The Security Circle
An IFPOD production for IFPO the very first security podcast called Security Circle. IFPO is the International Foundation for Protection Officers, and is an international security membership body that supports front line security professionals with learning and development, mental Health and wellbeing initiatives.
The Security Circle
EP 135 From the Shadows to the Spotlight: Hayley Elvins on Life After Intelligence
"I spent 10 years living in the shadows — now I stand in the light to lead, and to show others it’s possible."
— Hayley Elvins on the journey from covert roles to visible leadership
Episode Summary:
In this episode of The Security Circle, we sit down with Hayley Elvins — Managing Director of Sloan Risk Group, Director at the Security Institute, and former British intelligence professional. From cadets and covert ops to high-level leadership, Hayley shares her remarkable journey through the world of protection, risk, and intelligence. She reflects on life in the shadows, navigating male-dominated environments, neurodivergence, and how she transitioned from operational secrecy to boardroom strategy. This is an honest, empowering conversation about courage, career pivots, and why saying "yes" to fear can lead to transformation.
BIO
Hayley Elvins, a Chartered Security Professional with a distinguished background in Royal Military Police, Close Protection and Government Intelligence.
Hayley is the founder of Sloane Risk Group, a specialist consultancy delivering covert security programs, security strategy development, executive protection, security and surveillance awareness training, and physical penetration testing for both corporate and ultra-high-net-worth clients. Her operational career began at the age of 21 with the Royal Military Police, quickly advancing to the elite Close Protection Unit, with deployments in Northern Ireland and Bosnia. She later served for a decade as an operational officer in counter-espionage and counter-terrorism within a UK government department. Hayley is recognised as a leader in physical penetration testing, designing complex, large-scale simulations to test the effectiveness of corporate security systems.
As one of just 300 Chartered Security Professionals globally — and one of only 16 women to hold the title — Hayley represents the highest standard of competence and integrity in the field. She serves as a Fellow and Board Member of the Security Institute, and she is the sponsoring director for the AI-NEST and Frontline Special Interest Groups. She is currently assisting with a Cabinet Office-backed initiative to develop a professional register for physical penetration testers.
https://www.linkedin.com/in/hayleyelvinscsyp/
Security Circle ⭕️ is an IFPOD production for IFPO the International Foundation of Protection Officers
If you enjoy the security circle podcast, please like share and comment or even better. Leave us a fab review. We can be found on all podcast platforms. Be sure to subscribe. The security circle every Thursday. We love Thursdays. Hi, I'm Yolanda And welcome to the Security Circle Podcast, produced in association with ifpo, the International Foundation for Protection Officers. This podcast is all about connection, bringing you closer to the greatest minds, boldest thinkers, trailblazers, and change makers across the security industry. Whether you are here to grow your network, spark new ideas, or simply feel more connected to the world of protection and risk, you are in the right place wherever you are listening from. Thank you for being a part of the Security Circle journey..
Yoyo:Well with me today, um, I, in fact, before I even mentioned this, this. This lovely person. Uh, the number of people who've said to me, you should get this person on the security circle. And that was really why I contacted her. Hayley Elvins, managing director of Sloan Risk Group, director of the security Institute and former British intelligence professional. Hayley, welcome to the security circle podcast. How are you doing? I'm good. Thank you for having me. Well, listen, it seems to me, uh, that like my, my itchy nose was going because the people obviously think you've got some stories to tell, right? I can't think why. Um, but, but starting at Origins and getting all the way to the Security Institute in a leadership role is a heck of a journey. Did you always know that you were destined to sort of be in protective services?
