diversity and inclusion

Funke Abimbola’s Portfolio Career – the sequel part 2

February 13, 2017 By // by Rachel Brushfield

This is a 2 part guest blog for Energise by Funke Abimbola about her portfolio career. This is part 2.

Funke Abimbola is a multi-award winning Lawyer/TEDx Speaker/TV contributor/Diversity Leader/Patron/Board member and proud mother. She is currently General Counsel and Head of Financial Compliance at Roche UK.

To read part 1 of this guest blog, please click on this link.

https://www.inspiringportfoliocareers.com/funke-abimbolas-portfolio-career-sequel-part-1/

How did any change come about?

I made a conscious decision to say “yes” to as many opportunities as possible in 2016, especially where I was taken outside my comfort zone. Although I was unbelievably busy in 2016, the year led to unparalleled opportunities not only for me but for countless others within my sphere of influence.

What is the significance of this change for you?

By saying “yes” to everything, I am in a much better place to recognise my boundaries and to know what I need to prioritise during 2017. Importantly, I now know what to say “no” to going forwards without feeling guilty in saying “no”! Last year was another year of development and key learnings for me and my team.

What next for you in 2017?

I started 2017 with another promotion – from 1^st January, my role at Roche expanded to include heading up our financial compliance function. As General Counsel & Head of Financial Compliance, I continue to lead on legal and corporate compliance for the Roche UK pharmaceutical business, sitting on several senior leadership teams and providing legal support in the UK, Ireland, Malta and Gibraltar. In addition, I have also gained responsibility for all financial compliance matters for the UK pharmaceutical business including overseeing and leading on internal financial audits, internal financial testing (ICFR) and other financial controls that maintain the integrity of the organisation’s financial systems. This is a first within our organisation so a key priority for me is to embed my expanded team and to ensure that we all continue to develop together.

In terms of my external, voluntary diversity work, 2017 has started on a very promising note. I was listed in the law section of Debretts 500 (together with Supreme Court President, Lord Neuberger, Deputy President of the Supreme Court, Lady Hale, and others) as being one of the most influential people in Britain because of the impact of my diversity work within the legal profession. In January, I took part in my first panel discussion event as Patron of UCLU’s Leadership and Management Society. The discussion was called “How to embrace your diversity and lead’ and I was joined on the panel by a number of colleagues and friends in senior leadership roles. Collectively, we shared our wisdom and experience with the students and other attendees. The event was a huge success and I continue to receive inspirational messages from those who attended, thanking us for our contributions and the impact we made.

I have been interviewed for a book being published by Harper Collins in Spring 2018. Called ‘Slay in your lane’, the book will be a guide to life for black British women. It was a real honour to be approached as one of the black women being interviewed for this ground-breaking publication. Others being interviewed include actress Thandie Newton, GQ publisher Vanessa Kingori MBE and Karen Blackett OBE, Chairwoman of MediaCom.

International Women’s Month (March) is always really busy for me and this year is no different. I have a range of engagements in my diary including delivering a keynote speech at my alma mater, Newcastle Law School, as part of the Inspirational Women in Law project and the 2017 Freedom of the City celebrations marking 50 years since Martin Luther King was given an honourary degree by Newcastle University. I am also partnering with Speakers4Schools and INTO University and will be speaking to a group of school students about my career journey, providing mentoring and work experience opportunities to them. I will be interviewing a high profile speaker to mark International Women’s Day itself in my capacity as an advisory board member of Women in Law London, a large network supporting the progression of women lawyers in the UK. I am speaking at the Solid Woman conference at the British Council as part of an initiative to empower and upskill women from a minority ethnic background. Another highlight in March will be speaking to a large group of school children from a BAME background at the House of Commons, providing guidance and advice about their future career options.

