Elizabeth provides independent strategic support, as a NED, and as a consultant on projects ranging from a few days to a year or more. She helps Boards, organisations and teams to clarify what they and their stakeholders want to achieve; to plan, and to measure delivery. Elizabeth works across all the transport and place making sectors, on decision making and business improvement.

As a teenage booking clerk on London Underground, Elizabeth was fortunate to be in an industry that invests in its people. London Transport supported her through Chartered Institute of Transport studies to gain the equivalent of a first degree, then Steer sponsored her through an MSc at Cranfield, and a consortium of local and central governments and transport operators supported further statistics study in Australia. Elizabeth is passionate about professional growth and standards and is proud to be a Vice President of the Chartered Institute of Logistics and Transport, as well as a Fellow of the RSA and Member of the Institute of Directors

Services provided

Elizabeth works across all the transport and place making sectors, on decision making and business improvement. She brings external insight

  • to help fix an entrenched problem – such as rail performance, or stakeholder, customer and supply chain relationship management
  • to resolve complexity and conflict – from Board cohesion to citizen-led decision making to contact centre service delivery
  • to build confidence and competence through objectives-led measurement, measurement and more measurement, giving every member of the team confidence that they’re doing the right things at the right time in the right way, and every stakeholder clarity on what to expect
  • to close off a project – such as a rail franchise bid – or to embed sustainable behaviours for success delivery in ongoing workstreams.

Recent examples

  • Access and Inclusion (2019) Transport for Greater Manchester wished to set priorities against customer needs. Sought out and worked with excluded groups across the region, finding positives to preserve as well as things to improve (with Steer and SRA).
  • Customer Experience Expert (2016-17) A major rail operator faced possible fines, or Breach for customer service failures. I identified systemic issues and set out a reform process and timetable. I gave the team confidence, helped them set clear objectives and a route to delivery, with metrics. I brought the regulator onside by laying out a clear and consistent process, which ORR later adopted for other TOCs in difficulty (Confidential).
  • Universally Accessible Dubai 2020 (2016) Expo 2020 required a shift in accessibility throughout the built environment in Dubai, through new laws, standards and guidelines. Delivery depended on transport, place and services bodies, many of whom were resistant to change. Elizabeth, with TAN’s Kris Beuret, set up and ran a stakeholder liaison programme across the public, private and advocacy sectors, which ended in their demanding Universal Accessibility and committing to an action plan for transformation across the Emirate. (Dubai RTA, with SRA)
  • Rail Franchise Review Manager (2015) The DfT was struggling to engage industry in a review of the franchising system. I worked with rail operators, Groups and stakeholders to identify common ground, then signed up an industry-led review group, and left it with a project plan with clear accountabilities and critical path mapping towards a more commercially effective set of contracts.
  • Transport Systems Catapult, Interim Strategy Director (2014) The Catapults aim to bring to market creative ideas in the UK. The TSC was following pet projects, so I built a common set of critical success factors which underpinned the successful start-ups spun off before Transport merged with Cities to form Connected Places.
  • City Transformation Partnerships (CIVITAS) (2008-2013) I set benefits realisation goals for professionals in over a dozen EU countries, coaching them to consult stakeholders, agree objectives, publish KPIs and measure economic, environmental and social returns, as well as direct and indirect revenues (for DGTREN, with Southampton University).
  • London 2012 Freight Advisor (2012) TfL wanted to manage the Olympic Route Network impact on business. As special advisor to National Gallery and National Portrait Gallery, I designed and led risk, priority and planning exercises for their many supply lines. In supply chain advice to 130 East London SMEs, I flagged risk during the Paralympics with holidays and roadworks suspension over, which built trust and changed behaviours

Board Service

  • Confidential advisor on corporate governance, structure and culture (2003-date)
  • 21 years as Director of a successful consultancy, focusing on policy, business and market strategies and corporate and civic capacity building (1998-date)
  • Interim Strategy Director, Transport Systems Catapult, a £50m BIS start-up (2014)
  • Advisory Board Member, EU energy DEMAND project, providing advice, guidance and scrutiny of the Centre’s research programme and its wider impact (2012-2014)
  • 13 years as Commissioner, Independent Transport Commission (2000-2013)
  • Director, Masterclass Insight Ltd. Using string quartet Masterclasses as an exemplar, training Execs to seek and use constructive criticism (2005-2007)
  • Executive Director, Passenger Services, Centro, the West Midlands PTE (1996-1998)
  • Board member, author and tutor, Transport Tutorial Association, CILT (1990-1994)
  • Advisor to Boards on market growth, stakeholder and customer relations, investment planning and benefits realisation (1987-dat

 

Elizabeth Gilliard

5 Faraday House, High Street, Rochester, Kent ME1 1EZ

07931 695704

egilliard@masterclassinsightltd.co.uk