The 2019 edition of our annual conference will take place at the Business Design Centre in London on 21 November, and will focus on Leading Outside the Ordinary. The full programme is available on the website, and in this blog series, you will get the know our speakers a little bit better.
Saly de la Bedoyere is the CEO of Bluecross. At the conference, she will talk about making your workplace happy, together with Henry Stewart.
What’s your favourite thing about working in the social sector?
I really enjoy working with employees and volunteers who are genuinely united by a passion for making a difference. In terms of Blue Cross – what’s not to love about interacting with horses, cats, dogs and small furry friends on a regular basis and being able to see the tangible impact we have on their lives and that of their owners?
What does leading outside the ordinary mean to you?
Challenging myself and my team to really listen and understand the different views, interests, challenges and expectations of our internal teams, external partners, supporters and customers. To have confidence and faith that by putting people and culture at the heart of our organisation, we can make more of a difference to the lives of thousands of pets and people.
What’s the best professional advice you’ve been given?
Give yourself time to think and reflect – plan it into your day.
What’s your favourite thing to do for your own well being?
Walk the dogs!
Why do you think it’s important to attend networking events?
Largely because they can be very useful and great fun. They are transformed from my early career where they often felt very starchy and involved a lot of swapping of business cards that formed a compost layer at the bottom of my handbag. Nowadays such events offer a vibrant mix of learning, sharing and a genuine sense of collaboration. I always leave ACEVO events a little bit more smiley!
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