The Natural Leader Blog

The Natural Leader. Detective Superintendent Jude Holmes GMP

Posted in News
24th September 2024

Jude Holmes joined Greater Manchester Police at the age of 22 and next month she retires after 30 years of serving the people of Greater Manchester.  She has worked as part of the mortuary team during the Arena bombing, influenced the force’s policy on maternity and wellbeing and lead teams dealing with domestic abuse, child protection and sexual offending. 

What does it take to be a leader and how does she choose to ‘be’ as a leader in that environment? What lessons can other leaders reading this learn from her?

She joined us for a cup of coffee to share with us her reflections on leadership and what she has learned in leading through three decades of policing in our city.

Tell us about leading in the police.

Policing is a vocation, those joining have a natural sense of service and community. To me, leadership in GMP is the ability to ground our role in our purpose. We have a very clear purpose; to serve the public, fight crime and protect people. Leadership in the police is about bringing those around me and my teams back to our collective purpose and deliver the best possible service.

What are you most proud to have been part of?

GMP is another type of family and I have been lucky to work with outstanding leaders, colleagues and mentors. There are many moments of pride in my career, three spring to mind immediately. 

  • The Manchester Arena attack was a memorable moment in our city’s history particularly for those in the emergency services.  Working with the coroner and the SWAN bereavement nurses, we pushed boundaries and challenged established processes in order to provide the best support possible for the families and loved ones of those who died. The SWAN bereavement model has been developed and cascaded nationally, providing excellent, individualised care to every patient and their family.
  • A piece of work I’m especially proud of is improving GMP’s policy and approach to family life, specifically around pregnancy maternity. I had a poor experience when I returned from maternity leave and it spurred me on to change the experience for other police officers and staff returning after having a baby. The result was better benefits, a peer support network across the force which is now grown to encompass those suffering from baby loss, increased staff retention – which means talent retention – and a reduction in sickness levels by over 50%.
  • The other area I am very proud of is our victim service model for victims of rape and sexual offences. Working with key partners such as SARC and We are Survivors Manchester during the dreadful case of Reyhard Sinagha who committed multiple sexual offences, we collaborated to provide the best service possible. The victims were truly at the heart of everything that we did and shaped how we approached the investigation. I am proud of the care we were able to show those who were involved, including focusing on their mental wellbeing.   I then tested this model in online child sexual abuse cases where many children had been affected and again it really was a gold standard approach. This is now the model for victim care for all multi-victim cases and I am proud that we are improving our approach to people affected by these heinous offenders.

How would you describe your leadership style?

I would describe my natural style as a blend between coaching and servant leadership. I have a deep curiosity about others, it may be an occupational hazard – although I also consider it a personal choice for everyone – to suspend judgement and look for the evidence of what really matters. The power of listening and asking questions cannot be underestimated.  But the single most important aspect of leadership to me is simple care, kindness and the intention to look after one another. While they may not be considered buzzwords in leadership, I believe they are the super-power of successful leaders. 

“the single most important aspect of leadership to me is simple care, kindness and the intention to look after one another”

What do you consider to be key leadership skills?

The leadership skills and values are outlined by the College of Policing which is our professional body and I do truly believe they have captured the six key areas; innovation and open-mindedness, emotional awareness, taking ownership, collaboration, supporting and inspiring others and critical analysis. These are underpinned by our Code of Ethics of courage, public service and respect and empathy.

Communication skills are absolutely vital and being able to translate “strategy to street” to ensure that messages are clear for my teams.

I’m responsible for the activities that my staff do and therefore I must create an environment of improving productivity, adherence to standards and improving quality, whilst also encouraging innovation and change management. I also have to take responsibility when things go wrong and look for improvements to ensure this doesn’t happen again, whilst not creating a blame culture. 

Positivity is again another skill that I bring to uplift people  and encourage them to be the best they can be. This can be really challenging some days but as leaders we have to demonstrate a positive attitude on the outside.

There are hundreds of thousands of brilliant police officers facing danger and conflict on a daily basis and that most will never face in their life. Bringing out their strength, resilience and sense of purpose allows them to better serve the public. I believe that by enabling them to their job by being well supported, well led and well-equipped means greater levels of protection to the public. 

What role does trust play in leadership?

There are occasions in policing, and all professions, when there is a need to have to ‘tell’ people what to do. In the police force there are many fast moving, dynamic situations where this is necessary. Just the other night I took charge of a murder investigation that had occurred as my shift began and it was a fast-moving situation. In my experience, when you invest in building trust outside those environments, people are more responsive when a dynamic situation arises, and the result is higher performance and better results. 

How do you see leading in the public sector to differ from the private sector?

Generally, police officers aren’t motivated by money. The career is far more a vocation, so the role of recognition and validation within policing is vital. Operating within public finances, there is little room for material rewards or benefits and being a highly regulated environment we have high standards of behaviour and abide by a code of ethics around corruption. 

Leaders in policing often must be highly creative in the way they acknowledge high performance to levels that perhaps other sectors may not have to. 

Which leadership challenges may those in the corporate world never experience?

The levels of personal and professional resilience needed when investigating crime. Personally, my career has involved child sexual abuse, domestic abuse and managing sex offenders, which is obviously something that is unique to policing. I’ve learned, often the hard way, about the personal impact this can have and of course the impact it may have on my own family. Ask my children and they will tell you how strict I have been on their internet and social media use!  I have found it incredibly important to set and maintain my boundaries, to develop the practice of really being able to leave the job at work and the importance in building my own resilience.

Which single aspect of leadership do you consider most powerful?

Gosh, there are so many. The police service is an organisation that is very process driven – because it needs to be, but you need people to enable the process. So, I think perhaps the most powerful aspect is the practice of flexing your leadership style to your environment. It’s comfortable to be habitual, so the practice is to become at ease using different styles. I find that it is one of the most effective ways to align those around you and quickly reach the shared goal.

With hindsight, what may you have done differently?

I initially found myself emulating those around me and at that time the style of leadership in the police force was didactic.  The habit in leadership was to tell people what to do. As many reading this will appreciate, when you coach others, they become more resourceful, more likely to align with the outcome and grow as an individual. Only then is sustainable change possible.

If every leader did just one thing, what do you think it should be?

As a mentor and coach across GMP, in any early conversation, I encourage those I am working with to take the time to understand themselves, their own values and how their values align with their role in GMP.   I never fail to be astounded by the value in this work, the resilience it untaps for the individual, how it prepares them for the many challenges that they will face and the clarity it gives them to flourish.  

As you head to retirement, what is your closing message to young leaders?

I’m proud to have served GMP for 30 years, having some outstanding mentors, and being part of some innovative changes in policing , particularly for women.

To those just beginning, I would say two things. Firstly, seek out as many opportunities to gain external perspectives and learnings as you can to deepen your understanding, it allows you to be a better leader. It also provides an opportunity to gain feedback from the community which is vital to stay current with the public and to be open about listening to others. We don’t always know the answer, so be prepared to listen and learn.

Secondly, I would say, be authentic and lead from what matters most to you. True leadership is about being there to nurture others, encourage them to grow and supporting them to thrive. 

And finally, we love a quote. What’s your favourite?

Maya Angelou “I’ve learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.

I hope that in the last 30 years, I have made people feel better