Leadership development strengthens our community for the future
If we want outstanding leadership, we must be equally serious about how we develop it.
Those leading our communal organisations today are being asked to carry a great deal. They are expected to navigate financial pressures, lead organisational change, embrace digital transformation, build healthy cultures, recruit and retain talented people, strengthen safeguarding, manage complex workforce issues and respond to the changing needs of our communities. These are no longer specialist challenges that sit neatly within a particular function. They are part of the everyday reality of leadership.
We should rightly expect a great deal from our leaders. The responsibilities entrusted to them are significant, and the decisions they make affect staff, volunteers, trustees, service users, members and communities. If we want outstanding leadership, however, we must be equally serious about how we develop it.
There is an enormous body of knowledge about leadership in the wider world. Across business, public services, academia, health and care, organisational psychology and the voluntary sector, people have spent decades studying what helps leaders succeed. There are lessons on culture, strategy, finance, people management, governance, transformation, resilience and decision-making. The challenge is finding ways to access it, interpret it and apply it in organisations that often have limited time, capacity and resources.
When I joined the Dangoor Senior Leadership Programme (DSLP) in 2019, I was already leading services and managing teams. The programme opened a window into some of the very best leadership thinking and practice from beyond our community. Through Windsor Leadership, we learned from senior military and police leaders who had led people through crisis, uncertainty and intense public scrutiny. Their experiences offered powerful lessons in judgement, accountability, culture and resilience. What made the programme exceptional was its ability to translate those lessons into the context of Jewish communal leadership, helping participants apply world-class thinking to the challenges facing our own organisations.
Our organisations are mission-led, values-driven and often deeply personal to the communities they serve. We work with trustees, volunteers, professionals, donors and community members. We collaborate across organisational boundaries while balancing limited resources and rising expectations. We live and lead in spaces where identity, tradition and community are closely connected. The challenges we face may differ from those faced by military commanders or police chiefs, but many of the fundamentals of leadership remain the same.
That is why these programmes such as those run by Lead in support of our community matter so much. They bring together the best thinking from the wider leadership world and make it relevant to our context. Just as importantly, they create opportunities to learn alongside peers from across the community, sharing experiences, tackling common challenges and building relationships that may endure and develop long after the programme itself has ended.
I have seen that impact first-hand. Members of my own team have participated in the Adam Science Leadership Programme (ASLP) for emerging leaders and the DSLP, and I have watched them grow in confidence, capability and ambition. I am particularly excited to see colleagues join the new Elevation programme. Investing in middle leaders is essential. They are often closest to teams, services and day-to-day delivery, and strengthening their leadership strengthens the whole organisation.
In 2023, I established the Senior Leadership Alumni Network for graduates of the DSLP and its predecessor, GAMECHANGERS, because I believed the relationships and networks we developed were an essential part of our leadership development and should not end when a programme finishes. I stepped down as Chair late last year, but the network continues to thrive, which says something important about the value leaders place on continued learning, connection and support. Being awarded the Lead Fellowship Award in 2026, alongside the outstanding Sam Clifford (CEO of Jewish Women’s Aid and DSLP 2023-24 alum), was an incredible honour. More than anything, it reinforces my belief that leadership is an ongoing commitment to learn, reflect and improve, and I look forward to continuing that journey while supporting the development of others as part of my role as a Fellow.
Leadership development is one of the ways we strengthen our community for the future. The JLC’s programmes help ensure that leaders are not left to navigate increasingly complex challenges alone. Instead, they are equipped, challenged and supported to lead with the wisdom, skill and confidence that our community deserves.
Jamie Field is Head of Change at Jewish Care and Chair of Resource, the Jewish community’s dedicated employment support organisation