Having spent decades in people function leadership roles, I’ve seen firsthand how culture and inclusivity can shape an organisation.
Traditionally, law has been a somewhat male-dominated field. But at rradar, we’re doing things differently. We’ve built a flexible legal firm focused on preventative law and a very different structure. In doing so, we’ve attracted a large and growing team, which now stands at over 250 professionals—more than half of whom are women.
As a female board member, I take pride in fostering a culture where talent thrives, regardless of background. Here, I share how we’re breaking barriers and reshaping the future of law through a people-first approach.
My career journey
I started in financial services, working my way up in HR before deciding to move into international work. I joined a global division of Provident Financial, working across Eastern Europe, Central Europe, and Mexico. There was a lot of change in the Financial sector at that time, which saw frequent restructuring and reshaping of the HR agenda. For me, it presented endless opportunities to develop, and with the encouragement and support of a strong female mentor, I embraced every one of them.
After two years at Provident Financial, my daughter was born and my priorities shifted. International travel was no longer attractive when I had a baby at home, but I still craved roles that would offer the same drive and variety. I went into outsourcing, which was very dynamic and agile, working in recruitment and learning and development, leading a team of 50 recruitment and learning professionals across 4 locations, growing to a team of 180 across 22 locations nationally, and supporting international growth.
After that, I moved into an outsourced HR services business and then into a generalist people director role in insurance before joining rradar in 2020. A passion for pace, dynamism, and transformation has been a common thread throughout my career. I’ve led transformational programmes, navigated large multi-country teams, and supported businesses in delivering significant revenue and profit targets with a strategic people agenda.
Setting an example for others
My daughter turns 18 this year, and it’s always been important to me to role model how I’ve achieved my potential while helping her realise hers. Juggling a busy career and home life, my first priority has always been to be there for her, from the bigger life-changing moments to helping her navigate through those day-to-day challenges, crises and moments of self-doubt that have equipped her with the skills, experience and confidence for her to become the kind, strong, independent and confident young woman she is today.
This personal connection fuels my commitment to supporting and empowering women at rradar, ensuring they have the opportunities and confidence to thrive. I want to create a culture where others do well and aspire to leadership roles.
As a woman in leadership, I’ve learnt to have confidence in myself and my ability and not be afraid to articulate my views, even if I have a strong perspective on something. Effective leadership is about having high expectations, empowering and supporting those around you to achieve, and being able to recognise what truly matters in a business where we’re constantly spinning multiple plates.
How we get there is just as important as the outcome itself. These qualities have been critical to my success and are essential for any leader navigating complex, fast-growing industries.
Challenging the status quo
rradar’s model uniquely positions it to disrupt the market and redefine its talent pool compared to traditional law firms. The business acquired Alternative Business Structure status, which was transformational because it meant the business could employ expertise from a wide array of specialisms: marketing, technology and more. It’s also made it possible for me to hold a seat on the Board despite not having a legal background.
In traditional firms, the people function is often seen as a support role, not a strategic one. What drew me to rradar was the opportunity to influence the direction of the business in a much broader way, and the ability to wear hats that you probably wouldn’t get in a larger corporate where you’re pigeonholed into service deliverables.
I was also drawn to rradar by Gary Gallen’s ambition—his vision for what he wanted to achieve and his determination to challenge the market. He wasn’t looking to follow the traditional legal model; he wanted to transform it.
For me, the people function is about transformation—about building a business through the capability of its people. My role at rradar is to proactively drive the business forward by bringing people together, engaging them, and helping them perform at their best.
Recruiting and developing talent in a dynamic business
At rradar, we embrace the challenges and opportunities of recruiting, developing the next generation of talent, and fostering growth from within. My diverse experiences have been a real enabler in bringing fresh perspectives to how we shape both the business and its people.
Recruiting and developing talent in a growing, dynamic business requires a shift in mindset. It’s not just about attracting young, driven individuals to join a business that challenges the status quo with a preventative approach over more traditional models. Our unique structure also enables us to tap into skill sets across legal, marketing, technology, data science and more.
Equally important is nurturing talent from within. Growth comes in many forms, whether through new roles in different areas or development stretches into new knowledge areas. Our people function is crucial in aligning these opportunities with the right individuals. We help cultivate entrepreneurial and innovative professionals, ensuring they are equipped to drive the business forward – whether that be in the role they came to us for, or in something completely different.
Another important aspect of nurturing talent is balancing flexibility and work-life balance. The flexibility involved in ABS means we can accommodate different work-life balances, which is often crucial for employees with caring responsibilities. I’m a working mum. I’ve been full-time since my daughter was nine months old; I know the pressures of leaving your child in nursery and trying to wrestle with long hours and commitment. So I’m behind the importance of flexible working and getting the right balance.
Driving a people-first approach
Having a people-first strategy is crucial for driving a purpose-led business forward. As a people leader, I need to work out how we connect that overarching purpose on an individual level, ensuring everyone is working towards the same goal. It requires strong leadership and management capability within our business.
Creating that sense of purpose, drive and ambition for people comes down to those day-to-day interactions. What makes people passionate about what we do and understand why we do it? Pushing out messages to the business isn’t enough. Instead, we focus on ensuring our management and leadership teams exemplify that purpose on the ground.
As the business grows and sets plans for international expansion, we’ll continue to structure the business creatively and enable our people to grow to keep pace with the company’s needs to get that work done. For me, that is part of the challenge and excitement – how we combine all the ingredients and different capabilities to achieve the business goals.
Our people function is crucial in helping individuals recognise their potential—even if all those future skills don’t exist today. It ultimately empowers them with the confidence to grow, develop, and succeed in new roles.
With decades of experience in leadership and board level roles across financial services, outsourcing, and insurance, Sarah Blanchfield specialises in transformational programmes, leading large multi-country teams and supporting businesses in delivering significant revenue and profit targets with a strategic people agenda. At rradar, she is key in aligning the people function with business success, ensuring teams thrive in a dynamic and evolving industry.