In the world of higher education leadership, few stories are as inspiring as that of Professor Sally Jackson. From overcoming a devastating car accident that derailed her university plans to becoming Pro Vice Chancellor at Sheffield Hallam University, her journey exemplifies the transformative power of resilience and lifelong learning.
“My career didn’t start off in the way that I wanted it to, or indeed expected it to,” Sally reflects. After a serious car accident during her A-levels left her with brain damage, her neurosurgeon advised against university. But this setback merely redirected her path. Starting in a high street bank, she worked her way through the private sector before finding her calling in higher education.
The journey to higher education
Her entry into academia came through an unexpected opportunity while working at the National Trust, where she collaborated with the University of Birmingham. “I love the complexity. I love the challenge. I love the fact that no two days were ever the same,” she says about working in higher education. Her passion for developing others led her to pursue a professional doctorate in coaching and mentoring, focusing on women’s authentic careers in higher education.
This pursuit wasn’t just about personal achievement. When challenged about her qualifications to teach academics without a PhD, Sally took it as an opportunity rather than an obstacle. “Throw me a challenge and I’ll usually take it,” she says. She chose a professional doctorate in coaching and mentoring at Oxford Brookes, appreciating the community spirit and societal importance of the program.
Transforming leadership from within
At Sheffield Hallam University, Professor Jackson revolutionised the approach to career advancement. “We completely redesigned the whole approach to becoming an associate professor or a full professor,” she explains. Rather than limiting progression to research achievements, she introduced a four-strand system incorporating research and innovation, teaching and learning, external and professional engagement, and academic citizenship and leadership.
“Yes, of course research is important,” she emphasises, “but quality research-informed teaching and learning is also really important. External engagement is too.” This innovative approach opened new pathways for advancement, particularly benefiting women academics who might excel in areas beyond traditional research metrics.
The transformation wasn’t limited to academic roles. As Chief People Officer and Pro Vice Chancellor for Equality, Diversity and Inclusion, Sally championed a holistic approach to organisational development. “If you get the organisational development correct, some of the human resources issues get managed through development,” she explains, highlighting her strategic approach to institutional change.
The Aurora effect
Since 2013, Sally has been a passionate champion of Aurora, Advance HE’s leadership development programme for women in higher education, serving as a mentor, role model, and guest speaker. “It’s this wonderful trajectory of seeing women coming in on the Aurora programme, thinking ‘I can’t do this,’ to ‘actually maybe I can,’ to ‘Oh my goodness, I’ve done it!'”
Her approach to mentoring goes beyond conventional one-on-one sessions. When faced with high demand at Sheffield Hallam, she innovated by introducing group mentoring sessions, allowing women with similar challenges to support each other while benefiting from her guidance. “We would do some group mentoring so that if we had a common issue that people were struggling with, like applying for associate professor positions, we could address it collectively,” she explains.
“I think it’s creating, maintaining and driving that pipeline of women all the time. It’s critical, absolutely critical,” she says. Under her leadership, Sheffield Hallam has put over 120 women through the Aurora programme, with many advancing to senior positions.
Breaking down barriers
Professor Jackson’s perspective on career development is refreshingly nuanced. “I think that Aurora isn’t all about promotion,” she insists. “It’s about developing yourself first and foremost, whether that’s within your identity or whether that’s within leadership…Once you become fully developed, then so often the promotion will come because people will see it in you.”
She’s particularly passionate about supporting late developers and those who’ve faced setbacks. “Through absolutely no fault of their own, we’ve got some really, really good people who are perhaps in the lower grades and actually, with a bit of help and a bit of coaxing, then coaching, can achieve fantastic things.”
A lasting legacy
Perhaps most telling is the joy that Sally takes in others’ success. “There is no substitute for that fantastic feeling of elation when I see somebody who, perhaps I might have helped a little bit, achieve something. It’s just wonderful.”
Her impact continues even after retiring from her formal university role, as she maintains her commitment to Aurora as a guest speaker and mentor. “If I can help the next generation coming through, then that’s my absolute privilege,” she says.
“It’s that magic moment when you see the potential in somebody and they don’t recognise it, then suddenly something switches and they think ‘I can do this’ and then give them another couple of months and they’ve done it. That’s magic.”
It’s a story that reminds us that transforming leadership in higher education isn’t just about changing systems – it’s about believing in people’s potential and giving them the support they need to realise it. Through her work with Aurora and beyond, Professor Sally Jackson has helped create a more inclusive, dynamic and opportunity-rich environment in higher education, proving that sometimes the most powerful leadership comes from helping others recognise and achieve their own potential.
About the author: Professor Sally Jackson is former Chief People Officer and Pro Vice Chancellor for Equality, Diversity and Inclusion at Sheffield Hallam University.
This article has been kindly repurposed from Advance HE and you can read the original here.