The ACE Secretariat were please to host the Q1 CEO Challenge on 26 June 2025, focused on the leading forward as a public body leader. The session reflected on resilience, adaptability, and strategic organisational change, with special guest speaker Caroline Field, Partner, National Resilience at PA Consulting.
In an era defined by rapid transformation and uncertainty, public sector leaders are called upon to navigate complex change while maintaining clarity, confidence, and compassion. At the same time, organisations need to improve their capacity to anticipate, prepare for, respond to and adapt to both incremental changes and sudden disruptions.
With a view to enabling members to transform challenges into opportunities, the June 2025 session explored proven strategies for managing both personal and organisational responses to change, fostering resilience, and cultivating a culture of adaptability.
Guided by by Prof. Caroline Field, Partner, National Resilience, PA Consulting, co-Founder Centre for Whole of Society Resilience and visiting Professor, Loughborough University, public body CEOs reflected on how to lead through ambiguity and build resilient teams, sustaining performance under pressure. The discussion focused on an integrated, whole-system approach to organisational resilience and on the application of a resilience framework.
Inspired by the guest speaker’s experience in resilient leadership and focus on developing the people at the heart of systems as a catalyst to deliver whole society resilience, members were also invited to reflect on the role of those that are charged with delivering resilience within organisations as a Chief Resilience Officers.
With thanks to our contributors:
- Carolyn Bartlett, Chief Strategy and Transformation Officer at the Valuation Office Agency and member of the ACE Board (host)
- Caroline Field, Partner, National Resilience, PA Consulting, Co-Founder Centre for Whole of Society Resilience and Visiting Professor, Loughborough University.
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CEO Challenges are online sessions operating with Chatham House Rule, providing a safe space for leaders to convene and discuss challenges they are facing and key issues of interest to leaders of ALBs. These sessions are hosted by Carolyn Bartlett, Chief Strategy and Transformation Officer at the Valuation Office Agency and member of the ACE Board.
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