Knowing me, knowing you

Can you briefly introduce yourself and tell us about your current role?

I am Liam Ronan-Chlond, Director of Strategic Partnerships at South Yorkshire Mayoral Combined Authority. I’m responsible for delivering the Mayor’s priorities, leading on engagement and enhancing collaboration.

How did your career path lead you to the industry?

I graduated with a degree in history and politics and my first job was working for a Labour MP in Manchester. I then supported Labour Council Leaders in Sheffield, Brighton and Camden, before heading into the private sector for ten years, where I worked in London for a PR agency and then a property developer. A growing family meant a return to the North and I’m now back in the public sector and back in Sheffield, enjoying working with some former colleagues, albeit in the new environment of the South Yorkshire Mayoral Combined Authority. My experience supporting politicians and leading on strategic engagement over the past 20 years were essential for my new role.

The ups and downs

What have been the most impactful projects you’ve worked on or the projects you’re most proud of?

Loads!

• Working with Lord David Blunkett and Professor Danny Dorling on their Tale of Two Cities report into inequality in Sheffield, back in 2010
• Promoting the inaugural Northern Powerhouse International Conference in 2015, which included drafting an op-ed for The Independent on behalf of Lord Prescott
• Supporting one of Legal & General’s first forays into ‘Build To Rent’ on a pioneering project in Walthamstow
• Contributing to the success of digital engagement tool, Give My View, which saw several thousands of people respond to consultations across Bristol, Cambridge, London and Milton Keynes
• Being part of the launch of Socius in 2021, an inspirational and progressive mixed-use property developer and BCorp
• Enabling the delivery of over £15.3m in social value during my time at Socius

What’s been the biggest challenge you have faced in your career and how did you overcome it?

Working in the public sector post-2010 meant forever finding savings among substantial Government budget cuts. We went from fairly clear strategies and long-term funding streams to firefighting and battling over scraps.

Local authorities were forced to quickly adapt to this new challenging fiscal environment and, as an officer, I became ever-curious about achieving more bang for our buck. This is how I tried to turn a negative into a positive; by becoming ever-more curious about what worked well elsewhere and understanding how my local authority could benefit by learning from best practice.

I also began to appreciate the importance of more joined-up and collaborative working – a problem shared is a problem halved! This helped me expand my horizons, grow my network and learn to think more ‘outside the box’; attributes that I think have stood me in good stead for my career.

Trend setter

What do you see as the current trends shaping life science, especially in terms of real estate?

In an increasingly digital-world, whether it be catching-up with friends over lunch or attending a festival, places need people to thrive. This isn’t to say that we can’t interact digitally, but this must not be at the expense of ‘In Real Life’ activities.

Recently, I visited the Canon Medical Arena, in Sheffield’s Olympic Legacy Park and saw some youngsters playing basketball at summer camp.

These young people were learning key skills, such as teamwork and communication, in addition to keeping physically fit and active. There was no staring at mobile phones, or sitting around watching TV! This is just one example why the Olympic Legacy Park works so well as an ecosystem, with academic researchers working away next to school students and elite Olympic athletes.

It would be difficult to achieve the same outcomes over Zoom. Increasingly, local authorities and landowners are aware of the importance of pride in place and how attractive public realm can increase footfall, boosting growth. In addition, here at the South Yorkshire Mayoral Combined Authority, we are also looking at how we can proactively engage people in a number of our policy areas, from planting trees to shaping our future travel plans. Face-to face engagement is a vital part of effective collaboration and partnership working.

What are the biggest challenges you feel the sector is facing?

Change. We are in a changing world, with changing Government priorities and funding streams. People’s expectations of their public services are changing, as are their priorities. Mayoral Combined Authorities are fairly new on the scene. How do we navigate this change whilst supporting our local authority partners and delivering this new Government’s ambitions for growth, and how do we bring local residents along with us on our journey.

Of course there is always change, but it hasn’t felt as exponential and fast-paced as it does right now. This brings challenges across all sectors. An example of this is AI. I recently read the book, The Coming Wave, which I think exemplifies this current rapid and potentially revolutionary pace of change we’re in.

Crystal ball gazing 

What are your predictions for the sector over the next decade?

Ten years from now, I think all sectors will be grappling with the impact of AI. This will include balancing the benefits of the efficiencies it creates, with the challenges over job losses, data, privacy and IP. How we prepare or respond to this, I don’t know!

Are there any emerging markets, technologies, or trends we should all be aware of?

Space for innovation is an increasingly emerging and strategically important priority for UKPLC. I’ve been lucky enough to support this nationally strategic priority in my previous role, building space for innovation to thrive, particularly within the Golden Triangle.

Now, I’m lucky enough to support South Yorkshire’s world-leading expertise on innovation from Advanced Manufacturing to Health and Wellbeing. World-beating is a much-used phrase, but South Yorkshire currently leads a global market on innovation, from supporting UK, US and Japanese Defence sectors, Rolls Royce, Boeing and McLaren on Advanced Manufacturing, in addition to Canon Medical, Sport England and Team GB on health tech.

Cultural highlights

One song/album you like and why.

A timely question because I recently managed to acquire tickets to see Oasis next summer, who are playing in my local park! I first heard Oasis when I was about ten years old, falling in love with them instantly when they released ‘Roll With It’.

I swiftly bought the single, then the album, then the previous album, and I was hooked. They were the first band that I felt I’d found by myself. They were the first artist my mum disapproved of! They had a lead singer called Liam! They brothers had a similar background to me; growing up in a single parent household in an Irish family on a council estate in the North of England. Their songs spoke to me and my life; my hopes, fears and aspirations. They were probably one of the reasons I went over to study in Manchester! From learning how to Roll With It, to feeling Supersonic (my six-year-old son’s favourite), their songs have soundtracked my life and I’m sure their music will Live Forever!

I’m also a ‘Garage-Head’. I recently listened to a BBC Sounds documentary celebrating the 30th anniversary of UK Garage and it reminded me how exceptional the scene was – a grassroots cultural tour de force spreading out from London across the country by Pirate Radio! I remember a school friend sharing a mixtape with me when we were teenagers and falling in love with the sound immediately. I listened to that tape for as long as I ever had a cassette player and would love to know where it is now! The scene wasn’t too strong in Sheffield, but I think the sound struggled to make it much further north than where we were! Regardless, we were regulars at our weekly garage night ‘Quality’ at the Brown St nightclub in the city in the early 00s. Miss Dynamite, Shola Ama, DJ EZ, Tuff Jam, Wookie, So Solid Crew, The Streets… great days!

Passing the baton 

What advice would you give to someone aspiring to move into a role like yours?

Be kind, curious and put the effort in.

At school I mainly received C grades. Sometimes Bs, sometimes Ds! I also received some special educational needs support in Primary School. However, I managed to scrape through my GCSEs, A-Levels and Degree.

Thankfully, my university had a Parliamentary Placement scheme, which I successfully applied for. This soon provided me with my first employment opportunity, with Sir Tony Lloyd MP appointing me on a full-time contract. I won’t have been the brightest, ambitious or most innovative intern Sir Tony had, but I think I worked hard enough, displayed my curiosity and demonstrated some kindness to colleagues and constituents!

This approach has stood me in good stead, helping to develop my career. In turn, this solid foundation of professional experience has enabled me to grow in confidence and share more ideas, becoming more dynamic and ambitious.

My curiosity in particular has helped me to broaden my horizons and expand my network; helping me to join the dots and convert challenges into opportunities.

Get the basics right and the rest will follow!