Hayley:Um, yes and no. So I think As a child, I think I'd read everything that Enid Blyton had written by the time I was 12. So I had that real sense of adventure. Yes! Um, and I wanted to run off to an island and live with a dog and fight criminals. Right! And then I was, I was incredibly lucky. Um, I went to a state school in Brighton. But we had, uh, Brighton College, um, I think they must have sponsored us. And we had a combined cadet force, um, so I joined that. I think, I think you probably have to be 12 or 13 to join, um, and that literally was the start of my career trajectory, I think. Um, so yeah, I did cadets. It was, it was all, it was very much army based, but we did a lot of sailing, um, all sorts of things. We did our Duke of Edinburgh's award back in the days where the teachers would literally drop you off on one side of Dartmoor or Snowdonia and pick you up the other side 10 hours later after they'd been in the pub all day. Like, you know, there was no phones, there was no GPS, you just got on with it. Um, and I think that was probably really character building. so from there, yeah, I didn't have any intention of going to college or university. I think the education system was just far too restrictive. I didn't want to be in a box. I did agree with my parents that I would do college, first. I did that. Then I joined the army. I joined the Royal Military Police, and I did that because at that point I knew I wanted to go into Coastal Protection. and I'd done some door work when I was, at college and one of the doormen was ex RMP and he was like, no, you need to go RMP because then you can be a bodyguard. So when I went to the careers office, they said, Oh, no, no, you score too high. You need to go into an office. So we want you to go intelligence core. And I said, no, no, this is what I want to do. And I was incredibly lucky that everything sort of did fall into place for me. I think I was in the right time at the right place to get on a close protection course fairly early in my career. I got on it predominantly because it was supposed to be a guy in my platoon, but he dropped out and there was only a few days to go and my fitness was at a good enough level where they could load me straight on. I didn't need to do the beat up training. So I did that. I then deployed to, Bosnia, on a social protection tour. I then went back to Northern Ireland, did courts and witness protection. By which time the grass was greener, Iraq was busy, the money was good, there was work out there. then I left and went into commercial clothes protection for a couple of years. And in that time, as I was leaving, I had applied to join, My government role. And it just so happened that every time I had an interview, I happened to be in London because we moved all around the world. at that point I was looking after Princess and we just did this tour of London, Paris, New York, Hong Kong, Milan. So I was lucky. I got to go to the interviews, I got the job. So then I did that for 10 years, before setting up my company, by which time I had a lot of experience to use. So. I did know that I wanted to do something along those lines. I've never had a five year plan. I've always been quite flexible and taken, what's the opportunities that have come to me, I suppose. Well, there's a lot to unpack there. And I
Yoyo:have to start off with Enid Blyton because you were describing my own life. Did you identify with George the most by any chance? I did. Yes. See, George was the character that was kind of, even in the day, a little controversial because she was very boyish. Yes. And I was a tomboy, you know, and I was quite happy to go exploring and we'd dump our bikes in the hedgerows in the countryside and we'd go trampling over farmer's land and we'd go exploring and try and find like, you know, bad guys. I don't know what we would have ever done if we found one. and of course I was in Cornwall, so it was all part of my upbringing. I totally get that, where your brain went in terms of escapism and possible, you know, future. And then the Duke of Edinburgh Ward, I failed mine, because I accidentally set fire to our tent. And it was only naivety really, the pals that I were with, they said, no, don't shake that. It's still a light. It's still a light. And because I couldn't see the flame because of the spirits we were burning was so invisible. I just shook it on the grass and into the whole tent just went. But this and they said, yeah, yeah, we can't really pass you. Plus I also went an extra 10 miles on my own in the walkabout that we did. And I was the last one back to camp because I thought I was going the right way and I didn't operate as part of a team. So a lot about myself and that Duke of Edinburgh award, which I think is failing is sometimes good because you don't learn. Great lessons unless you fail and then you kind of think was I supposed to fail? So I learned that lesson. Have you discovered that in your journey?
Hayley:Yeah, I am definitely someone that learns through my mistakes And my son is autistic. My daughter has just been diagnosed with ADHD and Whilst I was having we were having our son diagnosed. I sort of looks at myself and thought I tick all of these boxes. so I ended up going for diagnosis and I was diagnosed autistic. And that's when everything sort of fell into place for me and I thought, oh yeah, all the times I've said really silly things, as in not silly things, but honest things, blunt things. and that sort of made me sort of really reconsider, I suppose, relationships, communication. how I perhaps shouldn't be quite so honest sometimes.
Yoyo:Say it how you see it, Hayley. Look, look, that's clearly, I hear what you're saying there and I'm hearing a little superpower that ultimately, you know, look. There's many of us, certainly I'm former British police, but there's many of us that have looked at the test to get into MI5, for example, and come away and gone, flip a neck. Um, I, you know, that question, it goes a little bit like this. I'm going to hash it up properly, but it's like Bob and Derek went to the restaurant. They met Sally and Jane, Jane and Peter went to the toilet at 11 o'clock and then they bumped into Mike and Bob. And I'm, and I'm, and already my head's like, They say something like, what was the second item on the menu? So that, that's kind of like the questioning style when I applied and I thought, Oh no, this isn't for me. I'm not that bright. I prefer to manifest my intelligence in other ways. Clearly looking at how you described your journey, you've excelled in everything you've done. Clearly that your fitness was never an issue. Your aptitude was never an issue. Opportunities came your way because you were identified as being smart.
