Leadership Foundation Aurora - Power and Politics #LFAurora

Aurora Leadership Foundation for HE

Power and Politics

The second Leadership Foundation Aurora event took place last Friday in Glasgow at the Marriott Hotel.  The day was focused around the theme of Power and Politics.  The preparatory reading and tasks involved reflecting on the management and leadership of your organisation and who has the power and influence.  There were two articles to read about women in the workplace and self-awareness and also about personality and perceptions.  It is thought provoking, and at times frustrating, to consider these issues and realise that it is difficult to influence perceptions and impressions.  Does competence have to take second place to warmth and likability?  Is it an either or?  Can you be successful by competence alone?  Probably not, you need to connect with people.

Unlike the previous event, this time we were allocated tables so that we would be sat with a group of delegates for the day and this group will become our action learning set.  

As at the last event Ginnie Willis, the Aurora Programme Director introduced the day and emphasised the importance of networking and making the most of the opportunities that the Aurora programme offers.  

She then handed over to Rosemary Stamp who facilitated the day.  She talked about the importance of power and politics in HE and that now is an opportunity to use new skills and new approaches.  There is a growing realisation that the skills that women have are useful to HE and business.  

I find it is very useful listening to successful women explaining about how the system works and giving insight into subjects such as power and politics.  There is always that feeling, and I think that it is shared by many women, that politics is there and you could of course ignore it or opt out of it, but to be successful you have to understand it.  If only you could just be competent and honest and do a good job.....but on the other hand it is good to connect, collaborate and share.
There was a discussion about understanding the culture of the institution that you work within, making the most of the opportunities and using emotional intelligence.
One of the main speakers of the day was Ann Priest, Pro Vice-Chancellor and Head of College of Art & Design at Nottingham Trent University.  She gave a very interesting talk about how she has got to where she is today and the successes she has had and also some insights into challenges along the way.  She talked about self esteem and belief and integrity.  Also about having a passion for a subject and having a big idea.  Some of these ideas were ones that Lesley Yellowlees raised last time about having a specialty, something that you're very good at and then move on from there.  I think this is easier for academics or people with vocations and also do you lose all of this, by necessity, when you become a senior manager?
We then talked quite a bit in our groups about different networks including formal networks, informal networks, cross-organisational networks, expert groups, mentors etc. It was interesting to find out from other delegates which networks they value and for what purpose.  
We talked a bit about goals and how to communicate your goals to others.  How to make sure that communication is clear and that other people understand the purpose of your role or service.  This is definitely something that I have to keep working at - I'm aware that sometimes I have been thinking and planning things so much that when I come to communicate it to others I explain in my way rather than fitting it to those on the receiving end.  i miss out chunks because it seems obvious to me but it can appear unclear.  There were some suggested books about communication so I will look for them. 
There was some discussion about negative aspects in organisations and this is something that I think is essential.  There is absolutely no point being negative - even if something is wrong because it's unlikely it will change back.  You've got to see it as an opportunity to change something forward.  

There was an emphasis on the day on being self aware and being aware of your environment and making the most of it.  Also on the importance of networking and making connections - networking provides access to information, jobs, opportunities, feedback, support, political advice and protection.

I very much enjoyed the day and am looking forward to our next day which will be working in our action learning set.  

 Feedback on perceptions

 Credibility

Change Management

In many job roles an element of change and change management is involved.  This has definitely been true for me in my previous two roles and in my current role.  I'm interested in change and how it affects people and processes.  I've had quite a lot of experience of change especially managing new teams and either setting up new teams to manage a project or bringing together teams to provide a service.  It is always challenging and that is what makes it interesting and ultimately rewarding if you can get it right.  I'm very conscious of trying to make the change right for the people involved as well as the purpose / goal / business need of the organisation.
Although I have read some background information and theory about change management, I think I should develop my knowledge in this area more.  I sometimes depend on my experience to manage particular situations and although this works, I want to make sure that I'm being as effective as possible.
A couple of weeks ago I went to talk to a member of staff in the Organisational Development section of the university.  We talked about change and about some of the factors that I'm managing at the moment.  She suggested looking at some change models as a starting point - images below.  At least they will give me something to think about while exploring other approaches and I found it helpful to have an objective discussion and reflect on the situation.

