Download - Abigail Rowland CV 2015 v2
ABIGAIL ROWLAND – COMMUNICATIONS & ENGAGEMENT [email protected]
https://www.linkedin.com/in/abigailrowland6 Milldown Road, Seaford, BN25 3PB
Mobile +44 7917 431968
PROFILEOver twenty years’ strategic, change, corporate and operational communications and engagement experience in global, large, complex organisations (c.100k emp.) including BT, Marks & Spencer, BAA, EDF Energy and SAB Miller. I’m a passionate leader of functional and virtual communications teams, coach to business leaders and colleagues, supporting achievement of company, team and personal goals.
A strong track-record of collaborating with senior leadership teams to deliver understanding and action aligned with organisations’ purpose, vision and values; business’ goals, targets and brand; organisational, behavioural and cultural change.
Exploiting my extensive business experince, strategic insights and ability to integrate content and activities, I deliver high volumes of complex change e.g. business process and customer service improvement programmes; technology, HR and Finance transformations; mergers and acquisitions.
Practitioner of change methodologies and prolific consumer of content and research linked to change i.e. business, social, environmental, technological; mindset and behavioural change, I strive to learn and innovate to improve.
Specialties: employee communications and engagement, change management, digital and social media, employee relations consultation and communications, team coaching and professional development, collaboration and knowledge sharing, facilitation, planning and project mgmt, budget control, supplier management, HR processes.
CAREERBT plc (Nov 2010 – March 2015)Group change communications principal – BT, Group internal communications (Jan 2013 – March 2015)BT is one of the world’s leading telecommunications companies, serving customers in the UK and in more than 170 countries worldwide, approx. 100k global employees. I was accountable for developing, integrating and delivering the communication strategy and plans supporting BT-wide change programmes, improving the organisational health of the company, maximising momentum and success of Olympics and BT Sport.
Key achievements Developed and established group-wide change communications strategic framework, guidelines, templates,
implementation and measurement plans, leading a virtual change communications team to support delivery of significant change across BT, shaping activities and plans. Change programmes included update of BT’s purpose, strategy and values; customer service improvements; Continuous Improvement (CI) method and new ways of working; ‘Space to Lead’ organisational design approach; performance management and reward; technological changes; leadership development and cultural change.
Developed a roadmap for organisational wide changes, segmented by audience – location; level; role type etc. tailoring content and collateral for all audiences e.g. field teams; contact centres; collocated desk based teams; homeworkers. Involved unions, work councils and audience representatives to give feedback and land change.
Results included delivery of improved implementation support for programmes and leaders and a better overall experience of change for the impacted audiences and their managers. Feedback and survey results from managers and their teams demonstrated internal audiences percieved improvements around getting the right information, at the right time, increasing their ability to serve their customers.
Developed communications for BT’s changing approach to learning, supporting the introduction of BT’s Academy. Delivered awareness and understanding of career pathways for 28 new professions, spanning every role in the business. Underpinned by new technology, online and social learning boosted across the
organisation, while the communications approach provided leaders with opportunities to role model, inspire and engage their people.
Delivered communication strategy and plans for adoption of BT-wide social media tools: producing guidelines for communicators, podcasts and webcasts for managers and teams, providing support and coaching for leaders. Outcomes achieved include increased collaboration, user generated content and empowered teams.
Principal change and HR communications business partner, BT Innovate and Design (Nov 2010 – Dec 2012) Freelance consultant from Nov 2010 – Dec 2011, then accepted position offered as a full time BT employee. I designed, developed and delivered the business transformation communication and engagement strategy and implementation plans. Benefits realised incl. increased colocation and collaboration within BTI&D teams and across BT, resulting in improvements in customer experience; significant increases in senior management perception. I also led a team of senior communications managers, partnering BTID’s MDs to deliver communications locally.
Independent consultancy roles (May 2008-Nov 2010): London Borough of Hammersmith & Fulham – provider of council services to local residents: I designed and
delivered all employee events achieving increases in awareness, understanding and involvement of changes in service provision following cuts in govt. funding.
EDF Energy – supplier of gas and electricity to UK residents: I developed and implemented a new internal communications strategy for B2C UK teams, leading and recruiting a team to sustain and embed changes.
SABMiller plc. – beer and soft drinks global supplier: I developed and delivered corporate communications, financial results and campaigns communications e.g. sustainability initiatives and created a new intranet.
Marks & Spencer plc. - international, multi-channel retailer of clothing, home products and food, returning to M&S providing cover during Head of IC’s maternity leave. I led and supported the in-house team across all internal communication deliverables: strategic and operational; developed and implemented evolution of employee communication strategy supporting M&S’s, Plan A, eco-strategy for 70,000 store employees and 2,500+ head office employees, resulting in an increase in engagement and action.
Head of internal communications, BAA Gatwick plc. (Oct 2005 – Feb 2008)I led a team of six, providing counsel to the airport leadership team, supporting communications of strategic and operational changes, including acquisition of BAA plc. by Ferrovial; severe escalation of security processes in response to global terrorist activities; and engaging audiences, including unions, in business and cultural change e.g. customer service improvement and leadership development programmes.
Senior internal communications manager, Marks & Spencer plc. (Jan 2002 – Oct ‘05)I developed strategic internal communications plans designed to educate and motivate 80,000 employees (stores, logistics centres and head office) around key business plans and major change initiatives, integrated with business activities and aligned with customer communications.
I led engagement on a cross-functional board support team, supporting the recovery of M&S and arrival of new CEO and leadership team members. I developed, launched and embedded vision and values through storytelling aligned with business and individuals’ objectives and growth. We achieved CIPD award in recognition of high levels of awareness, engagement, participation and benefits realisation for significant transformation and culture change programme.
Senior PR consultant, Kavanagh Public Relations (Jun 2000 – Dec 2001)I developed and delivered strategic internal and external PR communication plans for retail and travel clients.
Communications consulting (Sept 1998 – Jun 2000) Clients included: WWF; Cisco Systems; BAA plc and Capita plc.
Heathrow Airport Ltd & BAA plc group communications (Jan 1989 – Sept 1998)Various communication roles allowed me to hone the skills required to deliver strategic and operational, internal and external communications and engagement activities e.g. Head of group and airport retail communications.
