Unite with us to fight the biggest health and social care issue of our time

Become our next CEO

Welcome from Stephen Hill Chair of the Board of trustees

If you’re reading this, then you’ve already taken the first step towards joining the fight against the biggest health and social care issue of our time.

As Chair of the Board of Trustees I believe you’ve made an excellent decision. You may already know about the ground-breaking work we do, but if not, the following pages should inspire you to apply for the role.

Since I joined, my overriding experience of the Society is one of ambition. This is an ambition equally matched with credibility, ability, passion and commitment.

We get itWe listen, every day, to people with dementia. They are involved in all that we do; they speak on our behalf; they influence our recruitment; you’ll meet them in our offices and see and feel their influence in everything we do.

We are unitedWe know that the only way we will win this fight is to build the most expansive, diverse, society-wide army of people, communities, businesses and influential bodies, to unite our skills and expertise to beat this terrible disease.

We will do itOur results speak for themselves. This year we have seen 9% year on year fundraising income growth and secured a reference to Dementia Connect in the NHS England Long Term Plan

Dementia can devastate lives. For someone with the condition, and their family and friends, dementia means the plans you made, and the future you thought you had, will be radically different. But we hope to create a society where those affected by dementia are supported and able to live as full a life as possible without prejudice.

Our current strategy promises that: we will offer support to every person who needs our help; we will champion the rights of people with dementia to ensure they are included and treated equally; we will deliver world class research that improves care and prevention until the day we find a cure.

This year we celebrate our 40th anniversary. Since our foundation, we have brought a barely known disease out of the shadows - driving changes in policy, providing thousands of direct services, becoming the key charity partner to Government and the NHS in England, transforming the understanding of dementia across the UK, securing 3 million Dementia Friends and over 400 Dementia Friendly Communities, becoming the second biggest investor in dementia research in the world, and raising millions to fund our work.

We’re looking for an inspirational CEO to take the baton from our current CEO, Jeremy Hughes CBE, and build on the exceptional results he has delivered over the past 10 years.

If you think you have the passion, talent and experience to take on this challenge, we would love to hear from you.

Stephen Hill Chair, Board of trustees.

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Why we exist Dementia is the UK’s biggest killer. In the UK someone develops it every three minutes and there’s currently no cure.

Our vision is: a world without dementia. And our mission is: to transform the landscape of dementia forever. Until the day we find a cure, we will strive to create a society where those affected by dementia are supported and accepted, able to live in their community without fear or prejudice.

Alzheimer’s Society is the largest and most influential dementia charity in the UK. We are the only UK charity that

campaigns for change,

funds research to find a cure and improve care and

provides support to people living with dementia today.

We are led by people affected by dementia: working with them, standing beside them and being informed and inspired by what they do. People with dementia and their carers are at the heart of how we make decisions and design our services.

By better understanding people’s experiences at every stage of dementia we enable people to have a choice and a voice in decisions that affect their lives. Helping them to receive the care they need, remain active in their local communities, actively shape research into dementia and to be heard by decision makers in the health and social care system.

‘Dementia doesn’t define you. For dad it’s about enjoying his life. It’s about not being put in a box. It’s about setting goals and having dreams and doing different things. Alzheimer’s Society have helped support dad in life changes and decisions that he’s made, to make life better for himself.’Denise, daughter of Allen who is living with dementia

Denise and Allen

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What we doWe’re in an unrivalled influencing position, with access to the right people, conversations and partners to ensure the voices and rights of people with dementia are heard – and acted on. The media profile we have created around dementia is changing the way the public responds to this cruel condition.

We’re using this momentum to make remarkable progress through our five-year strategy ‘The new deal on dementia’ (2017-2022), which is on track to deliver real and lasting improvements to the lives of the people we serve.

One of the most exciting characteristics of Alzheimer’s Society is the combined impact we can have by transforming dementia support, societal change, and research. Only we can do this.

‘Alzheimer’s Society have been so supportive to us since Raymond was diagnosed. Initially, we didn’t know what we were doing or where to go, and now we know we always have support when we need it. They’ve helped Raymond with all the aids to help around the house and I’ve learned so much by going to the carers’ support group. Anytime you need anything, Alzheimer’s Society are always there for you.’Cynthia, wife of Raymond James

Raymond

Support

We continue to lead the way in the reach and quality of dementia support that people affected by dementia can access. Last year alone:

our local services helped more than 100,000 people

42,000 people were supported by our Helpline

60,000 used Talking Point, our online forum

our website attracted 11 million views.

Now we want to extend our scope. Our exciting new service model: Dementia Connect was designed in consultation with people affected by dementia, they told us what mattered to them. This this new service we will offer consistent support to everyone affected by dementia, without losing the personal touch and care the Society is known for. This will help people remain independent for longer, safe in the knowledge that we’ll be there for them whenever they need us.

