paul dixon

Following redundancy in June 2011 and wishing to formalise my existing knowledge of management and managership, I decided to take a few months off from job hunting to pursue a Post Graduate Diploma in Management at the University of Northampton. Equivalent to the first year of a Masters in Business Administration and condensed into a maximum period of 6 months rather than a full academic year, the course involved 7 separate modules. Requiring individual research and writing a paper in respect of 6 of them, my studies concluded in my obtaining a B+ average over the course as a whole.

Planned, monitored, controlled and delivered compliance, performance and service delivery improvement projects; increasing profitability through existing and new income streams. Reported to the Director of Housing. Managed and led the completion of all actions against a highly publicised Service Improvement Plan in respect of the promotion, improvement and employment of over 12,500 dwellings, valued over £80m. Delivered equality compliance framework in response to tough new legislation, with no formal budget and 3 weeks ahead of schedule, averting substantial risk of financial and reputational damage if delayed. Compiled, analysed, monitored and challenged benchmarking MI against local, regional and national peers, ensuring improved service delivery against increased competitiveness and compliance.

Independent fee-earner tasked with contentious and non-contentious duties including the tendering and drafting of commercial contracts and limiting liability in litigation cases. Reported to the Borough Solicitor. Led a team of 7, including some more senior than myself, in obtaining accreditation to Law Society’s LEXCEL standard, an achievement only mirrored by 8% of local authorities’ in-house legal departments. Wrote department’s practice manual and associated supporting material in respect of file, operational and management procedures and processes, averting unnecessary risk and improving productivity. Drafted almost every conceivable legal document, including constitutions, contracts, licences and deeds.

Full-time litigator and negotiator in a private practice solicitors’ firm, the department producing in excess of £1.5m profit this financial year; a company record. Reporting to Head of Litigation. Single-handedly set-up new revenue stream of existing business, exceeded £30,000 net profit year one.

Ran internal legal department as its sole fee-earner, protecting commercial interests valued at over £30m while managing one full-time member of support staff. Reported to Company Secretary / Director. Represented the business in over 600 County Court hearings for rent arrears and repossessions claims.

Supported the effective identification, assessment and embedding of regulatory change and horizon risk processes at an institutional and policy level. Reported to Senior Manager, Horizon Scanning and Reporting. Drafted and updated team’s principle documentation, including its scoping document, process and procedures, and revised and updated its terms of reference for Risk Director and Board’s approval. Conducted daily scanning of all key UK, European and global regulators, standard-setters and trade and political bodies, ensuring thorough, organisation-wide regulatory horizon scanning and risk monitoring. Produced both “flash” and daily update emails, and summary reports on key regulatory developments, for the Conduct, Prudential, Financial Crime, Data Protection and Assurance Risk teams, Directors and Board. Supported the preparation of monthly Risk Reporting through the collection and consolidation of risk MI data, compiled by each Risk team, for presentation to the Board for their consideration and approval.

Activities and Societies: Editor, University's Law Society Newsletter