Making Transformation Happen with Donna Cezair

The HIP: The Housing Industry Podcast

True transformation doesn’t happen overnight. It takes time, and it takes a strong culture. In this episode, Donna Cezair, Chief Executive at Worthing Homes joins us to talk about transformation and change management and her journey into the sector.
Donna has taken on multiple CEO roles, including her role at First Choice Homes Oldham which she took on during the pandemic. We speak to her about the challenges she faced as a new chief executive during this time.
We speak about her work with Worthing Homes and the transformation she’s overseen for the organisation. We dive deep into culture and discuss what good and bad culture look and feel like to leaders, colleagues and customers. Remote working can leave colleagues feeling isolated if it’s not done right. Donna gives her thoughts on how to ensure colleagues feel valued while remote working.
Donna gives her thoughts on the skills required to be a CEO vs. other leadership roles. She also gives her thoughts on how we can attract more talent into the sector, and what needs to change if we are to solve the housing crisis.
In this episode, we cover:

• What does true transformation look like?
• How Donna overcame the challenge of stepping into a chief executive role during the pandemic.
• How to keep culture and people feeling valued during remote working.
• The skills required to be a CEO.
• What do good and bad culture look and feel like?
• How to get the most out of a team’s diverse skillsets.
• Non-exec roles and the benefits for leaders stepping into them.
• What would Donna change to bring us closer to solving the housing crisis?