Category: Stories of Impact

Vicki-Tree Stephens, unlike many CEOs she’s met, doesn’t have imposter syndrome.

“I know I’m not perfect,” she says, “but this is what you’re getting. I try my best every day and that’s all I can do.”

It’s a philosophy that has stood her in good stead throughout her career, including the past 19 years at Youth Involvement Council (YIC) in the remote Western Australian town of Port Hedland, a 17-hour drive north of Perth.

Vicki started at the organisation, which works with at-risk young people to bring positivity to their lives, in 2006, as a youth worker. After working every job in the organisation, in 2010 she was approached by the Board to take the role of CEO, a position she held for 14 years. In that time, she took an organisation that was almost insolvent, to one that has money in the bank. She oversaw an $11 million refurbishment of the YIC headquarters and the $3.5 million reconstruction of a youth crisis accommodation facility. Now, says Vicki, half the town has her phone number.

“I know the community quite well now,” she says. “There’s a lot of trauma and a lot of mental health challenges in this community. It’s an honour for people to let you into their lives, and to tell you their stories.

“I’ve stayed in Hedland longer than I thought I would, and now the Elders tell me I’m not allowed to leave.”

Giving For-Purpose Leaders Tools to Separate Self from Organisation

In 2023 Vicki was selected for the third cohort of Social Impact Leadership Australia (SILA), a 10-month professional development program designed for for-purpose CEOs, which gives leaders access to executive coaching, group learning retreats, and a tailored three-month sabbatical.

Vicki says the impact of SILA has been tenfold.

“It’s still reverberating even though it’s over,” she says. “It catalysed everything I knew I needed to do.”

One of those things was to find more balance.

“A lot of CEOs that come through the SILA program are at risk of burnout,” says Terri Soller, SILA Coach and Facilitator. “For-purpose CEOs are leading teams regularly exposed to trauma, operating in precarious funding environments, and have a lot of people relying on them to provide services and make positive change. It’s a sector that can take a personal toll.

“It’s not possible to create a thriving, sustainable for-purpose sector if those leaders with the deepest experience and relationships frequently exit due to burnout.

“Part of the work we do through SILA is give leaders tools to separate self from organisation, which gives them permission to take breaks, to switch off, and ultimately build their resilience to keep their expertise within the sector.”

Vicki, who is a self-confessed reformed workaholic, says SILA helped her understand the value of taking breaks.

“I was never a workaholic to be a hero. I just feel strong in my obligation to the work.”

The three-month sabbatical forced Vicki to step away from the organisation, during which time then YIC Operations Manager Tania Murray stepped into the role of CEO. Vicki says she did a lot of preparation with stakeholders, the team, and community before she left to make sure Tania was set up for success.

“I knew that if I didn’t commit to the sabbatical 100%, then my team and the Board would never know what they could do without me,” says Vicki.

During the three-month sabbatical, SILA supported Tania as step-up leader, providing her access to 1:1 executive coaching, a network of other step-up leaders, and a stipend for the organisation.  

“The benefits of SILA extend beyond the individual in the program,” continues Terri.

“The step-up leader and organisation are supported through the sabbatical so that while the CEO is away, the organisation stays strong. It prepares the organisation for the inevitability of new leadership, whenever that time comes.”

At the end of the three months, in April 2024, when Vicki returned to YIC, Tania told her she was ready to have her job.  

So together, they made it happen. On 1 August they hosted a CEO transition event where the community welcomed Tania and thanked Vicki for her contribution.

Vicki didn’t leave the organisation, however, and she’s remained in a leadership role responsible for training and development of the team, one month on, and one month off, using up almost 20 years of leave her former workaholic never took.

“How cool that I could leave before I was done,” says Vicki.

“Tania was born and bred in Hedland, this is home for her. And she’s still happy to have me around. I can provide that balance of support and getting out of her way, which is an important part of her growth.”

A leadership transition that maintained trust in the community

The CEO transition has meant that there is continuity of the philosophy that has driven the organisation to this point, and the trust and community relationships built over Vicki’s tenure aren’t destroyed overnight.

Tania says that as YIC’s step-up leader, she didn’t lose the experience of Vicki as CEO.

“So often a CEO moves up and out of an organisation, and you lose a person who has been embedded in a community for a long period of time. You not only lose their skill set, but you are at risk of losing the connection and trust with the community,” she says.

“In our case the trust isn’t lost, because the person hasn’t walked away. And in a community like ours, trust and relationships are everything.”

Vicki has told Tania that she’ll stick around for two more years, before quietly walking out the back door. Tania has countered with eight years. However long Vicki stays, one thing the Hedland community knows for sure, is YIC is in good hands.

Applications for the next cohort of SILA close 6 April 2025.

