Chief Legal Officer for the Birmingham XXII Commonwealth Games

Background

This was a pivotal and critical leadership appointment reporting into Ian Reid, Chief Executive and one that would work closely with the Board of Directors including the Chairman, John Crabtree OBE who was also a qualified legal professional. This would be the largest multi-sport event to be held in England in 10 years. Approximately 6,500 athletes and team officials from 71 nations and territories across the Commonwealth will come together in a 12-day celebration of sport and culture.

The Birmingham XXII Commonwealth Games Organising Committee had the task of building a highly credible leadership team quickly and efficiently which would act as the foundation to create the management and operational team that would implement and deliver the operational strategy for the competition.

The Chief Legal Officer appointment was critical as the postholder would be a trusted advisor providing advice to a range of stakeholders in the business on all legal matters for the organisation and staging of the 2022 Commonwealth Games in a fast-paced environment.

Key Challenges

• There were multiple key challenges that needed to be addressed to ensure the successful completion of the campaign.
• Firstly, it was essential that all applicants were Qualified Solicitors in the UK with a current practicing certificate, and that they brought proven leadership and senior management experience with a track record of providing legal advice to senior management and Board level stakeholders.
• In addition, they required all applicants to bring experience in managing legal matters in an event or major sports industry – they deemed this important as the role would require advising on multiple projects simultaneously in a fast-moving and time critical environment.
• It was recognised that all members of the leadership team had to be from or have direct and credible links to the local community – this consideration was as equally important as the expertise that they required the individual to bring. The impact of this narrowed the talent pool significantly.
• This project needed to be completed quickly and efficiently and it was agreed to reduce the search window to two weeks to meet the required timescales of the organisation.

Solutions

• Speed and efficiency of delivery was crucial to the success of this search. Stakeholder briefing meetings were scheduled to build an in-depth understanding of the organisation and of the key requirements for this appointment. Given the limited search window it was essential that the most appropriate individuals were identified and targeted through the headhunting campaign.
• A comprehensive market mapping took place identifying all the organisations that operated in the events or major sporting arena that had a legal function and which were located in the Midlands area. This was then further expanded to target other skilled individuals who lived outside of the Midlands but who had prior links to the region.
• To maximise exposure and awareness of the opportunity, online advertisements were also placed on the Morgan Hunt website, Guardian Jobs, Total Jobs and on LinkedIn. • All longlisted and shortlisted candidates were comprehensively vetted – initially with a telephone interview and then a competency-based interview which addressed the key criteria in the person specification as well as detailed questioning on motivations and background.

Results

• 9 fully qualified candidates were submitted as part of the longlist supported with our recommendations. A shortlisting meeting took place with key stakeholders and 5 individuals were selected for panel interview (this was the maximum number that they wanted to see). All of these individuals met the requirements laid out in the briefing meeting.
• 2 of these individuals were then invited back for a final stage interview, both were deemed appointable however it was decided that they would offer Caroline McGrory (General Counsel for Leicester City Football Club and previously Director of Legal and Commercial Affairs for Mercedes-AMG Petronas Formula One Team).
• Support was offered in negotiating package and start date. References and required checks were also taken on behalf of the client.
• Timelines for the campaign are as follows: the briefing took place on 16th August, the shortlist meeting on the 3rd September with first and final stage interviews on the 4th and 24th September respectively. An offer was made on the 10th October and following contractual negotiations, the contract was finalised and signed on 18th October.