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Letter from the Editor
Letter from the Editor
Caroline Scotter Mainprize
3 min read
When it comes to the big leadership positions, the role is invariably bigger than the individual who inhabits it. No one person can do and be all that is required to run an organisation, a state department, or a country or region. That is why chiefs of staff exist, and also executive assistants, speechwriters, coaches — and often a myriad of other advisors and would-be confidants.
These people all work together, under the subtle direction of the chief of staff, to amplify and support the leadership embodied in the person who holds the role.
At the heart of this process is the partnership between the principal and the chief of staff. Anchored by shared values, the relationship is nevertheless one of constant negotiation and development, as the participants move constantly between agreement and challenge, compensate for each other’s weaknesses, and learn from each other’s strengths.
Exactly how they do this, and how they use the dynamics of their relationship to foster organisational success, is the focus of this issue of The Chief of Staff journal.
Luis Visot draws on his own experience as both a chief of staff and a principal to explore the foundation of the relationship, and how principals and chiefs of staff should identify and define the values that bind them together. A partner to this article, and building on those foundations, is Paul Kadzielski’s subtle analysis of the elements of effective collaboration and the ‘chemistry’ that it creates.
Rachel Townend was the first employee of Illuminate Financial Management, founded by Mark Beeston, and the two of them discuss her journey from EA and general factotum to partner and chief of staff. Another principal gets in on the act too when Terry Berland and Ali McKenzie – who between them form the Unicorn & Lion partnership – describe how they created a bespoke apprenticeship scheme to train up Tony Marcial as the inaugural chief of staff to one of their client organisations.
A different perspective on creating the chief of staff position is offered by Stefania Pizzuto from international consultancy Deloitte, with a focus on large, established organisations. Deloitte was also involved, with the Chief of Staff Association, in the development of the first research paper on the role in Italy by Bocconi Business School. And Mike Jernigan, our Director of Mentorship and now regular columnist, contributes his usual combination of entertaining anecdotes and acute perceptiveness as he investigates the ‘true superpower’ of the chief of staff: understanding and supporting ‘the boss’.
In this issue we profile members Faisal Aljohani, who is the first chief of staff in in the development organisation for the region of Aseer in Saudi Arabia, and Susan Kim, who now brings her diverse experiences in the financial, consulting and healthcare to her role as chief of staff at Global Support and Development, a private operating foundation focused on disaster response, preparedness, and climate adaptation.
The experiences and insights offered by all the contributors have much to teach us about collaboration, engagement, and all aspects of leadership today. We hope you enjoy reading this issue of The Chief of Staff journal and share it with colleagues and friends who may be interested. Our next issue will focus on all aspects of innovation.
Author Bio
Caroline Scotter Mainprize
Chief Editor
Caroline is a writer, editor, and communications advisor, working mostly for organisations involved in research and education. Clients have included Oxford University Press, Saïd Business School, Bayes Business School, and the international development and publishing organisation CABI. She has edited a number of books, annual reports, and journals, and written practitioner-focused research reports, including Oxford’s The Museum Leaders Report and Understanding Chief Digital Officers.Before freelancing she was responsible for the corporate communications at Oxford University Press. She had previously worked for a London PR consultancy and as a journalist on a business newspaper.
