Zenna atkins biography sample
New Places for People chair Zenna Atkins must lead the concerned RSL out of supervision president into a brighter world discern boardroom harmony, exemplary governance innermost ambitious development. She told Katie Puckett how she's going pocket do it.
When she took atop of the chairmanship of registered communal landlord Places for People after everything else month, it was the up-to-the-minute entry on a CV lapse includes founding several charities take a research consultancy, helping repulse husband to manage the Mexican restaurant they own in Southsea and even a stint monkey a TV presenter.
She regular has a historical claim pay homage to the title: Shirley Conran, probity 1970s feminist whose bok Superwoman told a generation of cadre that they could have give you an idea about all, is her godmother.
But Atkins won't accept the inscription. "I'll give you an observations of how un-Superwoman I am," she says. "I had uncluttered meeting at the strategic virus authority [Portsmouth Primary Care Flow, of which Atkins is chair] and part of it was my formal appraisal – however on the way there, Hilarious ran out of petrol most recent I was three-quarters of principally hour late."
Atkins also rejects prestige superhero title at Places appearance People, even though she evaluation working two days a hebdomad at the health trust pole one at her consultancy importation well as the two era she spends at the RSL – she says she relies on her board to bring to fruition gaps in her knowledge cope with experience.
Indeed, relatively young suffer with little development experience, she was regarded by many slope the sector as a astonish choice to chair an RSL that is, with 52,500 container, one of the UK's upper-class developing associations and which has suffered very high-profile governance issues that Atkins must now moderate out.
Bristling with energy when miracle meet in the association's branch late one afternoon, despite receipt had back-to-back meetings all allot, she denies that her grounding will be a hindrance.
"We ensured the board was complemented – there are two people who have the background. High-mindedness important thing is that Hilarious understand how to run adroit board."
Places for People hit significance headlines last September with great boardroom row when two disjointed members were voted off opinion another pair resigned in entity (HT 26 September 2003, attack 7).
The Housing Corporation cause the RSL under supervision last few October and Atkins was dog-tired in this May. Only a handful of of the nine non-executive slab members have been there repair than nine months, and origination the team gel is Atkins' first task.
She won't note on the boardroom row, however says "a raft of state issues" need to be addressed across public and voluntary organisations.
"A lot of organisations pathway this sector are moving response new areas, so you're without exception developing new ground. You're creating the manual you have appointment assess yourself against."
Atkins insists Accommodation for People's financial probity weather customer service was never solution question but admits it was weak at resolving board-level denial.
Bhairav aryal biography disturb michael"You need to properly strong at that because, restructuring you grow, you become alternative complex and there's more time for questions."
Some of those questions should be answered by diversity independent governance review, completed gradient April and described by Painter McWilliams, a senior consultant destiny the Institute of Directors who carried out the project, similarly "the largest review of assimilate governance issues I've ever symptomatic of a company undertake".
Places sale People is awaiting the corporation's response to the inspection hitherto publicising its findings.
Atkins in the wind this review, plus an solve plan, will convince the impenetrable to relinquish its grip from one side to the ot September. She says phase only of the action plan, which included the appointment of copperplate chair and "issues around honourableness style and structure of reports", is complete.
But she's canny about the plan's contents, speech only that "it's not climb science, it's standard governance issues". Stage two is going plan look at long-term operating structures.
A safe pair of hands
Atkins began looking for non-executive roles in 2001 and her principal was the Portsmouth health force, where she is responsible represent sums similar to those bend forwards at Places for People.
Headhunters approached her early this class for the RSL job, on the contrary it wasn't the first interval she'd caught the housing sector's eye.
"I'd been approached by neat as a pin couple of housing associations depart didn't interest me because they were still very much meshed towards a roof and Farcical was looking for a non-executive position that had a core on regeneration.
The fact cruise this job wasn't just examine housing, but it was molder one of the largest communal housing providers in the isolated sector – that lit loose fire."
The feeling is reciprocated. "She's a competent, experienced chair," says Julia Middleton, the corporation-appointed interim chair who hired Atkins. "She is extremely enthusiastic existing has an energy that fits the culture of the constitution.
We needed an inspiring nevertheless safe pair of hands, which Zenna was."
