What good awarding organisation leadership looks like

What effective awarding leadership looks like

As my colleague Kristina Preston, Head of Awarding, Assessment and Professional Education Appointments at Peridot Partners, puts it:

“After more than a decade recruiting leaders in awarding and assessment, I’ve found the best leaders don’t just manage — they inspire. They lead by example, embrace change and innovation, and empower their teams to do the same. They build trust with their boards through credibility and evidence, collaborate with external peers in competitive harmony, and balance quality, compliance and commercial priorities with skill. Above all, they keep learners at the heart of every decision, recognising the social impact of our sector and the responsibility that comes with it.”

From what I’ve seen and learned about strong awarding organisation leadership, a few qualities stand out:

1. Leading with strategy and care

Effective leaders understand the frameworks, compliance and quality demands that shape this sector, but they also remember why the work matters. They connect rigour with purpose, ensuring the systems behind qualifications ultimately serve people and opportunity.

I recently had a conversation with James Stockdale, Chair of the OCN London Board of Trustees. He highlighted the importance of balancing operational, financial, technological and regulatory responsibilities, while building trusted relationships across the sector:

“Leadership of an awarding organisation requires command of operational, financial, technological and constantly evolving regulatory responsibilities, paired with rigorous expertise in assessment and an unwavering commitment to quality. Those qualities enable leaders to forge strategic, trusted relationships with regulators, employers, learners and policymakers — a necessity in the current AO environment.”

We also discussed how engaging with stakeholders is vital:

“Responding to changes that are happening to you, and not necessarily by you, makes it all the more important to be talking to the people who are making the decisions about the sector.”

James also reflected on the sector’s cautious approach to AI and digitisation. He noted that good leaders lead from the front, aren’t afraid of trial and error and ensure that awarding organisations mirror the evolving ways learners take in knowledge.

2. Leading with purpose for learners

The leaders I’ve met have a clear sense of purpose that goes beyond qualifications. They care deeply about fairness, accessibility, and social mobility — values that are increasingly vital in how awarding and assessment organisations define their impact.

Fabienne Bailey, CEO of Gateway Qualifications, spoke with me about the qualities she values in leaders:

“Our work is about more than qualifications; it’s about creating opportunity. The leaders who make the biggest difference are those who lead with integrity, empathy and a deep understanding of the learners and communities they serve.”

3. Working with others to strengthen awarding leadership

No awarding organisation operates in isolation. The strongest leaders look outward, building partnerships with training providers, professional bodies and employers to ensure qualifications stay relevant and meaningful.

Fabienne also reflected on the importance of learning from others:

“I’ve learned so much from my peers in this sector; not just other CEOs but other senior leaders who have helped to shape this sector over the years. The one constant is change, and, as our Head of Transformation says, ‘Agility is the new stability!’ We need to be agile to respond to the ever-changing policy landscape and resilient enough to overcome the challenges this brings. Build strong teams with people who think differently to you — accept professional challenge and always learn from each other. If you’re not an expert in regulation, you need someone in your senior leadership team who is.”

4. Understanding the sector’s shared purpose

Authenticity and integrity are vital in any leadership role, but especially in a sector built on trust, standards and fairness. The most effective leaders understand that while competition exists, collaboration and shared purpose create greater, longer-lasting impact.

In a niche sector where there is strong competition between awarding organisations, it’s critical that they collaborate and communicate for the benefit of their customers and learners, but also for the sector as a whole.

Where reform and change are rife, AOs need to stand together to raise concerns at a policy level and influence on behalf of the employers and industries they support through qualifications and learning opportunities.

Whether that be through self-instigated partnerships as well as part of wider sector collaboration, i.e. through consultations, regulators and of course trade associations and professional bodies such as FAB.

Fabienne highlighted this balance between competition and collaboration:

“Whilst the awarding and assessment sector is a competitive environment, there is plenty of opportunity for us all, but no room for unscrupulous behaviours. Strong leaders support each other and look to collaborate where we can, not drag others down. Effective leadership drives a values-based approach to business and education, and skills customers deem this more and more important in working with us. Effective leaders in this sector understand the importance of customer loyalty to the business and the brand. Prioritising the customer experience is key.”

5. Growing people through supportive leadership

Awarding organisations depend on experienced, committed teams, and great leaders know how to nurture them. They see leadership as something shared, not held. By developing others, they build capability and sustainability for the long term.

Read more: Awarding Bodies: Insights from the Experts – Candace Miller