In May, I will be part of a panel of senior leaders at WeAreTheCity’s first ever leadership conference in May called WeAreFutureLeaders. Founded in 2008 by Vanessa Vallely, WeAreTheCity is a free, centralised hub for professional women who want to progress in their careers, enhance their skills and build their networks. WeAreTheCity has 42,000 members, 80% of whom are professional women. WeAreFutureLeaders will be held at Simmons and Simmons, a leading international law firm. The aim of the conference is to equip its female attendees with the skills they need to progress to leadership positions. I am looking forward to being part of the panel, including providing speed mentoring to attendees.

Later on this year, I will be judging the Inclusive Network Awards and This Is Me Awesome 100 nominations, recognising inspiring individuals who have given back and made their mark in our community. I am also one of the judges for the third We are the City Rising Star awards, a unique awards programme that recognises the pipeline of female talent across a range of industries.

Throughout 2017, I will continue to appear on BBC 1 as part of the world news review team, providing expert commentary on topical news items. In addition, I am being considered for another TEDx talk taking place this summer.

Yet to be scheduled is an important meeting at number 10 Downing Street. Suffice to say that the Prime Minister and I are struggling to align our diaries at present but we will get there!

Anything else you would like to add?

Whilst 2016 was, undoubtedly, a year of tremendous successes for me, it is also important to add that I made my fair share of mistakes last year too. Learning from mistakes is an essential part of being a leader and there were some key learnings for me throughout the year. I feel empowered to improve even more during 2017 and remain committed to increasing my influence and impact in the process.

The final thing to mention is that my teenaged son signed up to UN Women’s HeforShe campaign in 2016. He had noticed that the girls in his class were very capable but lacked confidence and did not always put their hands up in lessons, even when they knew the answer. He has committed to empowering the girls and supporting their confidence, quite remarkable for a teenager. I really hope that more male gender champions are encouraged and inspired to follow his example!

Funke’s LinkedIn profile:

https://www.linkedin.com/in/funkeabimbola

Follow Funke on Twitter @diversitychamp1

https://twitter.com/DiversityChamp1

Interested in a portfolio career? Download your free report Discover Portfolio Careers:

https://www.inspiringportfoliocareers.com/who-has-portfolio-careers/

https://twitter.com/talentliberator

Funke Abimbola’s Portfolio Career – the sequel part 1

February 13, 2017 By // by Rachel Brushfield

This is a 2 part guest blog for Energise by Funke Abimbola about her portfolio career. This is part 1.

What headline summed up last year, 2016 for you?

The year I said “yes” to (almost) everything.

What has changed in the last 12 months?

Within my career as a senior lawyer and leader for Roche, I was promoted to General Counsel & Company Secretary in December 2015. My key priority during 2016 was to develop into my new role. Two other members of my team were also promoted at the end of 2015. As a team, we have been involved in a number of core initiatives across the UK & Ireland pharmaceutical business and have developed together, making best use of our strengths as a team and learning from our mistakes and other areas for improvement. I am so proud to have seen my team receive recognition through a range of awards programmes including the Legal Business Awards, the Lawyer Awards, the British Legal Awards, the Law Society Excellence Awards and the Global Equality & Diversity Awards. In addition, 2 members of my team have won individual awards for their outstanding work, a source of tremendous pride for me. I thrive on seeing my team members flourishing and maximising their potential.

Also within Roche, I was filmed for our employee pride video called ‘Everybody In’, sharing my perspective on why I am so proud to work for Roche. The diversity within our UK organisation is very proudly showcased throughout the video. I was part of a small team of colleagues working on producing a report highlighting the overall impact of our organisation in the UK, including the impact of our diverse talent pool. The report was successfully launched earlier this year.

My voluntary diversity work went from strength to strength in 2016 as my influence broadened and became more widely recognised. Roche recognised me as a ‘Volunteer Superhero’ early in 2016, commending me for the impact of all my voluntary diversity and inclusion work. I now partner with the organisation’s global head of diversity and inclusion, providing my insights and guidance on our global D&I strategy.

