Scholarship / Leadership is about Service - Chevening Leadership Essay [4]

Hi all, I am in the process of applying for the Chevening scholarship and would like some feedback on my leadership essay. Suggestions on further improvements would be greatly appreciated! - Reuben

Chevening is looking for individuals who will be future leaders or influencers in their home countries. Explain how you meet this requirement, using clear examples of your own leadership and influencing skills to support your answer.

A key of leadership is service

Leadership is broad term with many definitions. To me, leadership is not a noun associated with title or position, but a verb based on actions that contribute towards the betterment of others. Prominent American author, John Maxwell, once said, "leaders become great, not because of their power, but because of their ability to empower others."

A key tenet of leadership is service. Contributing towards the wellbeing of others, and motivating others to do so, are important philosophies that I firmly ascribe to as an international civil servant with the United Nations Migration Agency (IOM). Between 2016 and 2017, I was put in charge of an awareness-raising information campaign that aimed to encourage migrants in Bangladesh, Indonesia, Malaysia and Thailand to migrate legally and safely, rather than through dangerous and irregular channels.

Born in the aftermath of the 2015 Rohingya crisis, the campaign's politically-sensitive nature meant that I encountered deadlock and disagreements that required perseverance and grit in resolving them. This was particularly so at the planning stage, when the project's donor, the Royal Thai Government, expressed its desire for the campaign to directly target Rohingya communities.

Highlighting the potential pitfalls of such an approach and its impact on the effectiveness of the project, I was able to successfully persuade the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to expand the campaign to target a wider audience. The inclusion of other prospective migrants in source countries made the campaign more politically palatable and culminated in the consent of all involved governments.

The project's limited budget also meant that I had to maximize resources and devise innovative interventions. Empowering the migrants with information so that they can make so that they can make informed decisions is the fundamental aim of the campaign. As such, I reached out to civil society with established networks with migrant communities to collaborate on the project.

In seeking their participation, I highlighted the synergies between the project and the goals of the respective organizations. The comprehensive partnership established between IOM, NGOs and governments in Bangladesh, Indonesia, Malaysia and Thailand resulted in the successful implementation of the campaign that benefitted over 13,000 vulnerable migrants in 150 communities.

In addition, seizing opportunities to improve existing organisational processes and introduce new initiatives have also been a priority in my professional career. Upon completion of the project, I was engaged to build up IOM Thailand's communications unit from scratch and put forward a communications strategy that has become an organizational best practice.

IOM Thailand is now among the top ten best performing IOM missions worldwide in terms of communications. Such efforts have contributed towards the wider goal of raising IOM's visibility and enable the Organization to raise funds and implement programmes for the benefit of migrants.

Throughout the years, I believe my contributions have had an impact to those around me and beyond. Empowering others fulfils me and I believe that Chevening will allow me to further hone my leadership skills and accomplish more for the purpose of improving the lives others.