This Volunteers Week, we are delighted to recognise the contribution that our alumni volunteers make to the Westminster community through the Westminster Alumni Volunteering Awards.
The Long Serving Volunteer Award recognises alumni volunteers who have supported Westminster for at least three years, giving their time over and over again.
And the winner is…
The Long Serving Volunteer Award goes to… Jenny Garrett OBE (BA Business Administration, 2000).
Jenny Garrett OBE is an award-winning Career Coach and Leadership Trainer, with over 14 years’ experience of running a global business. Everything she does is aimed at advancing gender balance, creating inclusive workplaces or equipping young people.
Jenny has been a committed, long-serving volunteer and supporter of the Westminster Community. She has been a speaker three times in the ‘What it Takes’ alumni speaker series between 2017-19; twice a keynote speaker at ‘Women of Westminster’ events during 2020; and served as an Employer Advisory Board member throughout 2020 within Westminster Business School.
Jenny’s involvement in the ‘What it Takes’ series has been particularly noteworthy. Firstly, Jenny spoke at the first ever WIT event in October 2017 as a panellist in ‘What It Takes to be an Entrepreneur’. 125 students and recent graduates attended this landmark event. Next, she was a keynote speaker at ‘What it Takes to be a Confident Public Speaker’ in February 2018, which was attended by a then record number of 141 students and recent graduates. Lastly, Jenny came back a third time for another in-person keynote speaker event in November 2019: ‘What it Takes to Communicate with Confidence’, which was attended by a further 90 students and recent graduates.
In total, over 350 students and recent graduates attended these three events, all of which received overwhelmingly positive feedback from attendees. Jenny’s passion, interaction with the audience, high energy and attentiveness during both audience Q&As and subsequent networking sessions made her a standout speaker within the series. She has shown a progressive approach by tailoring her events to a student and recent graduate audience; Jenny usually gives paid public talks to executives and high-flyers, yet her energy and passion for communication has been so beneficial to our younger community.
In terms of compassion, Jenny’s work as a speaker at two key ‘Women of Westminster’ events during March and December 2020 really stands out. Although the audience and make-up of WOW is mainly Westminster colleagues, some students and alumni are included – and the very nature of having Jenny speak on issues of gender, race and diversity within these important, progressive events, demonstrates her inclusive, supportive commitment to the wider Westminster community.
Jenny has also shown real responsibility and commitment to employability in her Employer Advisory Board roles. She has supported the WBS Organisations, Economy and Society School EABs throughout 2020 as a member, giving up yet more of her time to support the enhancement of employability and links to industry for our WBS students.
Congratulations to our Volunteering Award winners! Find out more about the Westminster Alumni Volunteering Awards, and the other winners here.
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