The Independent School Podcast with Juliet Corbett

This is the second in my two-part series about Fundraising Campaigns, and in this episode it’s all about breaking the rules! Having discussed the five essential phases of a campaign last week, this time I’m taking you a step further to explore how these phases can be adjusted. Warning! Some caution is needed in breaking these rules, so listen in to hear more. Key Lessons from the episode: 1) The b...

This is the first in my two-part series about Fundraising Campaigns. In this episode, I speak about how to structure a campaign over multiple phases to maximise the opportunity for success. Whether you're new to school fundraising or looking for advanced strategies, this two-part series has got you covered. Next week, we will take a deeper dive into some more advanced topics, including when y...

Coaching has become increasingly recognised for its positive impact on educational leaders, helping them find strategic focus, empower their teams and regain control over their time. In this episode, host Juliet Corbett shares her personal experience of working with coaches and highlights the five reasons why coaching works. Key lessons from this episode: 1. Coaching helps leaders step out of thei...

In this episode, my focus is on you! I’m keen to show you that unlocking your next career step is a process that requires dedication, self-reflection and strategic planning. A few areas I touch on are networking, career plans and the importance of flexibility. Remember, your career journey is unique to you. It's okay to have a general direction instead of a rigid plan. Take a listen to this e...

In this episode, I talk about the shift from being solely goal-oriented to embracing problem-based strategy, inspired by the insights shared by strategy guru Richard Rumelt. Rather than solely focusing on goals and visions, it is essential to diagnose and address the sticking points or challenges that are holding you back. By identifying the key problems, you can develop effective solutions that a...

In today's episode, we're diving into the topic of delegation once again. But this time, we'll be exploring a trap that many leaders, including myself, have fallen into - the 'Done For You' Delegation Trap. I discuss the idea of three service levels, a concept well established in the wider service sector, how this relates to delegation and how it can help you identify and...

In this episode, I delve into the strategic importance of encouraging governors, trustees, and senior leaders in our schools to contribute themselves to fundraising projects. With insights from the IDPE Benchmarking report offering valuable guidance to navigate this compelling topic, I uncover the importance of leadership giving, the role of governors and senior leaders in setting an example and p...

In this episode, I delve into the concept of strategy as a coherent collection of decisions. I explore the definition of strategy and its relevance in the context of schools. While many view strategy as being solely focused on occasional big decisions made by leadership, I discuss how everyday decisions made by all members of the school community are equally strategic and contribute to the realisa...

In this episode, we're tackling a topic that resonates with many of us: liberating our time. Time management is a constant challenge for school leaders, who often struggle to focus on what truly matters amidst a sea of urgent tasks and responsibilities. In previous episodes, I've explored ways to reduce the impact of activities like email and the importance of delegation. Today, I take a...

In this episode I dive into the important topic of delegation in schools. As a coach for educational leaders, I’ve witnessed the power of effective delegation in empowering teams and delivering strategic goals. Delegation not only distributes the workload, but also allows leaders to focus on tasks that align with their strengths and to maximise their positive impact. However, many school leaders s...

In today's episode, "Building Fundraising Confidence," I’m diving into the world of fundraising and exploring how it can help schools achieve their goals to make a positive impact on their communities. Fundraising is not just about asking people for money, but rather offering an opportunity to contribute to something meaningful and make a difference. I'll be discussing four min...

In this episode I present an exploratory framework to help you discuss AI and take action in your school. No-one can give you all the answers at the moment, so I offer questions you can ask within your school community to guide a strategic approach to AI. This episode will help you embrace this new technology and its impact. Key lessons from this episode Pupils in schools will grow up "AI nat...

In this episode, I share with you my new mission. We know from academic evidence that organisations with a clear strategy outperform organisations without a strategy. I extend this to explore the connection between organisational strategy and leader wellbeing. This supports my mission to promote agile strategies within schools. Or, to translate this into a phrase I prefer, to consider strategy as...

In this week’s podcast episode, ‘Simplicity in Strategy’, I explain why a simple strategy is often better than a complex one and how this connects to the idea of strategy as a learning process, or agile strategy as it’s often called. I encourage you to swim against the tide of complexity, embrace simplicity and agility in your strategy! Episode links Episode 149: The Importance of Rest (Rest and R...

This second episode in my Rest and Reset series draws your attention to Intuition and Strategy. Intellect and analysis are important for strategic thinking but don’t dismiss how significant your intuition can be in making the right decisions. Listen to my latest podcast episode in which I pose reflective questions and discuss the soft skills of emotional intelligence, empathy and intuition. Episod...

This episode is an important one for you. It’s all about rest and recuperation and how we can reset our approach to work to make our future strategies efficient and enjoyable. You’ll hear my personal story, as well as scientific research, to convince you how important rest is for you too. There’s a great deal of scientific evidence about the importance of rest, especially in connection with strate...

In this episode, I present my simple framework which helps school staff members to understand their role in strategy implementation: Strategic Thinking in Three Dimensions. The first dimension, 'looking up', involves aligning the problem or decision a staff member has to make upwards to meet the school's strategy. This encourages individuals to consider how their actions connect to...

SWOT is a critical strategy analysis tool. It encourages high-quality strategic thinking which results in decisions being made and action taken. But SWOT is often misunderstood. Having sailed through the internal Strengths and Weaknesses, people often continue to consider the Opportunities and Threats through an internal lens. However, it's critical that you consider these from an external po...

Use this week’s episode to check how robust your school’s strategy is. Listen and use my guidance to seek the 5 signs that your strategy is ready to roll. Your strategy takes a long-term view Your strategy makes tough choices about how to focus scarce resources Your strategy addresses the main challenges you face Your strategy is disputable Your strategy involves thorough development but a clear a...

Here on The Independent School Podcast we're passionate about the positive impact of education. In this episode I speak with Clementine Brown and Eliana Sleiman from CodeBrave about partnerships between schools in the UK and Lebanon. Over the last three years, the percentage of the Lebanese population living under the poverty line has risen from 28% to 82%, and they are now experiencing 50% y...

This week’s episode is all about maximising the benefits of your strategic plan. I’ll help you understand the limitations of a rigid plan, the role of a flexible strategic plan in schools and how to use your strategic plan to propel your school forward. Episode Links Want to explore working with Juliet in a strategy session? Contact us at hello@consultjuliet.co.uk to set up a time to talk with Jul...

Agile strategic thinking is so important right now. Therefore, we are returning to focus our attention on strategy as a learning, rather than a planning, process. Let us establish a learning lens through which we can identify problems, create hypotheses, pilot projects, reflect and ultimately create a full cycle of successful strategic development. This episode reminds us how successful independen...

In this episode I’m joined by Adriana Williams, Director of Development at Marymount International School London. We focus our discussion on data and why it is so important within a school Development Office context. Listen in to hear how to utilise your database to its best capability, improve and record processes and how to showcase key data to your community. Adriana Williams loves to ensure da...

This episode explores anticipating scenarios and navigating inevitable change in our schools. ‘Managing uncertainty’ is part of the lexicon now in leadership, so having a prepared approach for dealing with potential scenarios is a great way to strategise. Scenarios won’t predict the future, but they will help us to explore future possibilities. Listen to this episode to hear my shared team approac...

This episode is one for you and your own professional development. My guest Phillip Rothwell, Director of Development, Warwick Independent Schools Foundation encourages you to advocate for your own career development. Listen for some great personal anecdotes and reasons why investing in your own professional growth is so important. Searching out opportunities, working out ways to fund personal pro...