Engage, Enable and Empower Through Your Leadership – a conversation with Somya Agrawal, Leader, Collaborator and Motivator

Leaders in Conversation with Anni Townend

Today’s guest is Somya Agrawal. I had the joy of meeting Somya in June 2024, when she joined us for a Walking Partnerships day in Surrey, in the UK.

Somya offers valuable insights into:

• Being the conductor and not the trumpet player - The difficult transition between manager and leader, how the role changes and the importance of building a high-functioning team.
  
• The ripple effect - leading by example - The importance of watching and learning from leaders around you and how we are always being watched, even when we think nobody is watching!
  
• Dare to enter the arena - How we foster a culture of openness, transparency, honesty and collaboration. Ask questions and challenge with kindness and curiosity. It is not what you say, but how you say that it matters.

We discuss the People, Places, and Experiences that have shaped Somya and made her the person and leader she is today:

People - "My parents, sisters and my tribe"

Places - "Around the world. My family’s travelling style and how it reinforced the importance of teamwork"

Experiences - "The loss of my father and climbing Mount Kilimanjaro"
Somya's key encouragements to Leaders:

1. ENGAGE - establish a rapport with your team and build trust which will allow you to be your authentic self. With passion for your purpose, you will be able to identify the best people for the job.
   
2. ENABLE - use your energy to have an impact on those around you to bring people to the table who also understand your vision, as nothing is done without collaboration.
   
3. EMPOWER - by engaging with energy and by enabling with empathy, you will lead a team that feels empowered.
   
4. It’s not about the destination, it’s about the journey. So remember to enjoy it and take your team with you.

Connect with Somya:
LinkedIn - Somya Agrawal

About Somya Agrawal:

Somya’s most recent leadership post as a Senior Civil Servant was as a Deputy Director for Product and Delivery at UK Health Security Agency. She became a DD after a very busy and demanding period as Product Introduction Lead during the COVID-19 pandemic where she was responsible for the design, development and launch of the COVID-19 lateral flow devices. Over 2.5bn LFDs were deployed during that time, so as you can imagine, it was a very high-profile and complex mission with a lot of ambiguity, unknowns and political sensitivities in play. However, Somya loved every second of it, because of the self-development it gave her but also the HUGE national impact that this job had.
Prior to being a Senior Civil Servant, she worked at the Royal Marsden Hospital, a specialist Cancer Hospital in London, where she believes her passion for positive outcomes in healthcare really came from, as during her stint there in Research and Clinical trials, she saw many oncology drugs become licensed after seeing patients not only surviving but thriving when given the right care and treatment.
Somya is one of 3 girls in her family (the middle one) who have been very fortunate to have been raised by parents who provided their daughters as much as they could within their means which did not come without sacrifices and we are all incredibly grateful for our childhoods and it making us who we are today. Though not yet married, she has a 6 year old niece who she absolutely dotes on and calls one of her best friends.
Somya is incredibly passionate about positive outcomes in healthcare and states that her stakeholder engagement skills and energetic personality have now become her USP that have contributed to the successes she has had in her leadership journey so far.