The rollout of Dementia Connect has started and we’re proud of the success we’ve already seen, we’ve reached 8,500 new service users, 98% of users felt their needs were understood and commissioners across the UK showing huge interest to bring in Dementia Connect.

Central to our new offer is our Side by Side service. Through Side by Side we already enable over 1,000 isolated people living with dementia to remain, or become, more active and do the things they love. We achieve this by matching them to a trained and committed volunteer

Music is proven to be beneficial for people with dementia, so we are proud of our unique Singing for the Brain services which take place in communities across the UK. We’re currently piloting expanding this significantly over the coming years through partnership models.

‘Thank you for finding Dean’ is the main response we hear from Arthur Childs and his wife Jennifer. Dean has been Arthur’s Side by Side volunteer since October 2017. Together they go to Arthur’s local pub in Stockwell where they meet up with some of Arthur’s friends and enjoy a few rounds of dominoes. They have developed a strong bond and become firm friends. Jennifer tells us how Dean is a huge support for Arthur, and herself: ‘Arthur left the house on his own when I was at work and no-one knew where he

was. He was found in the street badly bruised, but he couldn’t explain why and had to spend the night in hospital. I want to be his full-time carer, but I was only offered seven hours in terms of care allowance, which isn’t enough to make ends meet. So Arthur spends hours on his own during the day. My health is suffering and I find it difficult to sleep because I worry about Arthur constantly. Knowing Dean is with him when I am at work helps put my mind at rest. He’s like one of the family now.’

Arthur

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‘I hope my story will help other people affected by dementia. Since my husband Scott and I went public with my diagnosis of Alzheimer’s disease last year, we’ve been overwhelmed by the reaction and all the messages of support we have received. It’s made us realise that there are so many people going through the same thing. I hope that by sharing my story, we can encourage more people to talk openly about dementia and support much needed research.’

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Society Health and social care is in crisis in the UK, a lack of understanding about dementia and how urgent the situation is means people with dementia trying are to find their way through the maze without the support they desperately need – and deserve.

We’re successfully influencing and driving government policy on dementia. Our focus on the Fix Dementia Care campaign this year resulted in significant front page media coverage and a partnership with the Daily Mail, we also secured parliamentary support from all parties in the House and the commitment from the current PM to ‘fix social care once and for all’ on his first day in office. We’re campaigning nationally and locally to get dementia to the top of the agenda in government. We are calling on the Department of Health and Social Care and NHS England to invest in tackling the social care crisis to give people with dementia a fair deal.

People with dementia regularly share with us that they want to continue to live independent lives, doing what they enjoy. Our positive social movements, including Dementia Friends and Dementia Friendly Communities, are growing across the UK and we’re increasingly being asked to share our expertise on the world stage.

Dame Barbara Windsor and her husband Scott Mitchell

ResearchDementia is a condition of the brain, we know that research will help us beat it – and provide better care for the people living with the condition now.

We are a major funder of dementia research, globally. We’re committed to spending at least £150 million on research over the next decade. We fund research into the cause, care, diagnosis, cure and prevention of all forms of dementia.

We’re a founding funder of the UK Dementia Research Institute bringing together over 400 scientists to study underlying causes and developing treatments. We support researchers at all stages of their careers from undergraduate to professor, and have a grants programme in excess of £30m focused on delivering human-relevant research.

Alzheimer’s Society leads research in to care and services of people with dementia. Our network of national Centres of Excellence generates best evidence, which we ensure is translated into tangible policy changes and services. Our innovation programme sets about delivering new solutions that address real world needs of people affected by dementia and accelerating the adoption of these, harnessing technologies to improve outcomes for those most in need.

At the heart of our research programme are people affected by dementia, our dedicated network of over 350 volunteers all with personal experience of dementia. We’re committed to research that has the greatest impact and most benefit both in the short term and long term.

‘We were on the interview panel for the UK DRI Director and were impressed by the calibre of all candidates. This made us realise Alzheimer’s Society and the UK DRI are attracting the best international minds to co-operate in finding a cure, prevention and treatments for dementias and as members of Alzheimer’s Society network, we ensured the chosen candidate was both able and willing to communicate effectively with the interested general public.’

Paul and Kathy research network volunteers

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Fundraising

Raising the funds to ‘do what we do’ it is essential to everyone at the Society, and a fundamental part of the CEO’s role.

We have an incredible award winning fundraising directorate. Last year our total income reached £117.9m. Despite challenging economic conditions, the continued support and generosity of our supporters helped to bring in over £84 million through fundraising and trading activities, a 9% increase on the previous year compared to a sector average of 4%.

We secure the support of national and international corporate partners, millions of individual donors, legacies and partnerships each year.