Hayley:Yeah, I think so. I think, um, I've never really said no, you know, if an opportunity has come along. If, even if it's something, actually, if it's something that scares me, I'm more likely to say yes. and an example of that is, is sort of speaking at events. It terrifies me to stand up and talk in front of an audience. I mean, I spent 10 years living in the shadows, literally. And then, you know, suddenly having to sell myself and talk to people, that's terrifying. So yes, I'll do it because I need to fight that fear.
Yoyo:Yeah, and it's good. You seem to have a kind of appetite for fighting fear and a lot of people in security and in whatever part of security they're in. I think we're very similar. We identify with that trait. But look, it is a relief. to know that intelligence is a key factor to working within our British intelligence services. You've reassured many, I'm sure there. We interviewed Gavin Stone, who's also former British intelligence, and his story, his podcast was like a chapter out of The Layer Cake, or something like Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels, um, which was hilariously entertaining, and just, and Gillian Fisher, who's also written a book, uh, told great stories. It was one of the most downloaded podcasts. I think there's a huge interest, certainly from our sector, our community, on, on that uniqueness that you need to have. What else did they spot about you do you think that made you such a good candidate to work in such an important position for our country?
Hayley:I think without going into too much detail, my role was very operational. Um, I wasn't behind a desk. Um, and we had to have aptitude in different areas. You had to be able to think on your feet. Um, you had to get very close to people. Um, there was an amount of intelligence gathering. So I think a lot of that is Is very much your, your personal makeup, your courage, um, your tenacity, um, your honesty, your integrity. Um, I think the role that I was doing is very much a certain type of person will fit that role, but also what you look like comes into it. You can't be too tall, you know, you can't stand out, you've got to be the grey person. I think you have to have had life experience. Um, you know, you have to sort of make good calls, good judgements. So it's very different actually from a lot of the roles that I think probably your other guests did, yeah, certain skill sets.
Yoyo:Yeah, I like hearing you say that because I was thinking as you were talking when I was in the police, they did this, they wanted to do a recruitment program into more covert surveillance operations, like a multi force kind of task force. And so they gave people the opportunity to rock up, go and see what it was about. And that's where we really learned the Horns of the gray man or the gray woman. Yeah. and at the time, and I've always had blonde hair and I knew I could never go undercover. I'm too tall. I have a big bottom. Do you know what I mean? There are just attributes about me. I have quite an animated. face. I don't really shrink into the background, although it's been easier to shrink into the background the older I've become. Because I think when you get to a certain age you become more invisible and a lot of women talk about that when they get to a certain age you're no longer, it's like a radar all of a sudden, you're no longer under the radar of certain men so you don't get seen. there's something quite nice of like, I'll go to the supermarket now and I'll wear some dungarees and a t shirt and some flip flops and I won't have any makeup on and nobody looks at me and I quite like that because I've come from a culture where I got looked at a lot. so, being forgettable is where the grey man, grey woman, it comes in. Because to be in so many different places, to be able to observe so many different things, you have to be relatively forgettable, don't you?
Hayley:Yeah, I think you do, and back then, I wouldn't have worn any makeup, I would have had my hair scraped back, I think when I very first went through recruitment, my hair was quite blonde and quite long, and they said, Can you change your hair? And I said, Of course I can! Thinking, Oh, I don't really want to. I will if I really have to. but yeah, I think I probably, had it slightly darker. And yeah, just jeans and t shirt didn't stand out in any way whatsoever.
Yoyo:Yeah, it's interesting, but it has to happen. can you, I always ask people, especially when you've got a very restricted, opportunity to tell me what you really did, can you just give us an idea about how you felt about your first day operationally and you're thinking, oh, holy shit, I'm here, I'm doing this. yeah, we've got a plan. What was going through your, what was going through your mind?
Hayley:I think the training that I did was so intensive and, at such a high level that There wasn't really, I mean, there was always going to be an anxiety on the first day, but we could do the job, we'd done it and done it already. Um, yeah, I did have some, um, a pretty good roll on my first day. Again, I can't go into it, um. But, and I was the only woman on my team when I joined, um, so that, that had positives and negatives actually, um, but yeah, um, looking back it, the whole time was just fantastic actually.
