Zohaib Razvi on Exceptional Leadership Makes Sense
““I’ve attended training courses and instantly forgotten everything the moment I left. Exceptional Leadership Makes Sense is development that stays with you forever.””
Background
Zohaib Razvi is Director and Head of Customer Experience at investment property management company, Colliers. He designs customer experience strategy for property portfolios, and leads a team that manages commercial multi-let office buildings.
Zohaib met Sally back in 2007 when he was a management trainee working for the Tower Hotel in London. His line manager had enrolled him on the Exceptional Leadership Makes Sense programme as part of their investment in developing young professionals with leadership potential.
Outcomes
Zohaib attended the programme as an aspiring leader. He was curious to learn and understand the financial and operational sides of running a hotel. Through completing the programme, he gained the skills and confidence to make the uncommon step from food and beverage to work in his hotel’s room division, taking on a variety of front-of-house roles to learn every aspect of the job.
Since then, he has had significant career development and commercial successes that he attributes to what he learned on the programme. These include:
Building a multi-skilled team to cover sickness/absence and almost eliminate the cost of external staffing resource.
Launching an internal celebration of diversity and inclusion, which uplifted and motivated the team to deliver excellent customer service.
Developing teams that go above and beyond to enhance customer experience and create a sense of belonging, generating revenue in fast-growing businesses.
Zohaib says…
I remember Zest for Life’s leadership programme with clarity and affection. It gave me a set of principles and codes I still abide by, and shaped me into the leader I am today. I was very young and inexperienced and didn’t understand the difference between a good manager and a good leader. They are not one and the same. The training made me realise I didn’t want to be a manager. It gave me an insight into leadership and a huge appetite for long-term planning and strategy. It made me realise the qualities I possessed, and how I needed to embrace them to create my own legacy.
The training and information I gained helped me to develop a strategic mindset and grab the career development opportunities that came my way. I was able to extract myself from any situation and take a high-level view of challenges. The training helped me to secure leadership roles.
One of the biggest impacts was realising I needed to be ready for the next role before it appears. I decided to own my development to always be ready for the next position - and every interview I’ve had since then has led me to securing that role.
I’ve signed up one of my team - a manager with huge potential - to Sally’s online programme. I’ve told her it’s an amazing training programme, not simply because it’s Sally delivering it. I’ve attended courses that you instantly forget the moment you leave. This is something that stays with you forever. It is delivered with sincerity and authenticity from the most energetic, cheerful and positive person you will ever meet. I take pride in being positive, but Sally takes it to the next level!
You will gain a completely different perspective on leadership styles, traits and qualities, and learn tools that will benefit you for years to come. You will discover yourself as a leader, learn how to connect with your team, how to inspire them and overcome challenges - and enjoy the process.
I wouldn’t be where I am today if I hadn’t met Sally. She’s had a huge impact on the success I’ve had in my life and career. The fact that I can still remember every detail of the training years later, speaks volumes.