Non-Executive on Residents Committee for Southern Housing, one of the largest housing providers in the UK

When our client approached us seeking to recruit a Non-Executive to join their Residents Committee, we were eager to assist. Despite the complexities of a heavily regulated environment, we successfully identified the ideal candidate, balancing a strong commercial mindset with a customer-focused approach.

Discover the full case study below.

The Challenge

Southern Housing wanted to recruit a non-executive with extensive knowledge of digital systems and how they could be used to improve customer services to join its Residents Committee. Ideally, candidates would have a commercial background, with experience of working at a major, customer-focussed B2C organisation. However, they would also need to be able to work effectively in the highly regulated world of social housing, where the quality of services provided to residents is the key driver, rather than profit or shareholder value.

They were happy to engage somebody looking for their first non-executive role and they would offer support accordingly.

The Approach

NSCG was appointed to manage the search as, along with a track record of placing senior leaders in both executive and non-executive roles, we have strong experience in both the social housing and digital markets.

Whilst Southern Housing were not looking to recruit from the housing sector, they needed to be confident that the consultancy they appointed could assess whether candidates could move effectively from the commercial world to the more highly regulated, socially responsible housing sector.

Keith Butler – NSCG’s lead consultant on the assignment – interviewed 15 individuals for the role, focussing not just on their experience in the digital space but also on their ability to communicate effectively at a senior level, their stakeholder management skills, whether they had an inquisitive and challenging mindset, and their understanding of the challenges facing the social housing sector.

We also took steps to ensure that our shortlist included candidates from diverse backgrounds.

The Result

Southern Housing interviewed three candidates who we had short-listed and the Director of Governance stated that all three were strong and appointable, with a good mix of technical knowledge, experience and enthusiasm.

The role was offered to a candidate with strong communication and stakeholder management skills and a successful track record at director level in digital strategy and customer experience in FMCG, energy and financial services. The candidate was also able to demonstrate a solid understanding of the challenges and opportunities facing the highly regulated and publicly scrutinised world of social housing.

Business Outcomes

The non-executive who we recruited for Southern Housing started with them soon after having been appointed and was able to provide valuable insight into the opportunities open to Southern to improve customer services using state of the art digital technology.

She has been working closely not only with the non-exec team but also the executives in areas including customer services and technology to ensure a more holistic, joined up approach, offering constructive challenge and advice to ensure the optimal outcome.