Yoyo:Yeah. You, you, did you often have very few women? around you in that career? Were you a minority in many of the circumstances? In fact, I can see why there would have been such a high demand for you. You probably would have been used a lot, I would have thought.
Hayley:Yeah, uh, yeah, I, I always have been the minority, um, when, when I did my clothes protection course, I think there were 30 of us, I was the only woman, um, I was the only woman when we deployed on tour, um, and then, yeah, um, train, in my actual training course, um, there were, Three, three, three girls and three guys, and we, we all bonded really well, we had a really, really terrific group. Um, but yeah, when I actually joined the team, I was the only woman for a long time. Um, and yeah, it's, it's, it's interesting because a lot of the guys were ex military, and a lot of them had never worked with a woman. They'd come from the marines and various other departments, and uh, they, you know, they were like, wow, this is great. Um, and then it was more, you know, some of the guys who'd never done policing or military. They actually made my life tougher. I don't know, but I was a bit, you know, perhaps I, I don't know, made it a bit insecure.
Yoyo:I saw recently a beautiful clip, and it must have been because of it was International Women's Day or International Women's Week, it felt like. But there was a clip of all these amazing women fighter pilots. Now, not only, I mean, it was great music. There were loads of fantastic clips of these fantastic women, all at the top of their game in terms of fighter pilot ness. And I, and they made it look sexy, that job. not because of a sexuality, but they just made it look good! You know, and I was kind of crushing a little bit, thinking, oh, do you know what I mean? Like that is so cool. We need to see more of that, I think, because then other young girls will grow up instead of like, you know, loving Moana and Barbie, maybe they'll want to fight, fly a great big, powerful fighter jet too. And, and the Marines, maybe there'll be special women's Marines units. I'm a huge fan of Lioness. and I know it's a drama, but most guys I know love it. It's got a whole different Nicole Kidman, what's her name, I don't know what you mean. is her name. I just remember because she plays Uhura in Star Trek, the newer version. it's so good to see women in roles that have mainly been stereotyped as men's roles. And there are certain types of women who are absolutely up for the task, aren't there?
Hayley:Yeah, yeah, absolutely. I would love to see more of that sort of positive messaging because My children will sit and they scroll through the absolute rubbish on YouTube And it's just kids doing stupid things And then you know, you've got sort of you've got people in China who sit there their 40 minutes a day looking at education and violence Yes! Science. It's going to be great. Why don't we, you know, we need to be more positive. We should have a real campaign of getting some real positive, influencing content out there.
Yoyo:So knowing what you know, why do you even let your children? Scroll on the internet, Hayley. Pretty tough question. Got to ask it. We had online safety week recently we're giving children ultimately access to a very very Strategically motivated global adult market. What's your approach to it?
Hayley:It's the same approach in that I let them walk to the park and I let them go to the shop because they have got to learn to be streetwise. They have got to learn critical thinking. They have got to understand what risk is. I mean, my children are 10 and 11. At their age, I used to get a bus, go to the next town, go swimming, get lunch, come home again on my own or maybe with a friend. Um, we had no phones, but you know, our parents were happy if we turned up for dinner. and Where I live now, we're in a small village and most people are very very protective of their children And I think no, they've got to learn that the world is a bad place So the same with social media, I will let them have it and you know I will show them news reports of where children have been, you know exploited, blackmailed, all the horrible things and I'll say look this is what you need to look out for. You don't show pictures of your school uniform. You don't talk to people you don't know. You don't have things in the background. You don't tell anyone about you. You stick to your friends. Um, yeah, love it. Yeah,
Yoyo:you're other than the professionals who were in this area and desperately campaigning for parents to get more involved with their children's mobile phone use. I think you probably you hit it on the mark there. Um, and I, I, I can't say, I don't have children. God forbid. Um, no, uh, um, but I don't like them much either. Ghastly things. Um, because I, I just think, as long as they're aware of the risks, like I remember my mum said to me, we were walking home from school, I must have been about, I don't know, I was in, I was in like the lower school, I must have been about eight maybe, my brother was 18 months younger than me, and we used to walk to and from school, which was through some country lanes, it was summer and light always, we never walked in the dark, at least I don't remember walking in the dark, and probably because we didn't, and this, this guy in a cream Volvo pulled up and saw us. alongside me, my brother was walking behind me, and said, Hey, do you want me to give you guys a ride down to the beach? My brain was like, Huh? Beach? If I want to go to the beach, I go to the beach. It's the beaches in front of my house. Why would I get in a guy's car and go to the beach? So this is what my brain was doing. My brother walked up being two years younger than me and basically said, I'm sorry, but my mum told me not to get into cars with strangers. And I was like, oh my god, my brother's so squared, it's so funny. And then this guy just kind of laughed and drove off, and that was the horrifying, it was this horrifying laugh he gave, it was evil. We went home, told our mum straight away, and she said, do you really think he wanted to take you down to the beach? And I was like, I just thought it was really odd. I was like, why is he asking if I, why I want to get in his car? Um, and, and then she kind of had that very serious conversation with us. And she said, there's no, there's, he has no intention of taking you to the beach. Right. He has very bad thoughts. And of course that at that point we were both like frightened to death. We were like, Ooh, you know, but it gave us that lesson, that shock of this is the reality. This is what's out there. Trust no one, believe nothing. And, and keep that brain critically thinking. And I wish we taught more critical thinking in schools, don't you?