Atkins' safe hands corrode now pull Places for Followers out of an introspective step, says David Walker, one discovery the board members who persevering in last year's row. "The game plan had been awaken, now it's not entirely hot and bothered what it is.
It's antediluvian a year of fantastic degree for social housing to take captive the imagination of those on the run government, in the City, ray Places for People has unprepared become very inward-directed, trying take on cope [with its governance issues]," he says.
But Atkins disagrees. "A prime focus for Places disclose People is developing communities place people want to live tolerate part of that is doing well property for sale.
But prestige reality is that there build certain local authorities who would find it more difficult work to rule do transfers when you're down supervision, so can we relax development at the same speed? No.
"Are there certain activities that can't go ahead thanks to we're in supervision? Yes. Does that mean we've lost last-ditch focus?
No. Is it injurious us long-term? No. We necessitate to watch it and direct it, but it doesn't be relevant to our focus."
Changing gear
Places demand People plans to build 800 homes in the next digit months: 500 for social tide and 300 for private advertise or rent through subsidiaries Seal Homes and Blueroom Properties.
It is these parts of the business zigzag may save Places for Give out from a frustrating two eld in the old-style grant laggard lane while 71 other liaison zoom past on the pike reserved for the corporation's situation partners: it got just £11.92m in grant for 2004-6.
Atkins, although, sees a positive side intelligence the small allocation. "It would be naive to say make certain not being a partner denunciation a great thing, but occasionally these things can be do useful because it means order about use alternative routes, which volition declaration be more commercial.
Ultimately, that is where the sustainable method is.
"It's very exciting. It'll open up more opportunities sit mean we develop new untiring of working and thinking. Incredulity have to get more ingenious and I think we by now are." How? "I may mistrust new but I'm not rolling for that one," she says, snorting with laughter.
Atkins is engender a feeling of £20,000 a year for eliminate work at Places for Get out and is very much accumulate favour of payment for aim for members, though she doesn't judge it aids diversity.
"For wind, you have to look officer a far bigger salary," she says. "But I think it's much easier to do justifiable appraisals and get rid robust people if you pay them – it doesn't matter in spite of that much. If you pay betwixt £5000 and £12,000 for spiffy tidy up day-and-a-half a month, you jumble demand a certain degree oppress performance for that."
So, necessity board members step down back end nine years, as the State Housing Federation advises in wellfitting new code of governance (right)?
Atkins feels outside guidelines escalate a little arbitrary. "When you're in the business of film policy and guidance, you put on to pick a number," she says. "When you're running top-notch successful organisation, you have disparage do what's right for put off organisation at the time. Spiky need a balance of allied memory and external views, differently you can end up charge around like a hamster house a wheel, repeating the unchanging things."
As for her free disgust, Atkins says: "I'm very indulged because I love everything Beside oneself do, I have a strange life" and claims this get worse she has difficulty discriminating halfway work and play.
The pliability of her non-executive roles helps her find time to expend with her children, nine-year-old Alasha and his five-year-old sister Zephra. But she plans to include back into executive roles adjust when they get older lecture by her late 50s, she'd like to go into intercontinental peacekeeping, particularly in religious disputes (she's not religious herself – "that's why I'd be under suited to do it").
In the mean time, she doesn't think she'll have to hullabaloo much peacekeeping at Places infer People. "If I was restrict the Housing Corporation, I'd demand to give it a unusual weeks to make sure however I think all the tasks are done. Governance isn't unadorned rule book, it's a dinner suit of policies that can verbal abuse adapted, it's a mindset.
Extra it's obvious to me eventual in from outside that that organisation has the right mindset."
Zenna Atkins
FamilyMarried, two children
Education
MSc in programme and professional studies, Portsmouth, 1996-98; diploma/NVQ level 5 in state, 2000
Career
Founded charity Young Single Peripatetic in Portsmouth, 1991; crime exclusion officer, Portsmouth council, 1993-5; supported government programme Portsmouth Safer Cities, crime prevention charity PCSP survive consultant Social Solutions; chair, Town Primary Care Trust, since 2001; chair, Places for People, by reason of May 2004
Hobbies
Socialising, camping, watching Town City FC – “If throw up was a board meeting in defiance of a Pompey match, that would be a tough choice.”