This spring we welcome Anna Maltzoff back into the fold as our Business Development Director.
Our paths first crossed in 2010 when Anna took part in a Splash Project while working for RBS. This “remarkable” experience stayed with her and, when the opportunity arose in 2019, she jumped at the chance to work with us leading our business development, leaving only due to the pandemic-related slow down.
Anna has extensive organisational change and programme management experience gained from 30+ years in banking and financial services including Business Management and Chief of Staff roles with RBS and Deutsche Bank, where she was responsible for creating high-performing global teams and establishing a positive culture at all levels.
Most recently, Anna headed-up Early Careers Vantage Point Global, a role which involved supporting the development of consultants to fulfil their potential.
Based in London, Anna is now thrilled to be back with us, leading our sales, marketing and communications strategies.
Corporate Social Responsibility is incredibly important to Anna, who is in constant demand as a coach and mentor, helping people reach their goals. Working at Splash allows her to fulfil both these passions.
Anna lives in London with her husband and their two sons and “fabulous” fox-red Labrador.
Q&A with Anna
Q1: What are your standout memories of your Splash Project experience?
My first Splash Project was awesome! I remember vividly the challenge of constructing an ambitious new playground in the freezing cold to a very tight deadline and how incredibly rewarding it felt when we handed over our (top quality!) work to the children. The appreciation and wonder on their faces brought tears to my eyes. The following day we had even more ‘ah ha!’ moments when Simon (Splash MD) led our Post Project Review session. What an incredibly powerful way to learn about project management, leadership and delivery! And there is no doubt that our culturally diverse team became more confident and effective as a result.
Q2: What did you take away from that experience that has impacted your work life since?
Through that first Splash Project I learnt key lessons about the power of teams, the importance of communicating with others clearly and, above all, having the confidence to back myself right up to the deadline and beyond!
Q3: What did your role with Splash entail last time?
Officially, I was looking after Business Development for the London area, but, like many small businesses, I got involved many things beyond that including global business development and sales work, looking after London-based charities, making our operational processes more efficient, developing our website and marketing materials, responding to Covid-19, writing articles for social media, etc. I love it when no two days are the same – and that was definitely the case at Splash!
Q4: Remarkably, Splash Projects managed to continue delivering projects during the Covid-19 pandemic – in 2021 we delivered 35 projects to 26 charities and communities in the UK and Europe, involving 5,200 participants with an estimated end-result value of £2 million – what would you attribute to this success?
Splash has incredible clients who understand the power that a Splash Project can bring – even when it was somewhat risky to run a project. These clients went ahead with projects at the very first opportunity and the publicity from those projects nudged other clients to do likewise. We are grateful to all our clients, but particularly those that commissioned projects during the pandemic.
It’s also important to give a shout out to our Project Delivery team who went the extra mile – quite literally. They travelled far and wide, Covid testing and quarantining where necessary, while adapting each project to minimise any risk of spreading Covid. Not a single participant caught Covid through a Splash Project, which is truly remarkable given the numbers we worked with.
Q5: What sets us apart from other similar businesses / what do you think Splash Projects’ USP is?
I’ve never met a more hardworking, honest, upbeat, nimble team than the one at Splash. Everyone is focused on giving project participants the best possible learning experience and leaving charity partners with a lasting legacy. It’s a refreshing environment to work in and one I’m delighted to return to.
Q6: Splash Projects bridge the gap between the business world and not-for-profit organisations or charities, giving businesses and business schools the opportunity to fulfil their corporate social responsibility (CSR) ambitions – how important is CSR to big business? Have you noticed a growing interest in the business world for them to do their bit and ‘give back’?
Businesses like talking about the CSR they’re doing on social media but only some really walk the talk and have properly embedded CSR into their values.
I’m encouraged by the ever-increasing evidence that those businesses which take CSR seriously tend to have comparatively stronger customer engagement and employee retention figures. I love seeing examples of how CSR leads to greater innovation (e.g. Unilever was able to innovate new hair conditioners that use less water). And we know that great CSR attracts high profile talent; the Gen-Z graduates from the top universities often get multiple offers but they gravitate towards the good corporate citizens – and that makes my heart sing!
In short, there’s growing interest in CSR – but there’s still a way to go. I can’t wait for the day when CSR is no longer seen as a ‘nice to have’ and instead becomes firmly established in the ‘we’d be crazy not to’ category.
Q7: What will your role with us entail this time and what are you most looking forward to?
As Business Development Director, I will be bringing together our Sales, Business Development and Communications functions into one team. I’m looking forward to getting stuck in straight away, getting to know our newer clients and charities and hopefully generating lots of interest in new projects for 2024.