I successfully launched the Akindolie Medical Scholarship in April in memory of my father, Dr. Frank Akindolie, a gifted, German-trained doctor who died over 4 years ago. The scholarship is privately funded and is aimed at supporting UK BAME medical students, comprising both a bursary award and leadership mentoring. My family and I were able to award the inaugural scholarship to an exceptional medical student at the British Medical Association in September.

I have continued to support the Law Society’s diversity agenda by providing keynote speeches at several Women Lawyers Division and Ethnic Minority Lawyers Division events, together with providing mentoring and networking support. I have partnered with the current Law Society president to further the race agenda amongst all practising solicitors in England and Wales.

I have been appointed as Patron of BAME and other philanthropic initiatives this year – Power Up, an initiative focused on upskilling and empowering BAME professionals, the Interlaw Diversity BAME Forum, with a focus on BAME lawyers and the Asian Voice Charity Awards. I was appointed as the first ever patron of UCLU’s Leadership and Management Society, the fastest growing society at UCLU and the only one devoted to leadership development. In August, I agreed to become Ambassador for the Precious Awards, supporting and recognising women of colour.

Throughout 2016, I spoke to and inspired over 2,000 school children, sharing my personal leadership journey with them and encouraging them to overcome challenges to maximise their potential. Following each talk, I followed up with those students who were interested in work experience and tapped into my network to secure opportunities for them. I also spoke in Parliament, at the Open University, within a number of corporates and at several law firms, all with the same consistent message that embracing diversity and inclusion is not only the right thing to do but makes good business sense and helps organisations to maintain their competitive edge. I was privileged to be one of the keynote speakers at the National Diversity Awards reunion event in February, having won the Gender Role Model award in 2015.

In June, I spoke at my first TEDx event sharing my personal story of overcoming various challenges. I was an expert contributor to David Lammy MP’s review into the criminal justice system and have also provided expert advice to the Ministry of Justice on a number of issues.

I became a Senior Advisory Board Member of Aspiring Solicitors, the UK’s largest diversity platform and resource within the legal profession and will be mentoring female BAME future lawyers going forwards. I was appointed as an advisory board member of Women in Law London, the largest network for pre-partnership women solicitors working in private practice and in-house. By providing strategic input and vision to the network, I am contributing towards extending the network’s influence and impact.

I held the first leadership conference for my own women’s network, Women Leaders in Life Sciences Law, in September 2016. The theme of the conference was ‘Letting down ladders’ and the conference was a huge success with many delegates flying in from overseas and demand already high for our 2017 conference.

I was privileged to have judged a number of award programmes in 2016 and was recognised through a range of award programmes myself including Divas of Colour, Women4Africa, We are the City, Women of the Future, European Diversity Awards, Lift Effects and CA Awards. It was a real highlight of the year to be awarded ‘Point of Light’ status by Prime Minister, Theresa May, recognising the impact of my voluntary diversity work in improving workplace diversity across the UK and in inspiring thousands of school children. Incredibly, I am now on the Prime Minister’s Christmas card list too!

My leadership and legal expertise were also recognised on 3 powerlists in 2016 – the UPStanding powerlist (ranked as being a top 20 BAME leader globally), Powerful Media’s Powerlist (top 100 leader of African/Afro-Caribbean descent in the UK) and Legal Business magazine’s GC Powerlist 2016 (top general counsel within the life sciences/healthcare sector).

I have been interviewed by several magazines and media outlets including the Law Society Gazette, The Guardian and the International Bar Association. Following an interview with BBC journalist Sally Bundock, I was invited to be a part of the BBC’s team of volunteer expert news reviewers and now regularly appear on BBC 1 discussing a range of world news topics.

I also took part in the Law Society’s ‘Solicitor Brand’ media campaign and was filmed for this campaign, sharing my personal story about how and why I became a solicitor and what being a solicitor means to me.

