My name is Lesley Wright & I’m a Strategic Account Manager in the Intermediary sector for LV= GI. My history I joined Legal & General Insurance at age 18, back in 1997, straight out of college and wanted a ‘proper job’. I’ve always been keen on progression, I’ve had a range of job roles throughout my career, Team Leader, Trainer, Service Delivery Manager, Claims Supplier Account Manager, New Business Lead with my most recent role being Intermediary Strategic Account Manager. My career has always run parallel to my life, being a wife, a homeowner, a mother and other entrepreneurial ventures outside of insurance, I even own a butchers shop. My journey - Being black at work I've always remained true to myself, and I've discovered that developing my personal brand has been crucial to my success. This has been important to me as a black female, my “style” is often different to my audience, being understood has been difficult at times. I’m a confident person and many times my passion has been mistaken as aggression, especially as I gesticulate alot and have long nails. When I’m quiet this has been mistaken as lack of confidence, rather than me giving others a chance to speak and be heard. There have been many instances where I’ve been given feedback… from someone that doesn’t look like me, and whilst I have taken feedback on board, I do find myself “filtering” this feedback, feedback helps me see what “they” have observed so that I can alter my approach in the future, should I choose to. At times feedback can feel demotivating, they’ll never understand the way I felt or why I acted a particular way – they’ve never lived in my shoes. I’ve always felt that as a black woman I’ve had to work twice as hard to be recognised, adapting my approach in order not to be perceived as the “angry black woman” stereotype that is unfortunately one of the many labels used for black women. Back in the late 90s, I observed that there were no people that “looked like me” in senior positions. I set myself an ambition to be the first black Service Delivery Manager for whole of the Household Claims Department. I’m proud to say that I achieved this in 2007. It was important for me to ensure that I used this senior platform to create an environment and educate others at every level on the struggles that black people face in this corporate arena. I made sure that my team leader group was very diverse, white, black, Asian, male, female, straight & gay, job-sharing mothers etc. I Celebrating Women's History Month in the UK: Reflecting on the past and embracing the future 19 MORTGAGE NEWSLETTER Lesley Wright Strategic Account Manager LV= General Insurance
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy MjI4MjU4NQ==