We can’t fail to mention our stand-out mass-participation events, including the Dementia Revolution: in partnership with Alzheimer’s Research UK, over 1,500 Dementia Revolution runners ran the London Marathon 2019 raising a staggering £4 million and making us the most successful charity partnership Virgin Money has ever had. Thousands of people support us every year through Cupcake Day, Elf Day, Memory Walks, Trek 26… and more.

How we do it We know every organisation says this: but our people are truly exceptional. We have 2,000 employees and more than 8,000 volunteers who are dedicated to making a difference for people affected by dementia.

How it ‘feels to be part of the Society’, and the fact that there’s ‘a certain buzz about the place’, is regularly mentioned by the people who work and volunteer here, and by our partners, visitors and stakeholders.

We’re led by our values: we get it, we are united and we will do it! And we take our culture seriously. We know that a strong, healthy culture is as important to delivering the results we’ve promised to people with dementia, as our plans and activities. There are a lot of things we’re great at, and others we want to improve.

We’re actively and continuously working on engagement, ambassadorship, career development, diversity, well-being, leadership, management – and everything else that goes into creating a culture that enables our people and the Society to thrive.

Our volunteers are the jewel in our crown. We simply couldn’t do what we do without them. When we refer to our people – we mean our volunteers and employees, we’re all part of the same team. Our new strategy requires a significant growth in the number of volunteers we need. So recruiting, training, engaging and developing volunteers is a priority for us over the coming years.

Our most recent people engagement survey results speak for themselves…

… with a strong completion rate of

75%8

of our employees are proud to work here

of employees reported that they are willing to put in extra effort

85% 89%

Who we’re looking forThe successful candidate will be driven to make a difference for people affected by dementia. They’ll be a highly-experienced, visionary leader able to create transformational change and impact for people with dementia. They’ll display relaxed confidence with great self awareness and the ability to lead and inspire others, and will be a great ambassador for the Society’s cause.

Experience:1. Excellent all round leadership skills demonstrated from leading a similarly sized,

complex and growing national organisation.

2. Significant experience of influencing in a range of environments affecting social and political change and developing stakeholder, partner and supporter engagement. Ideally holding a range of relationships and access to networks.

3. Track record of ensuring efficiency in running an organisation of comparative scale delivering high quality results to large volumes of customers.

4. Strategic leadership and prior organisational experience of delivering transformational growth for an organisation alongside cultural development activity, taking an organisation from a solid platform to the next phase of growth.

5. Great partnership mind-set and experience with the ambition and willingness to partner with others including charities, corporate organisation and health, social care and other bodies.

6. A first rate communicator, with substantial experience in the national media and on a variety of platforms

7. Deep understanding and experience of building and maintaining good governance and Board relationships, and in sharing the external and sometimes high profile activity.

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United against dementia

Knowledge and Skills:1. A skilled leader with the ability to tailor leadership techniques and styles to develop high

performing / high impact leaders and leadership teams. Experience in growing talent and role modelling inspirational, values driven leadership.

2. Exceptional business and financial acumen and track record of delivering results with a sound financial basis

3. The ability to leverage external relationships and every opportunity to the advantage of people affected by dementia.

4. Strong written and verbal communication skills , able to present information persuasively and influence a range of stakeholders

5. Comfortable with working at pace, under pressure, and with changing and complex information and external influences and environment.

6. Able to negotiate complex issues and secure buy in at all levels by presenting arguments logically and clearly. Able to facilitate open discussions and collaboration, to deliver results.

7. Strategic thinker with excellent analytical skills, able to quickly assimilate information and draw accurate conclusions. Demonstrating sound judgement, and decisive when required.

8. Commercial skills including development and managing income generation

Personal attributes:1. An authentic leader, an intellectual pragmatist and character and credibility to inspire

and influence a range of audiences

2. Purpose driven, with strong social values and the desire to make a positive difference

3. Strong emotional intelligence and people skills

4. High personal integrity and a ‘servant leader’ focussing on empowering and enabling others.

5. Strong resilience to lead through a complex and uncertain external environment, overcoming barriers with a solutions focused approach

6. Collaborative, open, engaging and responsive.

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How to applySaxton Bampfylde Ltd is acting as an employment agency advisor to Alzheimer’s Society on this appointment.

Candidates should apply for this role through our website at www.saxbam.com/appointments, using code UAGXC

Click on the ‘apply’ button and follow the instructions to upload a CV and cover letter.

The closing date for applications is 22 October 2019

GDPR personal data notice

According to GDPR guidelines, we are only able to process your Sensitive Personal Data (racial or ethnic origin, political opinions, religious or philosophical beliefs, trade union membership, genetic data, biometric data, health, sex life, or sexual orientation) with your express consent. You will be asked to complete a consent form when you apply and please do not include any Sensitive Personal Data within your CV (although this can be included in your covering letter if you wish to do so), remembering also not to include contact details for referees without their prior agreement.

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