Funke’s LinkedIn profile:

https://www.linkedin.com/in/funkeabimbola

Follow Funke on Twitter @DiversityChamp1

https://twitter.com/diversitychamp1

Interested in a portfolio career? Download your free report Discover Portfolio Careers:

https://www.inspiringportfoliocareers.com/who-has-portfolio-careers/

https://twitter.com/talentliberator

Guest blog part 2: Miranda Brawn

May 8, 2016 By // by DigitalJenIPC

This is a two part guest blog by Miranda Brawn. This is part 2.

Miranda Brawn is a multi-award winning legal business and diversity leader who is hailed as a trailblazer. Named Top 30 most inspirational women by Brummel, featured on CityAMs Women In The City and Speakers 100 Powerlists, BE Mogul Winner and Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts. With a background as an investment banker and a barrister, over 15 years’ experience in philanthropy and diversity work, Miranda wanted to go the extra mile and founded the Miranda Brawn Diversity leadership Foundation. She has also co-founded the General Counsel Diversity Leadership Forum and part of the Thomson Reuters Legal In-House Advisory Network and Business Law Consultation Advisory Board.

Here is part 1 of Miranda’s guest blog in case you missed it:

https://liberateyourtalent.wordpress.com/2016/05/08/guest-blog-part-1-miranda-brawn/https://liberateyourtalent.wordpress.com/2016/05/08/guest-blog-part-1-miranda-brawn/

The rest of this blog is in Miranda’s own words.

When people ask you ‘what do you do?’ – what do you reply?

A lot – wearing several hats! Board advisor, Entrepreneur, Founder, CEO, Barrister, Banker, Investor, Public Speaker, Brand Ambassador, Founder of Miranda Brawn Diversity Leadership Foundation, Vice Chair of the Black Cultural Archives, Business and Diversity Leader are among the main responses.

To what extent did your portfolio career happen by chance/luck and to what extent was it planned?

My portfolio career has happened purely by chance due to a range of interesting opportunities which have been presented to me in order to help make a real positive difference in the world.

What do you most love about having a portfolio career?

I love the variety and diversity of the different people and industries with the continuous learning of new skills and knowledge which help my portfolio career. In addition, my extensive network has grown immensely which enables me to help others to succeed.

Who or what helps you to manage your portfolio career?

My PA is amazing and helps me to manage my diary in order to stay on top of everything.

How do you approach marketing your portfolio career?

My portfolio career has grown organically with the help of social media, word of mouth and D.I.Y. PR to help raise my profile. I have been able to use my business and marketing graduate studies from years ago to implement a successful marketing strategy for my various initiatives. In addition, I have relationships with several influencers, journalists, radio and TV producers to help with any of my PR campaigns. The Miranda Brawn Diversity Leadership Scholarship was launched in the first week of January 2016 and I was approached by journalists, radio and TV producers who wanted to help to promote this diversity initiative.

What are your top 5 tips?

1) Develop a plan.
2) Get organised.
3) Have a support system.
4) Use your network.
5) Be open to unexpected opportunities.

What next?

More about Miranda Brawn:

Website www.mirandabrawn.com

Twitter https://twitter.com/brawnm

Linkedin https://www.linkedin.com/in/mirandabrawn?trk=nav_responsive_tab_profile

Facebook www.facebook.com/MirandaBrawnEsq

Interested in a portfolio career yourself?

Download your copy of our free report ‘Discover portfolio careers’:

http://www.llclub.org/discover-portfolio-careers/

Guest blog part 1: Miranda Brawn

May 8, 2016 By // by DigitalJenIPC

This is a two part guest blog by Miranda Brawn. This is part 1.

Miranda Brawn is a multi-award winning legal business and diversity leader who is hailed as a trailblazer. A few awards include being named Top 30 most inspirational women by Brummel magazine, featured on the City AM’s Women in the City & Speakers 100 Powerlists, BE Mogul Winner and Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts. She is also a Future Tech Girl Role Model and on the Fem Tech Leader Global List for influential women within Technology. She has been nominated for a number of awards in 2016.