Hayley:Yeah, I really do. And actually it's funny because I had a similar experience. I was only four and my parents had gone on holiday to Israel and we don't have any links to Israel. So I think they had some sort of packaged deal. It was a holiday hotel on a beach somewhere. And, uh, I remember, they used to seem to spend hours, if it was really only minutes, in reception, talking to the concierge or something. And I remember putting my hand up, holding my dad's hand, and you don't look up when you're four, you just hold on. And we walked out of the door and down the steps towards a car. And it wasn't until then, because we didn't have a car, we were on holiday, that I looked up and it wasn't my dad. And I ran back in again, and I only told my parents about 20 years later. And they were completely oblivious.
Yoyo:Yeah, there's so much. When I look back now, there's so much I didn't tell my parents. And that's what worries me. When you get into the mindset, we were fairly innocent, fairly well behaved. You know, we came home by the time the streetlights went on or the streetlights come on and it's like, oh, we've got to get home. That was the cue to come home. A lot of people growing up in the 80s will, will, will, will know that. You know, streetlights are on. Shit, how long have they been on? Uh, and then we, the stories of colleagues, you know, saying, yeah, my mom and dad used to ring a bell outside the house so we could hear it from miles away. Uh, and that was when it was dinner time. But when you think about it, we We grew up in a different world that was quite innocent, but we were more savvy because we knew not to hurt ourselves and get into trouble and danger and stuff. But at the moment it feels like a very different world for children. And I'm thinking if those children have the same child mindset that I did, and we, we held a lot back from our parents. What are they holding back from parents these days in terms of what the insidiousness of what's going on online as well?
Hayley:Yeah, and now they've got these hidden apps behind calculators and it's, you know, it's this whole level of bullying that we didn't have because we didn't have social media. You know, if there was a fight at school, it kind of stopped when you, you left school. Um, and I think kids are under a hell of a lot more pressure. Um, and you can see, you know, where a lot of this anxiety and problems are coming from. And yeah, they do need, they need sort of lessons in resilience, I think.
Yoyo:Yeah, so parents, you know, look out for your child being really popular online and having lots of followers. That's a big, big red flag, uh, because those children are likely to, uh, allow a lot of, Uh, followership and connections on Facebook, for example, because they're seemingly more popular, the more connections they have, and therefore they will invite more risk into their bedrooms and, you know, and I think as well, you know, I don't know, I don't want to kind of dig in on parents. But it's, it's your responsibility to check their phones and there are horrifying stories of dads who just like my daughter stepped out the room. She's 13, you know, and I just thought, Oh, her phone's there. She's got some messages coming in. I'll see what's coming in. She's 13. Yeah, you're not invading her privacy. She's 13. And, um, and then he realized the cutting a long story short that there was a grown man. grooming her and sending her messages. And he basically took the phone off the girl, continued to talk to the groomer, agreed to go and meet him, committed GBH on the man, got, arrested.
Hayley:Yeah,
Yoyo:and the police before the court everything supported him and basically said it's completely understandable that you reacted the way you did because you were acting in a very protective way so he didn't actually go to prison. But what a journey to go through. You know, it's a renowned story about, if you Google it, you can find it out. But look, bodyguarding, it's very good now if you're a woman in the bodyguarding industry, close protection industry, because a lot of families, high net worth families with children want that female kind of in the family home with the skill set of a bodyguard, don't they?
