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What does a social impact adviser do?I ensure that the organisation’s long-term success is strengthened, not compromised, by the way it creates value for people, communities and the environment.My role is to help embed that thinking across the family’s investments and initiatives, working with teams to understand the social context we operate in, strengthening relationships with stakeholders, identifying opportunities for shared value, and making sure social impact sits alongside commercial decision-making, not apart from it.In practice, that means translating values into a workable strategy.What do you think makes you good at what you do?What has served me most is an ability to connect people, ideas and perspectives that don’t naturally come together.That starts with curiosity. I’ve never believed the loudest voice in the room necessarily has the best answer. I enjoy asking questions, listening deeply, and understanding how different people experience the same challenge. Throughout my career I’ve worked across business, government, philanthropy and communities, and I’ve found that many of the best solutions emerge when those different perspectives are brought together. My role is often to build enough trust for that to happen. I think success happens at the speed of trust.I’ve also learnt that relationships aren’t separate from strategy; they are strategy. When people trust one another, collaboration becomes possible, and that’s where meaningful change usually begins.Tell me about the 2026 vital voices visionaries summit you recently attended in New York.The summit reinforced something I’ve come to believe throughout my career: leadership today is less about having all the answers and more about creating the conditions for others to contribute theirs.One of the most valuable sessions explored storytelling as a leadership tool. It reminded me that stories aren’t just communication; they build trust, alignment and shared understanding. They are also such great tools for data collection. We really need to encourage and invest in storytelling within all our sectors.What do you look for when recruiting for your team?Skills matter, but mindset matters more.Technical expertise will always count, but increasingly I look for the capabilities that let people work well with others. Curiosity, active listening and the ability to build trust are often overlooked in recruitment, yet they’re what allow teams to navigate complexity, collaborate across differences, and solve problems no one person can solve alone.I look for people who are comfortable asking thoughtful questions rather than pretending to have all the answers, people who can connect seemingly unrelated ideas, genuinely understand perspectives different from their own, and stay adaptable when circumstances change.Business Times
