My Portfolio

Central Gov. | Social Housing | Strategic Partnership | Local Gov. | Social Value - Commercial

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👩‍💼Leadership Style:

visionary | change orientated | participative | ideological | 

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Personality Type:

Ambivert | Intuitive | Feeling | Judgement (E/I N / F / J)

Strengths in: Harmonising | Campaigning | Innovating | Exploring

Thinking Hats: Yellow (Positivity), Red (Feelings), Green (Creativity)

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My main professional training can be viewed on my LinkedIn Profile

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📅 1st September 2024 onwards

Head of Customer Journey (Maximus UK) | Remote

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To own, maintain and improve the customer journey across the Citizen Services portfolio (Health, Justice and Employability)

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• Establish and own the customer journey ecosystem​

• Implement and drive the customer journey roadmap

• Product ownership for case management (Employability)

• Working in partnership with stakeholders and commissioners

• Integrate direct customer involvement and user acceptance testing (UAT) methods

• Establish a user story and persona library (needs and requirements acceptance) and drive the prioritisation of the backlog

• Integrate customer insight for improvement

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"thank you for all your hard work on behalf of the service, and for being an advocate for the changes we need to push ahead with," 

(Service Owner - 2024)

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"Rachel is a Leader...helping to reimagine services that are built around the resident, and delivered to release costs whilst improving user experience"

(Director, 2023)

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"Thank you for the dedication and diligence you brought." (Colleague, 2024)

 

📅 Nov 2020 to 31st August 2024

Service Design Lead (Basildon Council) | Remote

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• Spearheaded the successful implementation of the Council's comprehensive Service Design Framework and Toolkit, encompassing 43 tools, including robust Service Pattern and User Story Libraries.

• Established and nurtured a Service Design Champions scheme, building a thriving Community of Practice, with active mentoring of 74 members to drive design culture and capability.

• Launched and led the development of the Council’s pioneering Service Design Academy, offering e-learning, coaching, and mentoring programs to elevate service design maturity across the organization.

• Led 23 cross-functional service design teams, transforming customer journeys and service blueprints across critical areas, including Customer Case Management, Housing Repairs, Taxi Licensing, Local Land Charges, Building Control, and Disabled Facilities Grant

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"You have always been valued colleague to me, and someone whose input and opinion I have appreciated" (Funder representative 2020)

 

"and appreciated her support in facilitating the community of practice. I admired Rachel's knowledge and application of early years research and service design" (Funder representative 2019)

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📅 2015 - 2020

Service Design and Research Lead (EYA – A Better Start Southend) | Hybrid

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• Producing and presenting insight and evaluations to drive successful service delivery inc. an innovative communication and language service (7% improvement in children’s outcomes)

• Leading and managing a complex portfolio of innovative and science-based service designs (partnership with Southend Council)

• Successful execution, publication, and implementation of Service Design, and Evaluation Frameworks (and toolkit)

• Active member of the Senior Programme Team, Boards, and governance groups – subject matter expert for service design and research

• Founding Editor of an Early Years Research Bulletin (and accompanying blogs and e-poster content) to support workforce development and evidence-based practice

• Initiating and leading on transformational theories of change and logic modelling for a £40m programme, and portfolio of projects

• Leading on the influential introduction of an outcome’s framework, and formative evaluation strategy, which was recognized as a model of good practice by a major grant funder

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2014 - 2015

📅 Research Lead | Funding Bid Writer (Early Years Alliance – A Better Start Southend) | On-Site

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• Lead researcher, and funding bid writer in a small bid team that were responsible for a successful ten-year lottery funded early year’s programme (value of £40m)

• Co-Leading the mobilisation, implementation, project plans and fund mapping for a complex project portfolio (inc. 30 projects)

• Leading and coordinating parenting intervention research, and service designs

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"I have enjoyed my time on  the placement, and you made me feel so welcome and I knew I could always come to talk to you about anything. You have shown me I could do this" (Student Social Worker 2012)

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"You are clearly creating a strong team and promoting leadership qualities in others, and providing appropriate development opportunities to grow a team" (Level 7 Leadership Practice Assessor)

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"You're leadership has helped resolve cross centre relationships and processes" (Level 7 Leadership Practice Assessor)

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📅 2004 - 2014

Leadership and Management - various (Estuary Housing Association) | On-Site

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• Leadership and management of a large multi-agency staff team and strategy inc. a £250k annual community development budget

• Driving service improvement and quality improvement

• Managing functional performance management (inc. budgets monitoring, and evaluation)

• Transforming satisfaction in service delivery from 70% to 95% (and increasing reach to the Centre by 20%)

• Management and practice supervision of a student social work unit (postgraduate and undergraduate)

• Successful execution and management of successful high value bids and grant applications (inc. commissioning a oral history publication)

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📅 1988 - 2004

Various roles including Higher Executive Officer (HM Customs and Excise) | On-Site

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• Project management in business and statistical analysis departments (inc. Prince2, SaS, and Crystal Reports)

• IT Helpdesk coordination for a Customs Directorate

• Managing Communications (inc. website design MS Frontpage),

• Managing an IT Procurement function

• Managing service improvement and quality management systems (ISO9001), service design and mgt. (ITIL), and user testing for a wide range of IT Projects

• Trained trainer and facilitator (learning design and delivery)