With a background as an investment banker and a barrister, Miranda has spent her career at some of the most prestigious global institutions such as Goldman Sachs and JP Morgan Chase Bank. Miranda’s primary role is to manage the company’s legal risk across Europe for the derivatives, regulatory and securities financing business within an investment bank. Her previous roles have included sales trader and head of legal documentation.

With over 15 years’ experience in philanthropy, community and diversity work, Miranda wanted to go the extra mile and founded the Miranda Brawn Diversity Leadership Foundation. This provides future BAME leaders (including females) with opportunities and incentives via scholarships, diversity lectures, work experience and mentoring. This includes a partnership with The Prince’s Trust to help future BAME leaders from disadvantaged backgrounds. The aim is to increase race (and gender diversity) in Britain and beyond. Sponsors from the legal world include Hogan Lovells for the scholarship and the University of Law for the Miranda Brawn Diversity Leadership Annual Lecture which takes place on 15th October 2016.

Miranda has co-founded the “General Counsel Diversity Leadership Forum” and “Color In Tech” to help increase race and gender diversity in both the legal and technology sectors. She is on the committee board for City Women Network to increase gender diversity within the Corporate sector.

She is also part of the Thomson Reuters Legal In-House Advisory Network and Business Law Consultation Advisory Board. Professional Ambassador for Aspiring Solicitors from since March 2015. Miranda is on the board as Vice Chair of the Black Cultural Archives, Patron of the Black British Academics and board advisor for other organisations.”

Miranda is on the board as Vice Chair of the Black Cultural Archives, Patron of the Black British Academics and board advisor for other organisations. Her portfolio career also consists of being a life & business strategist, investor, entertainment consultant, writer for various publications such as OTC Space & Chambers Diversity and an international LAMDA qualified public speaker. She is a Brand Ambassador for various brands which include The Fold London and Piaget. In addition, she is a presenter which includes providing commentary on television & radio for BBC, London Live & Sky etc. while being quoted in the likes of The Guardian and the Financial Times.

The rest of this guest blog is in Miranda’s own words.

What are the components of your portfolio career e.g. study, paid freelance work, part time job, volunteering etc?

The components of my portfolio career consist of a full time job within an in-house legal department for an investment bank, paid freelance work and voluntary work within various sectors such as education, culture, diversity, personal branding, online and offline PR, business and technology (i.e. FinTech & RegTech). I am also an international public speaker for industry events, seminars, workshops, conferences and educational institutions etc. having spoken in Europe, US and the Caribbean.

One industry event which I have just spoken at was the Thomson Reuters General Counsel Leadership Forum 2016 on the topic of career management to senior legal professionals. http://practicallawconferences.com/gc-leadership-forum/.

I am due to give a keynote talk at the Legal Ex (Business Behind The Law) National Legal Exhibition and Conference 2016 in Excel London which is supported by The Law Society next month. I will be the only speaker discussing career management and diversity in law. Tickets are available via http://www.legalex.co.uk/.

I will also be speaking at the Generation Success “Climbing The Law Ladder” Event held at the House of Commons with some of the UK’s leading legal lights such as Lord Holmes of Richmond, Daniel Winterfeldt, Head of International Capital Markets and Diversity & Inclusion Partner at CMS Cameron McKenna and Paul Smith who is Chairman at Eversheds LLP.

How did your portfolio career come about?

My portfolio career was established when I left my commercial role as a sales trader on the trading floor at an investment bank. I had decided to give back to society by undertaking charity and community work during my garden leave. The main roles were UK Global Poverty Ambassador in association with the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and a charity board director. I had founded my own legal consultancy company which has recently won an award. My public speaking career was also launched during this time allowing me to inspire others to enter into various industries such as law and finance which has now developed onto other subject matters which include diversity, business and technology etc. Once my garden leave had come to an end and I had commenced my full time corporate role, I made a decision to keep some of my other roles hence my portfolio career was born.

How has your portfolio career changed over time?

My portfolio career has grown over time and I have had the opportunity to get involved with some great initiatives while meeting some wonderful people.

