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<>A passionate advocate for 21st century leadership and management in the global veterinary profession
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Could you introduce yourself to our members?
I joined the WSAVA as Executive Director in April 2022, having previously worked in leadership roles and people projects for UK veterinary charities PDSA and Blue Cross. I also served on the board of the UK’s Veterinary Management Group (VMG), the UK’s leading association for those in veterinary leadership and management positions and was its president from 2020 until earlier this year.
I lecture widely on all aspects of 21st century veterinary leadership – a subject on which I am passionate – and am currently a doctoral candidate, researching strategic leadership in the veterinary industry at the University of Swansea. I live in South Wales, UK.
You’ve worked mainly in the veterinary not-for-profit and association sector. What do you enjoy about it?
Before entering the veterinary world, my career was focused in human resources and organisational development for a variety of large businesses but, once I’d arrived in the veterinary world, I knew I was here to stay. It’s an amazing profession and WSAVA members are all inspiring associations and individuals – but, as we all know, the profession faces many challenges. While these may vary from region to region, some are global, for instance, the struggle to improve the wellbeing of the veterinary team. Throughout my career, I have been involved in driving change through not-for-profits and membership associations. Seeing the huge improvement in outcomes that change can bring, whether for the veterinary professionals involved, the team, patients or owners, makes it so worthwhile – even if the process itself can sometimes be difficult. I’m enjoying using my skills and experience to help the WSAVA make some much needed internal changes. These will, in turn, enable it to be even more effective in showing global leadership to the profession. As an example, I have been working to help increase understanding of the importance of the development of leadership, management and communication skills to the veterinary profession – and I’m very excited that this year’s WSAVA World Congress, will feature a stream focused on these topics for the first time.
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The WSAVA is a fantastic association and is lucky to have such a committed team of volunteers whether on the Executive Board, on its many Committees and from each of its member associations
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You’ve been with the WSAVA for a year already. What are your impressions of the association?
The WSAVA is a fantastic association and is lucky to have such a committed team of volunteers whether on the Executive Board, on its many Committees and from each of its member associations. Seeing your collective determination to make a difference, has only strengthened my love of volunteer-led associations. I also think the WSAVA is, in some ways a sleeping giant. The association offers fantastic resources and runs ground-breaking initiatives – yet, in some parts of the world, is still relatively unknown. I’m on a mission to change that!
Do you have a favourite top tip or quote in relation to leadership?
Have courage and be kind.
What are your priorities for the WSAVA during 2023 and beyond?
We recently launched a new three-year strategy (link to strategy doc) so I’m now focused 100% on helping to deliver it. Here are some examples of my current priorities which form part of our new strategy:
- In order to strengthen the WSAVA’s governance, I’m working with the Executive Board to update our by-laws. The revised by-laws are currently with our members for consideration. We hope to have them adopted at a Special General Assembly in July.
- Our educational resources are a key member benefit, so to support you better, we’re launching several new initiatives, including the first of a range of Certificate qualifications. We are also recruiting the WSAVA’s first Chief Learning and Development Officer, who will be responsible for reviewing our current resources and managing the development of new ones. Stay tuned for more news on this key appointment!
- Effective communication is at the heart of every successful association so we are working to deliver our new communications strategy which includes a new website and the increased use of digital communications with our members.
Tell us something about you that may surprise us
I love adrenaline-pumping activities, such as sky-diving and bungee-jumping. In stark contrast, I also find building with LEGO a great way to unwind.
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