Negaya Chorley is CEO of Results International (Australia) and is a Cohort 3 SILA graduate. She is a Rotary World Peace Fellow and a driven leader with an inspiring mission to help tackle poverty and give voice to the world’s most marginalised people.

Negaya Chorley’s passion for development has been a central force throughout her whole life.

“At a young age, I remember having this dawning realisation of what we (our British ancestors) had done to our First Nations people, it was a painful moment where I grasped the idea of injustice. It inspired a lifelong commitment to human rights and social justice.”

This unshakable passion for human rights has been the driving force behind her extensive career. Negaya has led organisations focused on women’s rights, youth development and refugees, working across East Africa, Europe, Asia and the Pacific.

After spending more than 20 years living overseas, Negaya returned to Australia to start a family and has been working with leading development organisations such as UNICEF and the Fred Hollows Foundation. Over the last five years, Negaya has served as the CEO of Results International (Australia), an organisation that leverages millions in government funding for some of the best anti-poverty initiatives in the world.

In this capacity, she joined the 10-month Social Impact Leadership Australia (SILA) program as part of Cohort 3, with two dozen other for-purpose CEOs from South Australia and Western Australia.

Driving systems change through collaboration

Living and working in a rapidly evolving global operating environment motivated Negaya to apply for the SILA Program.

“The growing global impacts of climate change, humanitarian crises and inequality are wreaking havoc on our ability to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals. This made me reflect on the need to sharpen our tools – as individuals, as organisations and at a systems level,” she says.

Designed by and for leaders in social impact, the SILA Program offers world-class professional development to for-purpose CEOs and their organisations through personalised leadership development and capacity building.

Through the world-class SILA Program, Negaya was equipped with valuable insights and bold strategies to help drive change in her organisation.

“SILA has been incredibly helpful for our organisation. The program was comprehensive and supportive, but it also pushed us to new heights. It was a life-changing experience,” Negaya explains.

“We need strong leaders at the moment, because the challenges are enormous. SILA is invaluable to help our sector face those challenges.”

“I would tell any for-purpose leader who has the opportunity to apply to go for it,” she adds.

For Negaya, whose work has such a strong international focus, SILA was also a welcome opportunity to collaborate and connect with fellow Australian CEOs in the social change sector.

“It’s been great to be more locally rooted with other CEOs and people doing work here in Australia. I’ve come out of the SILA Program with a powerful network of 23 amazing CEO colleagues.”

Results International launched in Washington DC in 1980, with the mission to lobby the US Government to do more to end poverty. Since then, the organisation has expanded to become a global network of organisations that leverages millions in government funding for people living in poverty.

“We’re anti-poverty lobbyists, if you like,” says Negaya. “We primarily work on global health issues, preparing for future pandemics and ensuring all children are vaccinated, regardless of where they are born.”

Participatory democracy is the core of Results’ model for change. Volunteers and staff are empowered to develop relationships with their local MPs and become keen advocates for change.

For Negaya, this bottom-up model is important, especially in the current political climate.

“With democratic decline taking place around the world, grassroots advocacy is critical in helping young people feel like they’re part of shaping the future, which is key to a healthy, thriving democracy,” says Negaya.

Transformative leadership for greater social impact

SILA’s personal approach to leadership development and the opportunity to take a sabbatical were key in drawing Negaya to the program.

“As we all know, burnout is a huge issue for leaders,” she says. “The sabbatical was the first chance I’ve had to step back, to breathe and to renew. It also gave me a chance to look at our organisation’s mission in a whole new light. I was able to take a bird’s eye view and think more broadly and creatively about how we can best tackle global poverty.”

The program also encourages personal growth. “SILA encourages participants to bring their whole self to the program,” says Negaya.

“The process is very holistic and can go deep because you are not just talking about leadership in the abstract. You are wrestling with the things that have held you back.

“I’ve come out feeling really galvanised and, looking at the world’s challenges, I believe we need leaders that are galvanised, that are clear-sighted and highly capable.”

As a SILA participant, Negaya also received $35,000 of unrestricted capacity building funding for her organisation.

“With a team spread across multiple states, we used part of the funding to bring everyone together for a wellbeing retreat. It was a rare opportunity to step away from daily demands and reconnect – combining semi-structured discussions on leadership using SILA learnings with dedicated sessions on wellbeing”.

“We also allocated a portion of the funding to support our step-up leader, recognising the additional workload and responsibility she was taking on. This was a crucial investment.”

“The remainder was dedicated to professional development – ensuring lasting impact beyond the program itself.”

As applications for Cohort 5 close soon, Negaya shares this advice:

“If you’re a for-purpose CEO with the chance to apply—don’t hesitate. It was truly life-changing.”