I have co-founded the “General Counsel Diversity Leadership Forum” with Catherine McGregor who is the Publishing Director at Legal 500. The aim is to provide a best practice & networking forum for leaders in the legal field to help generate ideas and increase diversity action. There is a lot of talk and networking events about diversity however the action and statistics are not matching at the moment. I have also co-founded “Color In Tech” http://colorintech.org/ to help increase race and gender diversity in Technology.

With over 15 years’ experience in philanthropy, community and diversity work, I wanted to go the extra mile and founded the Miranda Brawn Diversity Leadership Foundation. http://mirandabrawn.com/diversity-leadership-foundation-scholarship/.This provides future BAME leaders (including females) with opportunities and incentives via scholarships, diversity lectures, work experience and mentoring. This includes a partnership with The Prince’s Trust to help future BAME leaders from disadvantaged backgrounds. The aim is to increase race (and gender diversity) in Britain and beyond.

The main diversity issues being discussed tend to lean towards gender and social mobility which I have also been actively pushing. However, as a diversity leader I wanted to launch an initiative which went beyond public speaking and articles to play my personal part in leading the race diversity initiatives within the UK workforce which includes the legal sector.

Sponsors from the legal world include Hogan Lovells for the Miranda Brawn Diversity Leadership Scholarship and the University of Law for the Miranda Brawn Diversity Leadership Annual Lecture which takes place on 15th October 2016 at their premises. The recipients will be awarded their scholarships at this lecture. Dame Jocelyn Barrow will be giving a keynote address at the event. Dame Jocelyn was instrumental in the creation of the Race Relations Act of 1968. In the 1960s, she pioneered the introduction of multi-cultural education, stressing the needs of the various ethnic groups in the UK and she is a Patron of the Black Cultural Archives. Hence, she is the perfect person to address the next generation of BAME leaders and share her wisdom at the first Miranda Brawn Diversity Leadership Lecture. Her keynote address will be followed by my lecture on diversity leadership, to help inspire the next generation to get actively involved in diversity issues right now within their educational institutions and not to wait until they enter the workplace. Further information can be located from these web links:

http://mirandabrawn.com/diversity-leadership-foundation-scholarship/

http://bcaheritage.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/Miranda-Brawn-Diversity-Scholarship-application-form.pdf

http://bcaheritage.org.uk/black-cultural-archives-announces-the-miranda-brawn-diversity-leadership-scholarship/

I am also on the committee board for City Women Network to increase gender diversity in the Corporate sector. I am part of the Thomson Reuters Legal In-House Advisory Network and Business Law Consultation Advisory Board. In addition, I am on the board as Vice Chair of the Black Cultural Archives, Patron of the Black British Academics and board advisor for other organisations.

Part 2 of this 2 part guest blog series by Miranda Brawn coming soon.

What next?

More about Miranda Brawn:

Website www.mirandabrawn.com

Twitter https://twitter.com/brawnm

Linkedin https://www.linkedin.com/in/mirandabrawn?trk=nav_responsive_tab_profile

Facebook www.facebook.com/MirandaBrawnEsq

Interested in a portfolio career yourself?

Download your copy of our free report ‘Discover portfolio careers’:
Free report Discover Portfolio careers

Funke Abimbola Guest blog – the sequel part 1

January 28, 2016 By // by DigitalJenIPC

In this 2 part guest blog, in part 1 Funke shares what has changed and how the change came about and the part 2, she shares the significance of the change and what next for 2016. This is part 1.

Funke is a practising solicitor and multi award-winning lawyer and diversity campaigner. She joined Roche as Managing Counsel in January 2012, leading the legal team supporting Roche’s pharmaceutical operations in the UK, Ireland, Malta and Gibraltar and was also appointed as Data Protection Officer for the UK. She was promoted to General Counsel & Company Secretary in December 2015. Her career began in private practice before moving in-house. Outside of her role at Roche, Funke undertakes a lot of work to support diversity & inclusion in society as a whole and within the legal profession in particular, initiating and driving through a range of ground-breaking diversity initiatives. She has received national and European recognition for her diversity work, all of which is carried out in her spare time on a voluntary basis.