Hayley:Yeah, they do, and it is a terrific time, to be a woman and to get into closure protection actually. And I, I don't do so much anymore, I provide bodyguards to people, I haven't been out for a while, but yeah, exactly that. and even sort of Training nannies, the security awareness, that's quite key as well for some of the people that I work with. a lot of girls will come to me, like, how do I get into code of protection? And actually, it's a lot easier now, because I sort of, when I left the army, the SIA was just introducing licensing., and now you can, you know, you don't have to have that previous experience, you can go and learn it. and yeah, there are different sort of, um, I suppose, careers as a result of that. You know, some people do stipulate they want people with police or military backgrounds, but not everyone. and not, not always the people that want the right woman to look after their children.
Yoyo:When we had a pre chat, we talked about transitioning and transitioning out of working in such a sort of clandestine role, for want of a better word, it's really challenging. I met somebody, once at a networking event actually, and she was in the situation where she wanted to transition out, but she said, it's really hard, you know, I can't have a LinkedIn profile. I can't, network and be very open about what I'm doing. I kind of have to leave. And then I'm literally starting off. Before zero and it's really hard looking back at your transition to normal life. or normative living. what would you say to anybody who could potentially be in a very similar situation and thinking, you know, how do I make this leap? Cause, it's, I think it's intentionally quite hard to do.
Hayley:Yes, it is. And actually I have quite a lot of people that come to me because they're thinking of leaving and that's their exact question. and I'd say the first thing is your network. Um, and first of all, the people that you know that have left in the last couple of years, get in touch with them because they're ahead of you. they've already laid the foundations, they're building their networks, they can introduce you to the right people. There's some great recruiters out there who deal specifically with people that have got those skill sets, so I'll often put them in touch with each other. Um, but it is, it is all about the network. Um, and I, and I struggle massively because I Again, you know, I, I didn't have LinkedIn, um, I, I'd spent 10 years not talking to anyone about what I did. You know, I'd avoid going to parties because I just couldn't be bothered to lying to people. So, you know, it's like, right, you need a profile. And, and even now, I mean, a lot of my security institute work, it's so open. I mean, I didn't have my photos on LinkedIn before my directorship role. And all of a sudden I'm at these events and I'm talking things and I'm sort of, you know, it's like, Bye. marketing and promoting various things. And yeah, and it's probably only last couple of years that I can put a post on LinkedIn and not cringe as I do it. And it's still that, that balance of not too much, but not too little. And, and that's hard as well because I had got my own business. I've got to get stuff out there. So yeah, it's hitting that balance. It's. Selling yourself, not overselling yourself. it is very tricky.
Yoyo:It, and I can only identify to a certain degree.'cause as a serving police officer, I did not particularly always wanna tell people what I did, especially, oh God, the worst case. Worst. I didn't date for most of it because I just didn't wanna go along and have that, what do you do for a living then? And then I didn't wanna begin every relationship with a lie, you know? Which I've still found myself in the very same position, like, you've never been married? No. What, at your age? Yes. I feel like saying, yeah, I was married, he died. You know, does that make me come across a lot better? Like, you know. starting off with a lie. You start, you kind of start thinking like that. So dating as a police officer, and which is why I think there's a lot of kind of in, you know, incestual police fraternizing anything, because it's difficult on the outside world. I didn't really subscribe to that either. So looking at how you've had to transfer your skillset into modern day living now, what led you to taking on a leadership role in the Security Institute gives you a great profile and relevancy as well.
Hayley:Yeah, it does. and for me, I've been a member of the institute already for about five years, I think. I'd sort of seen posts about the institute, and then I went to meet a potential client, and one of his questions was, are you a member of a, are you part of a membership body? and at the time I wasn't, um, and so I literally left, I did actually get the job, but I left and I signed up then and there, that, that afternoon, so it was more pretty my expression of interest. and it, it, it has done so much for me over the years. Um, and People get different things as thought leadership, networking, sort of industry best practice, mentorship, the special interest groups. as a small business owner, I just got so much help from people. you know, sort of, people, you know, do and have come to me, oh, can you do this? Yes, of course I can. Or even connecting people with other people and helping other people. so then when the director positions were advertised, which is usually around this time of year. I thought, oh, I'm really interested in that. And half of it was, I really want to give back. And half of it was, well actually, I've been in the Army, I've worked in government, I've worked for myself. I've never really been embedded in a deep corporate role, and there's so much I need to learn about governance and compliance. and what a great place to do it. So, yeah, half of it was altruistic, half of it was, this will really help me. and I'm enjoying it so much. It's great to be part of such a dynamic membership organisation, to sort of see the work the interest groups are doing, the events, you know, we sort of work across, different industries. The members, our members are sort of from some of the highest security positions in the public and private sector. so what a great place to, to learn more about the profession and, and to sort of, you know, encourage best practice and thought leadership.
