Summary

Occupation:

This occupation is found in small, medium and large organisations in the public, private or third sectors and in all areas of the economy including health, finance, engineering, manufacturing, business and professional services, education, retail, leisure, technology and construction. Senior Leaders are a key component of all types of business model where there is a workforce to lead, manage and support. The broad purpose of the occupation is to provide clear, inclusive and strategic leadership and direction relating to their area of responsibility within an organisation. Typically, this involves setting, managing and monitoring achievement of core objectives that are aligned to the overall strategic objectives of their organisation’s Board (or equivalent). In a smaller organisation they are also likely to contribute to the execution and achievement of these strategic objectives. A Senior Leader influences at a higher organisational level, including sometimes at Board (or equivalent) level, and sets the culture and tone across their area of responsibility. They may work in varied environments including in an office, onsite, or remotely and demonstrate a high level of flexibility and adaptability to meet the needs of the organisation. In their daily work, an employee in this occupation interacts with internal stakeholders such as members of their team, other senior leaders/managers, support services (for example: finance, marketing, HR) and project groups and, in larger organisations, they may be part of a wider specialist team. Depending on the size of their organisation, a Senior Leader may be responsible for reporting results relating to their area of responsibility to a Board, trustees, shareholders, executive team or to other senior management within the organisation. Externally, a Senior Leader acts as an ambassador for their organisation with wide-ranging networks typically involving customers/clients, supply chains and statutory/regulatory bodies. An employee in this occupation will be responsible for

• Setting direction, vision, governance and providing a clear sense of purpose for their area of responsibility.
• Providing clear and inclusive leadership.
• Identifying longer-term opportunities and risks using data from internal intelligence sources and external influences.
• Developing ethical, innovative and supportive cultures that get the best from people and enable the delivery of results.
• Resources that may include budgets, people, assets and facilities.
• Staying up to date with innovation and championing its adoption.
• Keeping pace with – and responding to change – by leading agile transformation.
• Leading and promoting sustainable business practices.
• Responding and managing crisis situations.

Occupation and profile:

Knowledge

K1: How to shape organisational mission, culture and values.

K2: Organisation structures; business modelling; diversity; global and horizon scanning perspectives; governance and accountability; technological and policy implications.

K3: New market strategies, changing customer demands and trend analysis.

K4: Innovation; the impact of disruptive technologies (mechanisms that challenge traditional business methods and practices); drivers of change and new ways of working across infrastructure, processes, people and culture and sustainability.

K5: Systems thinking, knowledge/data management, research methodologies and programme management.

K6: Ethics and values-based leadership theories and principles.

K7: Competitive strategies and entrepreneurialism, approaches to effective decision making, and the use of big data and insight to implement and manage change.

K8: Financial strategies, for example scenarios, modelling and identifying trends, application of economic theory to decision-making, and how to evaluate financial and non- financial information.

K9: Financial governance and legal requirements, and procurement strategies.

K10: Organisational/team dynamics and how to build engagement and develop high performance, agile and collaborative cultures.

K11: Approaches to strategic workforce planning, for example, talent management, learning organisations, group work, workforce design, succession planning, diversity and inclusion.

K12: Influencing and negotiating strategies both upwards and outwards.

K13: The external social and political environment and use of diplomacy with diverse groups of internal and external stakeholders.

K14: Working with board and other company leadership structures.

K15: Brand and reputation management.

K16: Working with corporate leadership structures, for example, the markets it operates in, roles and responsibilities, who its stakeholders are and what they require from the organisation and the sustainability agenda.

K17: Crisis and risk management strategies.

K18: Coaching and mentoring techniques.

K19: Approaches to developing a Corporate Social Responsibility programme.

K20: The organisation’s developing communications strategy and its link to their area of responsibility.

Skills

S1: Use horizon scanning and conceptualisation to deliver high performance strategies focusing on growth/sustainable outcomes.

S2: Set strategic direction and gain support for it from key stakeholders.

S3: Undertake research, and critically analyse and integrate complex information.

S4: Lead change in their area of responsibility, create an environment for innovation and creativity, establishing the value of ideas and change initiatives and driving continuous improvement.

S5: Lead and respond in a crisis situation using risk management techniques.

S6: Act as a Sponsor/Ambassador, championing projects and transformation of services across organisational boundaries.

S7: Challenge strategies and operations in terms of ethics, responsibility, sustainability, resource allocation and business continuity/risk management.

S8: Apply principles relating to Corporate Social Responsibility, Governance and Regulatory compliance.

S9: Drive a culture of resilience and support development of new enterprise and opportunities.

S10: Oversee development and monitoring of financial strategies and setting of organisational budgets based on Key Performance Indicators (KPIs), and challenge financial assumptions underpinning strategies.

S11: Uses financial data to allocate resources.

S12: Oversee procurement, supply chain management and contracts.

S13: Use personal presence and “storytelling” to articulate and translate vision into operational strategies, demonstrating clarity in thinking.

S14: Create an inclusive culture, encouraging diversity and difference and promoting well-being.

S15: Give and receive feedback at all levels, building confidence and developing trust, and enable people to take risks and challenge where appropriate.

S16: Enable an open culture and high-performance working environment and set goals and accountabilities for teams and individuals in their area.

S17: Lead and influence people, building constructive working relationships across teams, using matrix management where required.

S18: Optimise skills of the workforce, balancing people and technical skills and encouraging continual development.

S19: Manage relationships across multiple and diverse stakeholders.

S20: Lead within their area of control/authority, influencing both upwards and outwards, negotiating and using advocacy skills to build reputation and effective collaboration.

S21: Shape and manage the communications strategy for their area of responsibility.

Behaviours

B1: Work collaboratively enabling empowerment and delegation.

B2: Take personal accountability aligned to clear values.

B3: Curious and innovative – exploring areas of ambiguity and complexity and finding creative solutions.

B4: Value difference and champion diversity.

B5: Seek continuous professional development opportunities for self and wider team.