First female Leeds chamber president set to embrace the role

Paula Dillon has taken on the presidency of Leeds Chamber of Commerce – a role she didn’t ever think would come her way but is one she’s immensely proud to take on.

Dillon, a partner at Bond Dickinson in Leeds,  has been the vice president of the organisation for 2.5 years and when she was first asked was somewhat taken aback. One of her focuses – alongside the important issues of navigating the business community through live topics including transport, devolution, brexit, the skills gap to name a few – is to entice more people to join the chamber and continue to change its perception.

Talking to TheBusinessDesk.com, Dillon explained: “Doing this kind of thing, in all honesty, wasn’t something that I aspired to do from the outset of my career; I just didn’t think I was that kind of person.

“Something that has come home to me since taking it on is that this mindset is quite often how women behave. Every position that I have been in, I have been approached about rather than put myself forward, and I think a lot of women are like that. Years ago, women may have looked at the chamber and stayed away because its male dominance – or they have looked and thought to themselves – no, I couldn’t possibly do that.”

Dillon has over 30 years of experience as a development and investment lawyer, advising on office, retail, industrial, residential and leisure development. As well as being a Bond Dickinson board member, she also heads up the firm’s Diversity and Inclusion group and acts as member of the Northern board of the Investment Property Forum and as Vice-Chair of Opera North.

Dillon said the leadership of Sandy Needham, Chief Executive of the West and North Yorkshire Chamber of Commerce had helped to shift that perception in recent years and that she was looking forward to being part of an all-female leadership team at the helm. Amanda Beresford has taken on the role of Vice President of the Leeds Chamber.

“Because of all of that hard work, the organisation does not look like that anymore and that’s exciting. It has been a transformational shift. And Gerald Jennings has set the bar very high too,” she said.

“I would like to celebrate and encourage women to get involved. I joined because rather than sit on the sidelines, I believe in getting involved and being part of the change, to help influence people and agendas across the region and beyond. I want to build on what has already been achieved to collectively work with stakeholders in the city, the region and nationally. ”

On the top of the agenda to address is the skills gap and collaborating with the community in order to search for talent and skills which can be retained in the region. She will be looking to work closely with educators and said she was a person who wanted to see immediate, short-term action that leads to the long-term goals. She will also engage with businesses around topics including transport, the industrial strategy and devolution.

Dillon is originally from Liverpool and studied in Manchester. She moved to Leeds and worked for Booth and Co, which then became Addleshaw Goddard, before joining Bond Dickinson 4.5 years ago. She loves everything about Yorkshire – which is why she is keen to see the economy continue to grow.

Dillon added: “The firm wanted me to do this and have been immensely supportive and my clients are too. I have had the most fantastic career here in Leeds and part of me taking on the role of president will allow me to continue to learn, that is a big thing for me. In my job, I don’t know what each day will bring but that’s how businesses work and you meet interesting people along the way.

“What business needs most now is certainty. Collaboration is the key to forming that and it’s about using the intellectual capital of people so that clearer ideas and experiences come together to achieve that potential.”

Amanda Beresford is a partner and Head of Planning at UK top 200 corporate law firm, Shulmans LLP. Of her appointment as vice president, she said: “Leeds has enormous potential for economic growth. It has a great tradition of enterprise and innovation;  is a recognised leading financial and professional services centre with a significant manufacturing base and a strong university, further education and cultural offering.

“It is a growing destination for inward investment . I have spent all my working life in Leeds and I am delighted that my appointment as Vice President of The Leeds Chamber of Commerce will allow me to continue to promote the city and the voice of business within it.’

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