What has changed?

2015 was a ground-breaking year for me both in terms of my legal work at Roche and in terms of building upon the reach and impact of my voluntary diversity work.

With regards diversity, I started the year focusing on gender diversity – by the end of the year, as well as gender, I was also doing significant amounts of work around social mobility issues and in relation to ethnicity. Together with award winning journalist, Jon Robins, and Byfield Consultancy (a leading legal PR firm), I published a report on social mobility issues across the whole legal profession called “Opening up or shutting out” (http://www.byfieldconsultancy.com/wp-content/uploads/Opening-up-or-shutting-out_Social-mobility-in-the-legal-profession.pdf).

The report was very well received, resulting in an exclusive for “The Times” and several opportunities to write further articles for “The Times” and other leading publications. The visibility and success of this report has led to many other opportunities for me – for example, a roundtable discussion on social mobility for “The Law Society Gazette” http://www.lawgazette.co.uk/people/roundtable-social-mobility/5052584.fullarticle and me being a panellist at the 2015 PRIME conference, together with Sir Terry Leahy (former CEO of Tesco), the BBC’s Mishal Husain, Louise Ashley (the author of the Social Mobility and Child Poverty Commission’s June 2015 report, “Non-educational barriers to the elite professions evaluation”, https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/non-educational-barriers-to-the-elite-professions-evaluation) and ITV’s Barry Matthews. Approximately 200 law firm attendees were present. The visibility and impact of this event has, in turn, lead to additional opportunities for me to extend my diversity work even further in 2016.

Throughout 2015, I received an unprecedented number of speaking requests. In terms of sheer numbers, I spoke to audiences approaching 1,500 solicitors and other professionals including speaking at the BBC, the Law Society 3 times and at the 30% Club. Speaking engagements to school children was also very active last year – I spoke to almost 1,200 school children in 2015.

In terms of my legal career, I started 2015 as Managing Counsel for the UK & Ireland, leading the legal team supporting Roche’s pharmaceutical business in the UK, Ireland, Malta and Gibraltar. By the end of 2015, I had been promoted to General Counsel & Company Secretary. I now lead a mixture of both lawyers and corporate compliance professionals and, as UK Corporate Compliance Officer, I have additional responsibilities in driving the site-wide corporate compliance agenda for the Roche UK pharmaceutical business. I lead the UK Corporate Compliance senior leadership team and am also a member of the UK Governance senior leadership team. So 2015 was an eventful year to say the least!

How did any change come about?

The changes came about due to my increased visibility, impact, hard work, determination and commitment to developing myself and my team. Despite a number of set-backs and challenges throughout the year, I continued to focus on my goals and remained tenacious and determined throughout. I networked extensively, both within Roche and outside Roche. I was constantly on the lookout for opportunities both for myself and for my team and encouraged my team members to make the most of every opportunity and to see challenges as opportunities for growth and development.

My work was recognised through a series of awards programmes last year and I was deeply honoured to win 4 awards last year – Career Woman of the Year (Women4Africa Awards), Positive Role Model Award for Gender (National Diversity Awards), Outstanding Woman in Professional Services (Precious Awards) and Inspiring Member of the Year (Inclusive Networks Awards). I was also recognised by Brummells’ magazine as being one of the UK’s top 30 women champions of diversity impacting on the City of London. By the end of 2015, I had been appointed as a Fellow of the Royal Society of the Royal Society of Arts for enriching society through ideas and action!

Read Funke’s original guest blogs from 2015:

Part 1
https://liberateyourtalent.wordpress.com/2015/05/29/funke-abimbola-guest-blog-1/

Part 2
https://liberateyourtalent.wordpress.com/2015/08/27/guest-blog-funke-abimbola-2/

What transferable skills do you possess that you could leverage in new and different ways? Download your FREE report now:
Changing careers report

Vanessa Vallely guest blog part 2

January 9, 2016 By // by DigitalJenIPC

This is a 2 part guest blog by Vanessa Vallely. This is part 2 of 2.

