Posted By Clore Social Leadership,
12 March 2021
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This week, we sat down with Katy Dawe for #CloreSocialFellowFriday to talk about her experiences with transition and adaptability over the last year. Katy is a Clore Social Fellow from our 2019 Emerging Leader Programme.
Can you tell us a little bit about your experience on the Emerging Leader Programme?
When I started the programme, I had already made the decision to leave the charity that I'd founded and run for ten years, Art Against Knives. One of my main motivations for doing the programme was to give myself some space to reflect on my leadership and think about my next steps. In the end, the process (especially my cohort) ended up being a support mechanism that helped me through the process of exiting the charity. The coaching element of the programme was also huge for me, because it really helped me approach the questions of ‘where next’ and ‘what next.’ Through that process, I realised that I was really interested in affecting larger systems change, and that I felt like I had a responsibility to shift power on behalf of the young people that I’ve spent the last 10 years listening to and learning from in communities across London. That wealth of knowledge is theirs, but I really felt a responsibility to take that with me wherever I went.
So, I had all of that in mind when I graduated from the Emerging Leader programme in the beginning of March of 2020, and then literally the week later we all went into lockdown. Once COVID happened, I found myself unexpectedly back at the helm of Art Against Knives tasked with leading the charity through the pandemic, which turned out to be my biggest leadership challenge yet.. At the same time, I was also going through a really exciting and unusual interview process with a creative management consultancy company called B+A, who offered me the opportunity to join their team as a Problem Solver at the end of the year which set my exit deadline in stone and brought my ‘what next’ to life!
What were some of the biggest wins and challenges that you experienced while leading Arts Against Knives last year?
There was never a more important time to support the team to pivot, create, and innovate to ensure the hundreds of young people who relied on our safe spaces and support could still access this during lockdown.. In five days, we co-designed and mobilised a creative virtual support programme that reached over 100 young people in the first six weeks. We worked in partnership with Apple to run design and delivery virtual summer school to support young people who were falling behind in education and who were struggling as a result of digital exclusion. The young people on that course designed a podcast, which Apple then funded resulting in the launch of a year-long project. That podcast is hugely exciting because it’s not only owned by young people, it’s capturing and amplifying their ideas for systemic change.
One of the biggest challenges last year was also finding a new leader for the charity, and designing and delivering a recruitment process that was going to allow everybody in the team to be involved in that decision process. That meant doing a lot of culture work around who we are, what we needed, and who we needed. I’m really proud of the process we designed , and as a result we ended up finding an incredible new CEO who joined in January 2021. As a founder leaving a charity, it’s a wonderful thing to know that it’s in the hands of someone so incredible.
So, tell me about your transition to your current role.
B+A is a small creative management consultancy firm, with a team based in Portland, Oregon, Shanghai, and London. Their vision is to create a world of cultural, charitable, profitable enterprise, so I have the opportunity to work with organisations in all of these three worlds. Coming from a small, community-based charity, to joining a global team was a step into a whole new world. Having been so immersed in Art Against Knives for the past 10 years (since I was 21) I really wanted to go out and learn from the world, I’ve already had the opportunity to work on some really incredible projects.
Joining B+A was also an opportunity to effect systems change in a very different way. I’ve seen how much power the corporate world holds and how much opportunity they have to drive social change, so I wanted to bring my knowledge of the third sector and young people into that space. That being said, I also have a lot to learn. Starting at B+A felt like joining a new school with a brand new timetable. For me, the most comfortable space is the art room where I've got all of the tools and knowledge already. At B+A, I went straight into a top-tier maths set, where all of the sudden I went from knowing 100% of what was going on to maybe 40%. That experience was actually really liberating, diving in is definitely the best way to learn.
Looking toward the future, what are you most excited about for your own leadership journey?
Now that I’m in a very different role and environment, I’m excited to step away from managing a team of people and being the public face of an organisation. By making that change, I’m hoping to make the space to develop other aspects of my leadership and explore different leadership roles. I’m on the lookout for my next position at a smaller charity or a mentoring role to help a foundertake a charity from startup to growth stage, because I’d love to pass on my learning (especially what went wrong!)
The Clore Social framework of ‘know yourself, be yourself, look after yourself,’ is something I’m really challenging myself on this year. I’m working hard to strike a much healthier balance between work life, mum life, and my life. Especially over the last year, it has been virtually impossible to try and strike that balance, so that’s a huge part of my commitment to myself and as a leader moving forward.
You can find Katy on Twitter @dawe_katy, and B+A on LinkedIn.
Art Against Knives intervenes early to reduce the root causes of knife crime through youth-led, creative opportunities. They have an upcoming youth-led podcast, and you can find them on Twitter, Instagram, and LinkedIn.
If you would like to be featured for a #CloreSocialFellowFriday, send us an email at info@cloresocialleadership.org.uk.
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Posted 15 March 2021