At Jenny Garrett Global, social value is not a line in a tender document. It is woven into why we exist.

For twenty years, our work has been built on a single conviction: that the right leadership development, at the right level, changes lives. That conviction does not stop at the edge of the corporate programmes we deliver. It extends to the students, young people, and emerging leaders who are just beginning to find their way – in the UK and increasingly around the world.

Recently, I spoke virtually to MBA students at Adithya School of Business Management in Coimbatore, India. They were ambitious, curious, and at that particular moment in life where everything feels possible and uncertain in equal measure. The session was a reminder of why this kind of work matters – and why JGG has always seen investing in the next generation as a core part of what we do, not an add-on.

The Adithya session was part of a wider pattern of JGG’s international reach. Earlier this year, I completed a speaking tour across India – Delhi, Coimbatore, Hyderabad, and Mumbai – keynoting at Jubilant Tamil Nadu 2026 to an audience of 25,000 people, and speaking at Stanford Seed Network events on topics including antifragile leadership, human skills in an AI world, and intrapreneurship. Reaching leaders and future leaders outside the UK is not an occasional bonus. It is part of how we understand our mission.

Why Global Reach Is Part of Our Social Value Commitment

Leadership development has a reach problem.

The best programmes – the ones that genuinely shift how people lead, how they see themselves, and how they create change around them – tend to go to the organisations that can already afford them. The people who most need to hear that their background is not a ceiling, that their perspective is an asset, that persistence matters more than a perfect starting point – they are often the last to receive that message.

JGG exists to push against that. Through our corporate programmes, we reach diverse talent inside major organisations – the people who are often the most capable and the least supported. Through our speaking work, we reach future leaders at business schools, conferences, and gatherings around the world. Through Rocking Ur Teens CIC – our co-founded social enterprise now in its 13th year – we reach over 3,000 young people annually across the UK, many from backgrounds where leadership feels like someone else’s territory.

The thread connecting all of it is the same: we believe that leadership potential is not evenly distributed by background, but opportunity often is. Our job is to narrow that gap.

What I Shared With MBA Students in India

The session at Adithya School of Business Management covered leadership, career development, and the question I find most useful to put to any ambitious young person: what would you do if you were not afraid of getting it wrong?

I shared three things I wish someone had told me earlier.

The first was that curiosity is more important than a plan. Business schools are excellent at teaching frameworks. They are less consistent at teaching people to stay curious once they have one. The leaders I have worked with who plateau are rarely the least skilled. They are the ones who stopped asking questions.

The second was a reframe on background. What looks like disadvantage – not having the right network, not coming from the right place, not knowing the right people – often contains exactly the qualities that make exceptional leaders. Resilience. Resourcefulness. The ability to read a room. Comfort with uncertainty. The world does not need more leaders who have only ever known smooth surfaces. It needs leaders who know how to navigate difficult terrain.

The third was about persistence. The people who tend to make the biggest difference are not always the most talented people in the room. They are the ones who kept going when it stopped being easy.

The feedback from that session was overwhelmingly positive – students reflecting on their own backgrounds with new eyes, asking how to build careers without conventional networks, sharing what had shifted for them in the conversation. That is the impact we are here to create.

The Personal Roots of Our Mission

My own journey informs everything JGG does.

I grew up in social housing. My mum raised me largely on her own. Nobody in my immediate world had run a business or held a C-suite role. I did not know to aim for those things – my best ambition was a job and a pension.

What I did have was curiosity. I read widely. I went to events that interested me. I studied art at A-level and dreamed of fashion design before life took a different turn. I did not put myself in a box, even when the world around me suggested I should.

Twenty years later, I hold an OBE for services to Entrepreneurship and Women in Business. I have keynoted at Stanford Seed Network events, spoken at the Houses of Parliament, and now reached students on the other side of the world. None of it was in the plan. There was no plan. There was only the next right thing, pursued with curiosity and a willingness to be uncomfortable.

That experience is not just my story. It is the reason JGG exists – to make sure that more people get access to the development, the role models, and the belief that their starting point does not determine their destination.

Two Strands of Social Value, One Mission

JGG’s social value work runs through two parallel strands.

The first is our corporate programmes – multi-year partnerships with organisations including the NHS, UK Parliament, National Gas, and major Financial Services firms – where we develop diverse talent, their managers, and senior sponsors simultaneously. Our Tri-Level methodology has achieved promotion rates of 35% and above and recommendation scores of 98%. When we help someone from a minoritised background reach senior leadership, we change not just their life but the culture of the organisation they lead.