Vanessa Vallely is the founder of leading women’s network, job board and web site WeAreTheCity and WeAreTheCity jobs. She also co-founded the UK wide diversity network The Network of Networks (TNON). Vanessa had an extensive 25 year career in banking and finance and is the winner of numerous awards.

In case you missed it, here is part 1:
https://liberateyourtalent.wordpress.com/2016/01/09/vanessa-vallely-guest-blog-part-1/

The rest of this blog is in Vanessa’s own words:

What are the challenges of having a portfolio career?
Obviously a lot of the work I do isn’t paid, so I need to balance my time in terms of what I do that pays the bills versus what I do because I am passionate about it. Other than that, there are no down sides at all.

Who or what helps you to manage your portfolio career?
My PA, I couldn’t live without her! She also challenges me to ensure that my time is balanced across my many different projects and ensures that I am not neglecting any of my commitment.

How do you approach marketing your portfolio career?
I don’t tend to market my career as one particular activity. It is made up of lots of different component parts, all of which compliment each other. A lot of my speaking work comes in via word of mouth. My charity positions tend to be for 2-3 year periods so they are fairly fixed. In terms of WeAreTheCity, my core business, this is actively marketed, as it is a business therefore needs the right level of marketing in order for it to be successful. Other than that I attribute the opportunities I am presented with through my networking activities and my social media presence (e.g. Twitter, LinkedIn etc).

What advice would you give to someone considering a portfolio career?
To plan what they want to do before actually biting the bullet. To ensure that have the network and connections to support their aspirations. To make sure there is a balance in terms of commercial and voluntary activities.

What benefits do portfolio careers bring specifically to women and mothers, rather than to men?
I don’t see the difference. I expect if I still had very young children, the flexibility of a portfolio career may be of use, however I don’t see why it should be any different for either gender.

What next?
Visit Vanessa’s web site:
http://www.vanessavallely.com/

What transferable skills do you possess that could open up new avenues e.g. a second career or business? Download your FREE report now:
http://careerstrategies.co.uk/changingcareersreport/

Vanessa Vallely guest blog part 1

January 9, 2016 By // by DigitalJenIPC

This is a 2 part guest blog by Vanessa Vallely. This is part 1 of 2.

The rest of this blog is in Vanessa’s own words:

What are the components of your portfolio career e.g. study, paid freelance work, part time job, volunteering etc.)?
Since leaving my corporate job in 2012, I have been building my portfolio career. This consists of running 2 businesses both here and in India, speaking at corporates and schools and sitting on charity boards. I also had a 3 year stint as a school governor at a local primary school.

How did your portfolio career come about?
I felt I wanted to do more than just one job. I also felt an inherent need to start giving back to my community and to apply my skills to a multitude of things.

How has your portfolio career changed over time?
I feel that one opportunity has led to others. For example, my first charity board position lead to a connection that led to the next. My experience on that charity board made it easier for me to transition on to the next. I evolved from my school governor position to actually working in schools as part of Future First & Inspiring the future.

When people ask you ‘what do you do?’ – what do you reply?
I wear many hats. Business, Community and charity. I have a portfolio career.

To what extent did your portfolio career happen by chance/luck and to what extent was it planned?
I always knew I wanted to do a variety of things when I eventually left my corporate role. I knew what I wanted to do, however the opportunities really came when I started to invest time in building my network.

What do you most love about having a portfolio career?
I like the variety more than anything. I can go from running my business to presenting to teenagers at a school. On another day, I can be contributing towards a charity’s strategy to travelling to India to volunteer. It is a dream to have a portfolio career as I get to choose what I get involved in and I feel like I am contributing in both business and to the community. I just wish I had more time to get involved in all the projects that come my way.

What next?

Visit Vanessa’s web site:
http://www.vanessavallely.com/

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