Leadership Grade 7 Example — 500-Word Statement

SI headed a directorate of 85 staff across four teams, mixing policy, casework and corporate support functions. The department announced a restructure that would merge us with another directorate of similar size, some posts were formally placed at risk, and uncertainty quickly hit morale hard. Within a month I could see delivery starting to slip as good people quietly began looking elsewhere, and my team leaders were fielding anxious questions they could not yet answer.

TAs the senior leader responsible, I had to guide my people through six months of change: keeping statutory delivery on track, being honest about risk, treating everyone fairly and visibly, and giving the whole directorate a clear direction they could trust and follow.

AI set out a plain narrative for the change and repeated it until it stuck: why it was happening, what I knew, what I did not know yet, and when I would know more. I held a 30-minute all-staff briefing every week, with anonymous questions answered honestly in front of everyone, including the ones I could not yet answer. I met each of my four team leaders one-to-one every fortnight and made time for any member of staff who asked to see me. I created a small change group with a representative from each team, so concerns reached me early and staff helped shape the new structure rather than just receiving it. To protect delivery, I agreed three clear priorities with my director and renegotiated two deadlines that were no longer realistic, so the team was not carrying change on top of an impossible load. When selection for the new posts began, I insisted on a transparent process with published criteria, trained everyone who wanted interview practice, and set up a redeployment register with practical CV support for those at risk. I paid particular attention to colleagues on maternity leave and secondment, making sure they received every update and every opportunity. I kept wellbeing visible throughout, running monthly drop-ins and signposting confidential support, and I watched for the quieter people who never raised a hand. I also worked closely with my counterpart in the other directorate, aligning our messages so staff never heard two different stories. Where the merger design was unworkable, I challenged it constructively with senior leaders, twice securing changes that protected front-line capacity. Throughout, I made a deliberate point of celebrating delivery wins in every briefing, so people could see they were still achieving something that mattered, and I publicly backed my team leaders when they made difficult calls.

RBy the end of the process, all 85 staff were retained or redeployed, with zero compulsory redundancies. Our staff survey engagement score rose nine points during the change itself, 96% of delivery milestones were met on time, sickness absence stayed flat throughout, and two of my team leaders were promoted into the new structure, which told me the approach had genuinely built confidence as well as protecting jobs and services.