The second is our direct investment in the next generation. Rocking Ur Teens CIC – which I co-founded with Sandy Parris and Geoffrey Williams – has now reached over 3,000 young people across the UK, running annual conferences that connect teenagers from underrepresented communities with professionals, role models, and career pathways they might never otherwise encounter. You can read the full story of this work in More Than Leadership Development: How Jenny Garrett Global Gives Back. Our speaking work at business schools, universities, and gatherings like Anthropy26 extends that investment internationally.

Together, these strands reflect what we believe social value really means: not a tick-box exercise, but a sustained commitment to making leadership development available to those who need it most. We have written in depth about what meaningful social value looks like in public sector procurement, and about why social value is the future of business – both worth reading alongside this piece.

What This Means for Organisations Who Work With Us

When you commission JGG, you are not just investing in your own talent pipeline. You are partnering with an organisation that takes its wider responsibilities seriously – to the communities it works in, to the young people it reaches, and to the future of leadership itself.

For procurement teams evaluating social value credentials, we are happy to provide our full impact data, including Rocking Ur Teens’ alignment with Gatsby Benchmarks 2, 3, 5 and 6 for careers education, and our track record of delivering programmes for public sector and third sector clients alongside major corporates.

For speaking enquiries – whether at business schools, leadership conferences, or internal company events – Jenny speaks internationally on inclusive leadership, the future of work, AI and equity, and building careers from unlikely starting points.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is Jenny Garrett Global’s approach to social value?

Jenny Garrett Global embeds social value at the core of its business, not as an add-on. This includes multi-year leadership development programmes for diverse talent inside major organisations, co-founding Rocking Ur Teens CIC which has reached over 3,000 young people across the UK, and international speaking engagements at business schools and leadership gatherings. The consultancy was founded by Jenny Garrett OBE, who grew up in social housing and built JGG on the conviction that leadership potential is not determined by background.

Does Jenny Garrett Global have social value credentials for public sector tenders?

Yes. JGG has a 13-year track record of community impact through Rocking Ur Teens CIC, with over 3,000 young people reached, 250+ schools served, and 5,000+ hours of professional time volunteered. Rocking Ur Teens delivers against Gatsby Benchmarks 2, 3, 5 and 6 for careers education. Jenny Garrett OBE holds an OBE for services to Entrepreneurship and Women in Business, and JGG has delivered programmes for the NHS, UK Parliament, National Gas, Equans, and major Financial Services firms.

Does Jenny Garrett speak at business schools and universities?

Yes. Jenny Garrett OBE speaks internationally at business schools, universities, and leadership conferences on inclusive leadership, AI and equity, career development, and building leadership careers from non-traditional starting points. She recently spoke virtually to MBA students at Adithya School of Business Management in Coimbatore, India, and has keynoted at Stanford Seed Network events and spoken at the Houses of Parliament.

What is Rocking Ur Teens CIC?

Rocking Ur Teens CIC is a social enterprise co-founded by Jenny Garrett OBE, Sandy Parris, and Geoffrey Williams. Now in its 13th year, it runs annual conferences connecting young people from underrepresented communities with professionals and role models across business, sport, media, and the public sector. It has reached over 3,000 young people from 250+ schools and delivers against Gatsby Benchmarks for careers education.

How does JGG’s leadership development create social value for organisations?

JGG’s Tri-Level methodology develops diverse talent, their line managers, and senior sponsors simultaneously – creating systemic change rather than individual development in isolation. This approach has achieved promotion rates of 35% and above during programmes and recommendation scores of 98%. By helping organisations develop inclusive leadership cultures, JGG creates social value both inside those organisations and through the wider communities those leaders serve.

How can I find out more about JGG’s social value work or speaking engagements?

To discuss JGG’s social value credentials for procurement purposes, or to enquire about speaking engagements, get in touch. You can also read more about our inclusive leadership programmes and how JGG gives back.

About the Author

Jenny Garrett OBE is the founder and CEO of Jenny Garrett Global, a leadership development consultancy working with organisations across sectors on inclusive leadership, entrepreneurial leadership, and AI-ready leadership. She speaks internationally on leadership, equity, and the future of work. To enquire about speaking engagements or social value partnerships, get in touch.