Defining and embedding great leadership at United Welsh.
United Welsh wanted a clear, shared picture of what “great leadership” looks like across their organisation, and a development programme that would help managers bring those behaviours to life every day.
Working closely with the Executive team, Managers, and People teams, we helped them build that clarity and turn it into action.
Our Approach
1. Start with a shared purpose
We worked with the Executive Team to define a purpose statement that encapsulated the role of a manager at United Welsh – the impact they have, the outcomes they shape, and the behaviours that make the biggest difference.
This created a simple, organisation-wide benchmark for what “great” leadership looks like.
2. Listen to managers
Through a series of discovery workshops, managers explored:
- The leadership reputation they want to build
- What motivates them
- The qualities they value in outstanding managers
Their language and insights formed the foundation of a behavioural framework.
3. Build a practical behaviour framework
From these workshops, we distilled seven core areas of effective management, each with clear, observable behaviours.
The framework became a tool managers could recognise themselves in, grounded in their reality, not generic leadership theory.
4. Bring the behaviours to life
The framework shaped every part of the Seeds to Lead development programme.
We co-designed and delivered practical workshops focused on:
- Self-awareness and personal impact
- Effective communication and meetings
- Emotional intelligence
- Managing change and uncertainty
Mixed cohorts supported collaboration, consistency, and peer learning across the organisation, alongside internally delivered modules that brought United Welsh’s revised policies and processes to life.
5. Embed, not just train
The framework is used to guide conversations, reflection and development. It is used as a way to measure behaviour change over time, ensuring the programme delivers real, lasting impact.
Impact
In its first year, 68 leaders took part, and the programme has already helped shape a more supportive, connected working environment.
“It’s been profound for me personally and professionally…. I’ve learned a lot about myself: how I communicate and how I deal with things”
The Seeds to Lead programme was grounded in the 3C’s – confidence, collaboration, and consistency. By gaining a deeper understanding of the processes that support performance, alongside the development of behavioural skills to boost leadership confidence, the team now report:
- Increased management ability and consistency
- Strengthened collaboration across departments
- Improved manager self-awareness and team impact
- The ability to provide better outcomes for teams and tenants
Managers are clearer about what great leadership looks like, and how to show it every day.
“I found it incredibly valuable having time to actually pause and thing about what you’re doing”
Award Recognition
The work has been recognised nationally, winning the Welsh Housing Award for Excellence in Professionalism, Learning and Development (2025).
The judges highlighted the programme’s role in:
- Embedding professional standards
- Creating meaningful development opportunities
- Delivering better outcomes for tenants
- Supporting an inclusive, engaging workplace
Why it matters
United Welsh now have:
- A leadership behavioural blueprint designed by their people
- Managers who understand their impact
- A culture where leadership behaviours drive performance and wellbeing
- A clear development pathway for current and future leaders
Nicola Beynon, Head of People Services at United Welsh, said: “We were really pleased with Insight HRC’s support with our Seeds to Lead management development programme. They have a strong ability to turn theory into engaging, practical workshops that connected well with our managers.
Their input complemented the People Team’s work and added real depth to the programme. The partnership worked really well, with Insight feeling like an extension of our own in-house team.
The delivery team are easy to work with: great company, knowledgeable and entirely professional”
For any housing association, or any organisation aiming to strengthen its leadership culture, this approach provides a practical, proven way to build confident leaders who make a real difference.