I appointed Paul as the Interim Director of Communications in January 2012 at the Institute for Learning (IfL).  IfL is the independent professional body for tens of thousands of teachers and trainers working in further education and skills, mostly in England but also a small number of members in 40 countries.

Paul has successfully led the communications and marketing team and has been a valued member of the executive leadership team.  The Interim Director of Communications was responsible for ensuring that communications are used as effectively as possible to enhance the perceived value of the IfL amongst its members, prospective members, employers, trade unions, Government, journalists, and opinion-formers.  Paul has done this well, and as intended he is also leaving a powerful legacy in terms of new learning and expertise gained by the Communications team, and amongst other IfL employees at all levels.

A key role for Paul over the last few months has been leading the review of our strategy suited to the large voluntary membership and being a respected and progressive professional body.  The consultative process Paul used and the new strategy are impressive.  Paul also has made significant progress in developing new revenue streams for IfL, including approaches for attracting external funds and for cross selling valuable products and services to members, in particular relating to members’ continuing professional development.

Paul has exceptionally good interpersonal skills and is both very highly regarded for his expertise and as a senior colleague by all staff and our Board. and he is very well liked and he motivates others really well and he builds an ‘esprit de corps’.   We will miss him, and I highly recommend Paul for any similar senior role.