Far from Home Counties

I can’t remember the last time I ever was in Gerrards Cross.  To be honest I am not sure I have ever been there but I used to live in Oxford which is not more than a stone’s throw away and so I would be surprised if I hadn’t.  Anyway, it didn’t ring a bell but the beautiful spring weather reminded me of the time I used to live in the south.  I am a committed northerner yet this is England with its soft greenery and gentile suburbs.  England is a Home Counties thing.  I had to scrape the ice of the windscreen first thing.

I had come down in the morning to present at the IT & Digital Leaders Dialogue Public Sector, at the Crowne Plaza hotel a few miles out of the town.  I must admit that the hotel seemed familiar but then once you have seen one…

I came down to present but it was more of an interview.  It was all planned in advance of course.  I was to sit next to Jos Creese who was comparing the event, while he asked me questions about the culture change work we have been engaged in up in Durham and the North East.  I have known Jos for some time through Socitm and so the introductions were easy enough.

So was the subject.  I had never spoken in such a format before and after Jos had introduced me I went on to tell the audience about my involvement in culture change, both external to the organisation, including Executive Women in ICT, FDisruptors, eCadets and the apprentice loan scheme, as well as internal to the service.  I made sure my mantra of freedom from location, freedom from hierarchy and freedom from dogma was understood.  It even got a tweet.

The audience seemed to appreciate what I was saying.  I got quite a few questions.  The time flew by which is always something I worry about though running out of things to say is not in my skill set.  It was a long way to travel but it was great to be able to tell our story again.  I am very proud of what we are trying to do in our far flung corner of the country.

I even got two rounds of applause.