The Wallich is a leading homelessness charity in Wales dedicated to preventing and ending homelessness. Established in 1978, its people—both service users and staff—are at the core of what it does. Its highly skilled staff of over 460 employees, 40 relief workers, and a growing team of volunteers support over 10,000 people across Wales.
Context.
As an open-minded and consultative organisation, the trustees sought an individual who would uphold the organisational values, ambitions, and quality focus, providing strong governance and clear leadership, vision, and strategic direction to The Wallich as they continued to strive to achieve their goals and objectives.
“Peridot were a brilliant organisation to work with. The recruitment of a new Chief Executive is always a period of uncertainty, and there is a great deal of pressure on the Board to get it right. I found the process helpful, and in particular, the gentle challenge and nudges that we got from our Peridot colleague when we found ourselves stuck or overwhelmed. They always balanced well the need to let us make the decisions with offering helpful input, and they were able to share their experience at the right times. Overall, they sat with our uncertainty, listened clearly to our needs, and worked hard to find the right fit for our organisation.”
Feedback from the Chair
Brief.
The CEO role offered an exciting opportunity to lead, influence, and encourage participation and innovation across a wide range of stakeholders, leading The Wallich to become the most impactful homelessness charity in Wales.
The new CEO must be a collaborative leader, skilled in working effectively and confidently across a broad range of stakeholders. As an ambassador of The Wallich, they needed to be an advocate and compelling communicator, pushing boundaries for service users and staff and galvanising stakeholders, commissioners, strategic partners and policy makers.
They would need strong commercial acumen and the ability to horizon scan to grow and develop business opportunities and strategic partnerships. Adept at networking, they must be comfortable to lead in conversations at government level on housing and homeless solutions in Wales and beyond.
They must understand the complexities of homelessness and addiction and the lived experiences of those affected. It had to be a leader who shared their values, had vision to work alongside vulnerable people and staff to continue to build on all that they’d achieved. Most importantly, they must be a can-do, inclusive and enabling individual; someone open to embracing new ideas and comfortable in taking risks.
The Wallich engaged Peridot Partners to find senior leaders who could balance advocacy, stakeholder engagement, partnership building, income generation, influencing, and innovative thinking and, importantly, bring the resilience and passion to lead the organisation forward.
Process.
Our recruitment campaign was designed to attract inclusive and collaborative leaders, and our targeted search focused on candidates from a variety of relevant backgrounds.
During our engagement, we assessed suitability around values and fit, so when presenting the longlist of final candidates, we highlighted candidates who met these criteria, as well as those with a clear strategic vision and the ability to translate passion into measurable impact.
As always, diversity played a key factor in our search. We encouraged applicants with direct or transferable skills and supported those who also had lived experience. The board was keen to support those stepping up into their first CEO role, so the candidate experience had to be inclusive and fully supportive.
“Clare was incredibly supportive. It felt like I had a mentor by my side throughout the process.”
Feedback from an unsuccessful candidate
Outcome.
We had a hugely positive response to our campaign and The Wallich’s work, and we were delighted to present the board with a strong field of candidates from diverse backgrounds who met the brief.
Our final interview shortlist included:
- A candidate with over 25 years in homelessness sector, most recently as the Head of Services at a national homelessness charity.
- A CEO of an advocacy charity and a career spanning 20 years working with disadvantaged people.
- A senior Welsh government researcher and previous Head of campaigns for a national homelessness charity.
The successful candidate was a collaborative and transformational leader with over 20 years of experience in the charity sector, a passion for equality, inclusion, and social justice, and a track record of change management, strategy development, people leadership, and service delivery.
She is experienced in operating nationally (and internationally), collaboratively working with sector stakeholders and Government departments/decision makers to influence policy, all of which means she is well placed to lead The Wallich into the next phase of its continued success.
“I’ve worked with numerous recruiters but found the interaction with Clare very different. She took a personal interest in me and was extremely helpful and supportive. I really warmed to her and her approach and would recommend her and Peridot to others. She gave me confidence throughout the process. Thank you, Clare!”
Feedback from the successfully appointed Chief Executive Officer
Clare Chesworth is a Managing Consultant for our Not for Profit Practice. Clare is passionate about recruiting executive and board leaders for organisations tackling homelessness. With an empathetic and driven approach, Clare can find the right leaders to suit your mission. If you’d like to get in touch with her, you can connect with Clare on Linkedin or send her an email.
