Insights from Nicki Clegg: Transitioning to Non-Executive Leadership in Social Housing

As part of our recent ‘Advice for First-Time Non-Executive Directors’ series, Eliot Jeffries, Senior Associate at Neemar Search, recently interviewed Nicki Clegg, newly appointed Non-Executive Director at Great Places Housing Group. Nicki Clegg, who joined Great Places in March 2024 in her first Non-Executive (NED) role within social housing, shares insights on her transition to non-executive leadership, why social housing, and guidance for aspiring NEDs.

• Could you tell me a little bit about your background and professional experience?

I’ve over twenty years’ experience leading and advising on technology strategy and business transformation across numerous sectors including energy, legal and financial services, information management, and in the public sector, working with Boards to identify strategic opportunities from technology and then building and leading teams to deliver technology and data-enabled business transformations. My experience navigating complex stakeholder landscapes including highly regulated environments is very useful for a role in the social housing sector. 

• You joined Great Places as a new board member in March 2024. What attracted you to join the social housing sector?

Sadly there is an ever-increasing number of citizens who do not have the means to access, understand, or navigate the services they so desperately need, including affordable social housing. Sustainable, affordable, high quality social housing is a crucial part of creating an equitable and inclusive society and protecting our planet. Everyone deserves a place they can call home that supports their individual needs, within their means, and helps create the conditions in which they have an opportunity to flourish. To be part of an organisation, in my local region, that is helping to solve these key challenges was a very exciting opportunity I did not want to miss.  

• Since joining in March, what have been your key priorities as a member of the board?

I guess first and foremost it’s been about getting up to speed in a new sector, getting to know the other Board members, and the Executive team. Fortunately there has been a lot of support from Great Places through their Board induction sessions, away days, stock tours, deep dive topic sessions, and through providing me access to industry information for example through National Housing Federation (NHF) webinars, magazines like Inside Housing, and attending the Housing 2024 conference.  I also got a Board buddy and was very lucky to get Mervyn, the Chair, who is just brilliant and has given me a lot of support. 

But also it is like being thrown in at the deep end – nothing stops or slows down just because there is a new Board member. We’ve had a regulatory inspection, some big developments to approve, a new corporate plan to contribute to and approve. So, I am very grateful to my Board buddy and other Board members and members of the Executive team for their willingness to answer all my questions. 

• How do you feel your “out of sector” experience has benefited you in your role at Great Places? 

Having a Board with a wide range of experience and skills is something Great Places has been very careful to curate. There was a recognition that with the need for inclusive services with customers at their heart, the diversity of needs of our customers, all the changes to regulation, and so on, that data and technology were going to be a crucial part of delivering our strategy and that looking ‘out of sector’ would bring new ways of approaching things, new insights, new experiences, constructive challenge, innovation. So my career experience, combined with my alignment to the values of Great Places, was fortunately for me, just what they were looking for.  

• In your opinion, what are the key traits you need to have to be a successful NED in social housing?

A heartfelt desire to make a difference to customers as individuals, to really want to create places where anyone can thrive and have more control over their own lives. A strong curiosity about the lived experiences of people. A willingness to ask questions, share knowledge, and accept accountability, but also to listen and learn from the huge experience of colleagues. 

• What has been your biggest learning curve for you since joining the sector in a Non-Exec capacity? 

 The changing regulatory environment! Without a doubt. Nothing is static at the moment, and the expectation of the regulator around Board members’ knowledge of the detail of operations is much higher than I had expected. So my first 6 months has required more time than I had anticipated. However, as I mentioned earlier, the induction support Great Places put in place has been brilliant. Having Mervyn there to answer my daft questions is a great support. And just the kindness and willingness of colleagues to give up their time to help me get up to speed I can’t thank them enough. 

• Do you have any final pieces of advice for candidates interested in taking on their first NED role in social housing?

Go for it! If you have a passion for making a difference then I can’t think of a better sector to be part of. But do be prepared for that initial learning curve – make the time and take the opportunity to immerse yourself through stock tours, topic deep dives, industry events, etc. 

If you're interested in learning more about becoming a first-time non-executive and discussing what steps to take to put you in the best position to secure an NED role, please reach out for an informal conversation.