Yoyo:There has been a lot of collaboration, we certainly featured Bill Tenney, CEO of ASIS, and Sandy Davis, CEO of IFPO, together to talk about how they're working together. And it's easy when it's so complementary what you're providing collectively, and there's no doubt about it. There is a special place for any professional in security to belong to. And I just, I can only say this, like when I became an ASIS member, my world changed, you know, I wasn't out there alone in the world and in my profession and I was the opposite. I was rubbing shoulders with people who were excited about. What I did and I was excited about what they did and you get that don't you from a collective membership you you get this You're part of a tribe, your tribe.
Hayley:Yeah, absolutely. And you know, I've met some really, really amazing people. I've, you know, gained real friendships. I'm friends with strong women and, you know, the conversations I have with my security women are very, very different to the conversations I have with my mum friends. Um, and yeah, it is, it is a tribe. It's people that speak your language.
Yoyo:So, in your position at the Security Institute, two questions. One, what are your kind of strategic plans for the next couple of years in terms of where you want to take the Security Institute? And along with that, Hayley, with the kind of downward trend of DE& I amongst kind of a very populist, far right wing opinion in politics right now. How are we combating that? And as a woman in a leadership role, you'll probably be looked up to for, you know, expertise in that space.
Hayley:Yeah, well, so strategically, we literally reinvented our strategy when I came onto the board, our three pillars are membership, professionalization and influence. We've just upgraded our entire sort of digital presence, And we had a real overhaul. We've overhauled the special interest groups, we've advertised for new chairs and co chairs for some of them, and especially, so I, head up the AI and new and emerging security technologies group, and we've just had some new people step into the chair roles. And we're going to have You know, there's so much work to do, and the people that are doing this have got some great connections in industry and with government. and you know, this is something that we need to be really, really growing. We need to be at the forefront of, we need to be, you know, really helping and setting examples and standards. So yeah, we're growing. We're in a really, really great position at the moment. I think for myself, where I try to influence things, I want to bring back the membership lunches, which actually we had a board meeting this week and that was one of the agenda items that I wanted to add on because we have got this fantastic webinar. schedule. there's webinars that go out monthly, if not more often. we've got some great conferences coming up, but that for me was, sort of adding a bit of a social aspect, which for new members, I think is really, really valuable when they, they need to sort of meet people quickly with no real pressure. Then from an EDI perspective, sort of, inclusivity runs across everything we do. and, I mean, look, we've got three women on the board. it's something that we don't feel. We need to single out quite as much as we did because we're doing it. and sort of bringing in more women. We just had, the first cohort come through on the Baroness Ruth Hennig's program, which is brilliant. And it's sort of watching them grow over the year and they'll, So we're bringing in more people with sort of, we've got the mentorship. so I think it's really great that people can sort of see us, see women on the board, see that this is really possible. There's so much opportunity out there. I think we are open enough, you know, a lot of people will come to us, When we have our various events and they introduce themselves and they're asking for advice, so yeah, I hope we're setting a good example, which I think is the way to go. Well,
Yoyo:sitting on an advisory board myself, I just know how much effort is going into such a great program, because even having an event every month. I mean, that's hard work, even if it's a webinar. I arranged for a webinar, you know, for ASIS with some amazing women in a leadership role. Oh my God. You know, it takes a lot of effort, especially when you're running a company as well. And you want to have a modicum of running. family life and private life. So well done on that. That sounds super exciting. So if you are listening and you have thought about the Security Institute and you've thought, oh, that sounds like a great program, get in touch with Hayley and find out more. Perhaps Hayley, we can provide a link, to add to the end of your bio as well so that people can find out more because that does sound very enticing. And it's a good pitch for what the security industry stands for as well. What can I say? Thank you so much. What an exciting and amazing career you've had. Thank you so much for your service to our country. I'm sure there are lots of people who'd love to really get inside your head. Thank you for sharing what you can and I wish you all the success for what you're planning to do with your business and with the Security Institute.
Hayley:Thank you very much. It's been very enjoyable, actually. That's the plan. If you hated it, it would be very awkward.