Aurora Leadership Foundation for HE

Aurora Leadership Foundation for HE

A few weeks ago I was given the opportunity to take part in the Aurora Leadership Foundation for HE. The aim of the initiative is to encourage more women in academic and professional roles in higher education to think about leadership, themselves as leaders and put themselves forward for leadership positions.
The programme consists of four development days, self-directed learning, action learning sets and in- house mentors.
The first development day was on Friday 6th December at Glasgow Caledonian University. There were some tasks to do beforehand which were outlined in an email. (The email communication from the leadership foundation has been very good).
One of the tasks was to bring "an image/photo/picture/object that signifies your current professional identity". Other tasks were to read some articles and think about your top 5 values.
The day was a mixture of talks by invited speakers and role models, group discussions and activities. Also opportunities to network and talk to other delegates - there were about 100 people there.
The introduction was by Ginnie Willis who is the Aurora Programme Director who explained the rationale and purpose of the initiative and what was going to be involved. Much of the activities of the day were led by Jackie Arnold, Associate Leadership Foundation.
The first speaker of the day was Lesley Yellowlees, Vice-Principal and Head of College of Science and Engineering, University of Edinburgh. She is a very interesting speaker - a mix between authoritative and appealing - she is inspirational although it's hard to see how to achieve all that she has achieved but maybe that's the point, you have to find your own success.
The messages I took from her talk were:
Take opportunities as they come along
Find a niche, be known for something
Self belief - be yourself, your own style
Find solutions but you don't have to own all your own solutions
Hard work
Be positive, don't worry about negatives, don't have regrets

During the day we discussed in groups at tables a number of themes and issues. It was good that people moved around and swapped tables at various points. I think because this was an expectation it made it easier for people to do so.

We talked about the images or objects that we had brought along. There was a good variety of different things. As ever mine was a printed text based thing (see below) - I think that this is because my way of working is to think and reflect and write things down and try to cover everything.  I found the 'team manifesto' and I'm debating whether to share it with my team or not.
 I should just pick one good thing as it has more impact. Some people brought items that they use in their work e.g textiles and tools or things like a toy bridge, or lego or a fire extinguisher..........

There was a good section when role models at each table talked about how they had got to their current role and what sort of issues they had encountered and how they had overcome them. The person at our table was Catriona Tedford, Campus Director, UWS.
I think that was one of the best parts of the day, to listen to role models and consider what they have done and look for commonality of experience.

We had a discussion about what qualities successful leaders should have and what qualities etc. we would aspire to have. This is difficult because it is quite easy to explain what should be the case but a different matter to influence what leaders are currently like in our institutions. Ideal behaviours is different from actual behaviours. Perhaps this is something that I need to think about more.

There was a session about leading at your BEST - being a unique leader, embracing who you are, standing up for what you believe and trusting yourself to take the next step. I think it's good to consider these aspects and i think you do have to have your own approach and own beliefs but from my experience there are many occasions when to be successful you fit in with the current ethos of your environment. Do successful leaders 'toe the party line' and 'promote the ethos of the institution' in order to get to the top? That may be cynical but i think it's important to find and recognise that it is a balance .....and there are politics involved.

We had a brief session about mentoring and a chance to discuss with a partner about what is involved with mentoring. I'm looking forward to having a mentor - I've been mentored before as well as mentoring and it is very useful. I think also as time goes on and you become more experienced you realise that it is good to ask for support from other people

All in all it was an excellent day, better than I'd expected. It would have been good to have another invited speaker at the end of the day to give it a focus but apart from that it was very good and I'm looking forward to reflecting on the day and the next event in January.