In the following videos, leaders and managers discuss how they use the Professional Standards, underpinned by 10 key leadership themes, with their staff.
After watching the videos, you may wish to ask yourself:
- How does my organisation use Professional Standards when developing leaders – aspiring, middle, senior and CEO?
- Which Professional Standards leadership themes do I want to explore as part of my professional development and why?
Theme 1: Reflective Practice
Reflection is a cornerstone of leadership and to reflect means making time to think. Hear from two leaders who deeply value it as part of their leadership practice.
Bushra Iqbal brings reflective practice up-to-date by emphasising its importance to adapting reflexively to changing demands and conditions. Asma Ahmad reflects on the importance of the Professional Standards to focused leadership reflection.
Theme 2: Building Positive Relationships
Building relationships is key to leadership. Hear from leaders who invest time in relationship building across a broad range of stakeholders.
“Once you get hold of people, you can look after them, nurture them and keep them,” says Anthony Bravo, whilst Bill Jones reflects on civic and community engagement. Bushra Iqbal encourages potential leaders to come forward with ideas and Lucy Reed is clear that relationship building is an everyday practice, with all stakeholders.
Theme 3: Inspirational Teaching and Learning
Our sector experts are in agreement that leadership means paying attention to the ultimate goal and how everyone’s role contributes to this.
As Neil Coker says, students trust us with their futures and it’s the job of leadership to ensure that teaching and learning practice is elevated to do justice to this. Sue Keenan talks about the importance of ensuring that the whole leadership team pays attention to this ultimate goal and Anthony Bravo reminds us why we all came into education in the first place.
Theme 4: Innovation and Forward Thinking
Innovation is broader than digital. It’s energy plus desire for change and the momentum to make it happen, as our sector experts concur.
The momentum for innovation can get lost in the day job. As Neil Coker says, what’s effective is when innovation becomes part of the day job. Rebecca Taylor and Anthony Bravo concur that where teachers are trusted to know what’s best for their practice, where they are empowered to take measured risks, everyone benefits.
Theme 5: Ethical Leadership
Shaun Hope encapsulates the purpose, meaning and application of ethical leadership; moving from good intentions to the building of a culture where values are baked in.
Theme 6: Role Model and Cultivate a Positive Working Culture
This was at the heart of all our expert testimony. Here, leaders dig honestly into their practice as they set the vibe of the organisation from the top.
Bill Jones returns to his core motivation — opportunity for everyone, no matter where or how you grew up. Louise Misselke advocates for affirmative responses to staff putting themselves forward. Ramin Narimani reminds us that middle leaders have an important role, being closer to the student experience and Rebecca Gater reminds us with humility that leadership needs to be a team effort.
Theme 7: Strategic Leadership
Developing a strategic leadership practice was a focus for our sector experts. Here, leaders share their insight and wisdom.
Palvinder Singh advises patience as you look for the ‘green shoots’ of hopeful practice. Laura Taylor focuses on the importance of staying calm in a fast-paced and changing environment. Sue Keenan values the Professional Standards to maintain a framework for strategic thinking and Lucy Reed reflects the importance of strategic alignment for everyone to feel connected and engaged.
Theme 8: Effective Communication
Everyone would agree that effective communication is important. Here, our sector leaders dig into the impact and challenges of this.
Yiannis Koursis outlines with clarity the impact of good communication, whilst Dr Rebecca Gater points out that it’s essential to be constantly curious about what people in the organisation are thinking and feeling. Lucy Reed reminds us that we might not always hear what we want to hear and the importance of staying balanced about that.
Theme 9: Finance
Our sector experts agreed on the importance of finance and other business support teams understanding in broad strokes how finance works (and vice-versa).
Theme 10: Policies and Legislation
Amplifying FE’s voice via infrastructure organisations and other routes of influence is the focus here for our sector experts.
Staying in the loop means being part of a broader community of leaders and practitioners. As Bill Jones says, talking with other sector leaders is how we figure our way through challenges. Neil Coker describes the wisdom of not saturating staff with new information; make it available clearly and concisely and trust colleagues to follow their own path through.