5 minutes with… Emma Peel
Emma Peel is Head of Delivery at Co-op. Prior to that she spent a short spell within the Civil Service at DWP but the majority of her career has been spent in agency; starting out at the global McCann Erickson, but predominantly at Code Computerlove, where, in her words, she ‘earned her stripes’.
This article was originally posted on LinkedIn in October 2023 and Emma has kindly given permission for the content to be added here.
Why did you choose a career in delivery or project management?
I didn’t choose a career in Delivery management; I chose a career in advertising. During a year in industry at Uni I worked within the George at Asda Marketing team. I applied for a summer school place at Publicis London. They were an agency George worked with, I bagged a coveted place and entered a 2-week crash course of ‘agency life’. This resulted in a live pitch experience for the tomato juice Big Tom. I don’t like tomato juice, but I loved the agency world that I got a sneak peek into and knew that’s where I had to go next.
After sending my CV to every agency across Manchester, it was McCann Erickson who first opened the door. Via their then digital operation McCann-I, I was thrust into digital marketing campaigns, websites, microsites, gamification and app development. I wasn’t creative, technical nor a copywriting genius, but I was great with people, and pretty damn organised.
What advice would you give someone starting out in the industry?
Work hard and be nice to be people, too cliché? Build trust, prove you’re a safe pair of hands and manage expectations. Some of the best DMs I’ve worked with mastered all 3, both within their teams, and with their stakeholders. Having trusted relationships in place provides a platform to build on with; experimentation, embracing and learning from mistakes, adapting ways of working and being curious. Be brave in professional conflict and challenge something that doesn’t quite sit right; delivery becomes a team sport when you’re all in it together.
We’re all human, and we’re all different. We can all read the same books and take the same courses, but it’s our experience that creates diversity; something hugely valuable within a delivery community. When you have a bunch of people doing the same role but equipped with their own tool boxes filled with real-life examples and experience, their go-to practices, and the openness to share and learn from each other, wonderful things happen.
Reflecting on my early years, it was very much work hard play hard. Perhaps that’s a controversial statement today, but during some of my most rewarding years I worked well over the allocated 37.5hrs on timesheets. It never felt like work when I was surrounded by brilliant teammates doing great things together. We all shared the same goal and passion for what we were there to achieve, and we were equally keen to self-reward our efforts on a social front too (we had no responsibilities back then). Your vibe attracts your tribe, find your people.
Manchester is a hive of talent; join the meetups, network and remember to use all the brains you have, and all that you can borrow.
Have you ever worked on a particularly difficult project? Why was it rubbish/tough/hard?
Naturally – and I’d be worried if a DM suggested they hadn’t! Sadly, the challenges I’ve experienced that gave me the real battle scars are all associated with behaviours; managing expectations, encouraging people to use data over opinions, focusing on customer needs and not the HIPPO. I don’t believe anybody wants to do a bad job or upset their colleagues, but pressure and challenging environments can feed the wrong culture.
What do you think are the most important skills for a delivery or project manager to have?
Resilience.
Have integrity, be honest, curious, and flexible.
Be the enabler, a coach.
Lead with authenticity.
What do you think are the biggest challenges facing delivery and project managers today?
Financing can be a hurdle. In many businesses, their cost models do not reflect or support products and services and how to run them effectively and efficiently. Money can dictate how things are run; team size, team shape, time spent etc. but when investment reflects the product or service model and the right money spent on the most valuable skill sets it can prove super powerful; for our people, our products, our businesses… and ultimately our customers/ end users.
Delivery Management doesn’t advocate a command-and-control approach, sometimes leaving what we do and how we do it open for question. Product Delivery, a product mindset, working to outcome not output, etc is still an area for growth in many businesses. I implore those working in our field, and those who have experienced the benefits of working with a great DM to help change the narrative, to influence and educate. I’d advocate using data and metrics to highlight value in what you deliver for your product - and to support your teams, but never underestimate the impact of leading with authenticity. People first.
What projects would you have loved to have been involved in?
There isn’t one standout experience I have missed, but there's one I’d love to happen. I’ll have to go broad title here because it’s got tentacles - the NHS! Over the years, I’ve worked with and been part of some brilliant teams in Service Design. Through personal experience, our NHS is one helluva service crying out for it. Once I’ve found a billionaire to fund it, I’ll rally the troops. Imagine the purpose, passion and satisfaction that would come with supporting patients in need and medics.
Once I’d done that I’d probably move onto the legal system.
And after that, there’s: education; local councils… we all have one we’d like to get stuck into and improve given the chance!
This post is from the ‘5 minutes with’ series of articles from people in the delivery management and project management space.