shared their experience of these conversations, the most common emotions they faced were anger, disbelief, or outrage. Just as important in this dynamic is the person whose role it is to deliver this message – the HR professional, and members shared how it made them feel. They shared feelings of sadness, difficulty in processing their own emotions and some felt the organisation hadn’t equipped them fully to explain why this decision had been made. We discussed some practical tips for HR professionals to consider before, during and after the process to make it go as smoothly as possible, centred around preparation, controlling the conversation with clarity of message and time for reflection and to unwind afterwards.
Local government and the wider public sector is becoming increasingly aware of the importance of a strong employer brand when attracting and retaining talent, particularly as we face a national skills shortage in certain areas and challenges in recruiting to senior roles. It’s so important to remember the role that outplacement support plays in this, it shows your organisation will look after it’s people from beginning to end. A robust outplacement strategy can make or break your employer brand.
At Starfish Search we’re proud to support so many people on their employment journeys, if you’d like to connect with us to discuss how we might help you we’d love to hear from you.
This webinar is available for a limited time https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qaGYChig0_I and we’re delighted to be teaming up with PPMA and City CV for our next webinar in October 2024 focusing on imposter syndrome in the workplace. Please follow us for all the latest news and events https://www.linkedin.com/company/starfish-search
It isn’t always easy to perform your best at interviews and so many of us can leave the experience feeling frustrated and slightly demotivated.
Join us to hear more from a range of industry experts who have coached clients from all sectors. This webinar will give you the time and space to review and refresh your own techniques and hear what works.
Find out how to prepare for those tricky questions and navigate those difficult moments enabling you
to approach your next interview with confidence.
Date: 20th June 2024
Time: 12:30 pm
Register: https://tinyurl.com/starfish-may