Inspirational Woman: Amanda Cusdin | Chief People Officer, Sage

I am currently Chief People Officer at Sage, the leader in accounting, financial, HR and payroll technology for small and mid-sized businesses.

As CPO I am responsible for all aspects of our global people strategy. I also have overall responsibility for our Sustainability and Society Strategy, in which we use our time, technology and experience to tackle digital inequality, economic inequality and the climate crisis. 

I’ve always been passionate about people. I studied history at Warwick University where I was intrigued by the impact of societal changes on individuals and the disproportionate impact a few people can make on changing the course of world events. It was a natural move into HR, and after university, I joined the graduate scheme at Novar plc, a global manufacturing company, where I had several roles over four years – including a short stint in the US.

Then came 11 years at Invensys, a multinational engineering and information technology company. When I joined, the company was working towards the Beijing Olympics, but they didn’t even have an office in Beijing. So in my very first role there, I found myself sourcing office space in China and recruiting a team to deliver the project. It was quite a baptism!

Fast forward to 2014 and Invensys was bought by Schneider Electric, and I was Senior HR Director leading the integration of the corporate functions into Schneider, after which I left to join Sage, becoming CPO in 2017.

Did you ever sit down and plan your career?

I never really sat down and made a clear plan of where I wanted my career to go.

I knew early on that HR was the right place for me, and I’ve since deliberately taken roles that have allowed me to build experience across different areas – from business partnering to succession planning to cultural transformation.

That breadth of experience has been invaluable in my role as CPO, where I am able to take a broad perspective and support my own team to deliver on the different areas of our people strategy.

Have you faced any challenges along the way?

Absolutely. I think it’s impossible to experience growth without challenges because that’s when you learn the most about yourself.

For example, working abroad so early in my career was a great opportunity, but it also meant adapting to very different working cultures and environments.

Then, when Schneider bought Invensys, we went overnight from a colleague base of 18,000 to 140,000, which was a completely different challenge in terms of the change in scale and remit of my role.

And of course, the pandemic has brought unprecedented challenges, not least having to move a workforce of 12,000 colleagues to home working within a matter of days.

Meanwhile, on a personal level, we found out that my son had dyslexia. This has brought its own challenges for our family, but has given me greater empathy with people who are neurodivergent, and made me fully appreciate the importance of considering neurodiversity as part of your wider DEI strategy.

What has been your biggest achievement to date?

I am extremely proud of the journey we’ve been on at Sage over the last five years.

We have increased our employee NPS score 60 points over that period by transforming the culture and colleague experience. We’ve done this by adopting a listening strategy, and using the insights from our colleagues to make changes across all areas of our people strategy.

We have maintained that collaborative approach throughout the pandemic, moving to an always listening model, which has enabled us to quickly adjust our programme of engagement and support in response to what colleagues tell us.

Most recently, we collaborated with colleagues to co-create our hybrid working model, and we are currently crowdsourcing colleague input for our new set of values that we will roll out next month.

Alongside our own internal metrics, we’ve also seen a significant increase in our ratings on independent rankings sites, and I was very proud that Sage was again included in Glassdoor’s list of Best Places to Work in the UK earlier this month.

What one thing do you believe has been a major factor in you achieving success?

I have been privileged to work with some amazing leaders throughout my career, who have helped me progress personally and also shaped my own leadership style.

I believe the role of any leader is to create an environment where people can excel. The best leaders are those who set out a clear sense of purpose, let people see the opportunity, and then help everyone achieve it.

I know I always work at my best when I can be myself and when leaders value me for who I am. That has taught me to find roles that fit with my values and, in turn, to create an environment where my own teams can be themselves and perform at their very best.

How do you feel about mentoring? Have you mentored anyone or are you someone’s mentee?

I have mentored several people throughout my career, and I also have a mentor as part of our senior leadership development programme.

My advice to anyone choosing a mentor is to have real clarity on what you want to get from the relationship. Are you looking to step up into a leadership role? Do you want to build your knowledge and expertise within a particular area? Are you contemplating a career change? Choose a mentor who can help you move towards your goal – and if your goal changes, always consider whether you also need to find a new mentor for the next phase of your career journey. And look for someone who challenges you and takes you out of your comfort zone – but who you can be vulnerable with and trust completely.

If you could change one thing to accelerate the pace of change for Gender Equality, what would it be?

I think it is about creating true flexibility and inclusivity. That means offering colleagues flexibility in how, when and where they work, but it also means having a culture in which people can bring their whole selves to work.

Encouraging everyone to be their whole self at work means having conversations around families, children, partners, hobbies – being able to be authentic about our world. We have made huge strides with this, and working from home during the pandemic has accelerated this. It has given us an opportunity, and as HR professionals, I believe we have a responsibility to ensure we retain and embed that positive change.

But flexible working doesn’t just mean working from home because that isn’t right for everyone. It also means compressed hours, part-time and job share opportunities. All of these can help colleagues – and especially women – manage the competing demands of work and family.

These are all areas we are actively reviewing as part of our hybrid working model here at Sage to create real flexibility for our current and future colleagues.

If you could give one piece of advice to your younger self what would it be?

Don’t fear those who seem to know more – be curious and learn from them, but also contribute what you do know and the perspectives you have. Don’t wait until you have all the answers – start and adjust as you go.

What is your next challenge and what are you hoping to achieve in the future?

The next challenge is to ensure that we have the right blend of talent to drive long-term success for Sage, our partners, our communities and, of course, our customers.

It’s a broad and multi-faceted challenge that encompasses all areas of what the People team does. From ensuring we have the right skills in each area, through to how we attract, develop, reward and retain the very best talent now and in the future.

At the centre of that is our three-year global Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Strategy, which sets out the roadmap for how Sage is going to be a more diverse and inclusive employer. We want a workforce that truly represents the many different cultures, backgrounds and viewpoints of our colleagues, customers and communities.

We know that we’re only at the start of our journey. That’s why we’re committed to having open, honest conversations with colleagues across our business, and then working together with them to create a culture in which everyone at Sage feels empowered to succeed.