Blog Post: “­My time at the Rank Foundation: Supportive Leadership”

In this blog post, Saana Taussi, Rank’s 2024 Time to Shine Leader and Events and Engagement Officer for the Start Here Programme, reflects on her past year’s journey at Rank, the impact of supportive leadership, and what she’s learned about fostering development in the sector.

I joined The Rank Foundation in January 2024 as an Events and Engagement Officer for the Start Here Programme. Alongside my role, I also took part in Rank’s Time to Shine (T2S) leadership programme. As my time at Rank is coming to an end, I’m reflecting on the impact this role has had on me, and what I’ve learned about leadership in the sector.

I have always been passionate about social justice, and I believe in the power of communities as catalysts for positive change. Before my role at Rank, I was driven to work in a charity, but I was becoming disheartened in my struggle to land my first paid position in the sector.

I had been working in hospitality roles after graduating from university when the Events and Engagement role came up. Reading the job description, the role was exactly what I was looking for, and a statement that stood out to me in the posting was along the lines of: “for someone who feels like they are not using their full potential in their current work”. It summed up how I had been feeling.

As I started my role, I learned that Rank’s ethos of investing in community sector leaders and building networks that improve life is not just an inspiring idea, but it’s reflected in every stage of their work. Having the opportunity to actively take part in that work has been a transformative professional experience for me. My work at Start Here has focused on increasing engagement and offering new learning to the programme’s network of community and sports organisations in Northern Ireland. During my time, I have supported the delivery of events that help programme members build their skillset and create impact in their roles. This has involved getting together with the members to learn and connect, whether at training events, peer-learning sessions, conferences or residentials. I have also worked with organisations and individuals in the programme to share their development stories through case studies.

With 100 organisations taking part in Start Here, I had a lot to wrap my head around at the beginning of my post. The first T2S conference in Leeds was two weeks into my new role and getting together with my fellow leaders who were going through the same stages set the tone of our development journey from early on. T2S connected me with so many likeminded charity professionals and encouraged me to build my confidence in the work that I do. The skills gained during my time in the programme will undoubtedly support me into future endeavours.

In many ways, the development I was going through as a T2S leader mirrored the journeys of our Start Here Programme members in their development. This helped me relate to the incredible group of people taking part in Start Here, and to bring this understanding into my work. Both T2S and Start Here are special in bringing together so many people working in different ways to improve life in their communities and championing their capability as changemakers. Seeing, hearing, and experiencing the impact of these Rank programmes from both the side of participant and deliverer has been the most unique and rewarding part of my time at Rank.

As I’ve prepared for the end of my role at Rank, I recently read over my original job application for the Events and Engagement Officer role. In summing up my motivation for the job, I have written: “Working for the Start Here Programme would give me a unique opportunity to support those in the voluntary and sports organisations who are positively impacting their communities.” Although I couldn’t have known it at the time, my immersive experience of taking part in a leadership programme while encouraging leadership in others has shown me that leadership really is about supporting those around us to succeed. I’m happy to know that I will still be a part of Rank’s supportive Network of charity leaders going forward, and I look forward to the opportunities I will have as a member of this community.

I am grateful to have had the opportunity to fulfil my potential in my work at Rank. I have been especially lucky to do this by working with so many people who are a driving force for good: the facilitators who have collaborated with me in the past year to share impactful learning, our Start Here programme members, my fellow Time to Shine leaders, the Rank team and my wonderful line manager. Thank you to everyone who was a part of my time at The Rank Foundation.