Ep 11. Debra Allcock Tyler, CEO Directory of Social Change: Leadership of Courage and Hope

“You learn to be courageous by stepping out of your comfort zone; being absolutely terrified and doing it anyway… courage is about being beaten back but then taking a step forward.”Debra Allcock Tyler is the CEO of the Directory of Social Change, an organisation that provides resources, training and support to enable all charities to be successful. In this episode we discuss the key opportunities and risks ahead for the charity sector in 2021. Debra provides some practical advice for leaders to thrive through the ongoing crisis; as well as lessons learned from the pandemic that we should carry forward.Debra reflects on her own career journey and shares the fundamental skills that she thinks are vital to being a good leader: courage, resilience and vision. A passionate advocate for the voluntary sector, Debra affirms that if you are connected to the Vision and Mission of an organisation, then anything is possible. Recorded January 2021.Guest Biography Debra Allcock Tyler has been the Chief Executive of the Directory of Social Change (DSC) since 2001. She is a renowned authority in the field of leadership and governance in civil society, an internationally published author of several books, and writes ‘The Last Word’ column for Third Sector magazine.Debra is a Trustee of In Kind Direct, the Berkshire Community Foundation, Vice-President of the Soldiering On Awards, and an Ambassador for women and girls at risk of or affected by female genital mutilation and other harmful practices for the Africa Advocacy Foundation (AAF). She was the founder Chair of the Small Charities Coalition and served as a member of the Charity Commission’s SORP Committee.After a brief stint in the private sector, Debra has spent most of her career in the charity sector. Following a short period as a management consultant in her 20s, she moved into leadership roles covering a range of functions including campaigning, policy development, sales, product development, media relations and training.Debra has a degree in psychology, is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts and a member of the Royal Institution. She admits to being a slave to a basset hound called Arthur.Linkshttps://www.dsc.org.uk