Let's meet the third of our new Trustees, Joelle Watkins.
Joelle is a West Londoner with a passion for her family, namely an Aussie wife and Marnie the Kooikerhondje who’s really in charge.
Joelle said ‘My early years started with spells in Lebanon, Cyprus and France before laying down roots in the UK in the 90s. My day job involves managing the commercial/marketing function for BaseballSoftballUK, part-funded by Sport England and tasked with developing baseball and softball nationally.
I have a background in 360 marketing roles within travel industry which has allowed me to gain global experience across the marketing mix and work across campaigns, advertising, PR, sponsorship and trade partnerships for instance. Aviation is an extraordinary industry which will always be in my blood. Transferring across from the commercial to not-for-profit sector a couple of years ago has been a great opportunity to bring in a new approach to my organisation and our ways of working.
Other interests include a renewed love affair with tennis in lockdown and also supporting my local community including through volunteering with our local branch of Samaritans. The buzz of actively turning around a caller in distress and the opportunity to take part in the astonishing Lord Mayor’s Parade are just some of the highlights. I can’t recommend volunteering enough.
I’m a huge believer in the power of team sports as a conduit to a better, healthier life, socially and even professionally. I’ve seen friends and also experienced first-hand opportunities to travel, formed lasting friendships, learned stuff along the way, gained employment and yes, even married a teammate.
The opportunity to devote some of my time and experience to trying to effect change through sport is irresistible. Plus, I’m claiming some affinity to volleyball having played recreationally as an adult and also had the opportunity to watch indoor and beach at the 2012 Olympics, a real highlight of the Games.
Marketing is about generating curiosity, conversation and value, then converting that interest into a transaction and loyalty. The experience I’ve gained in developing supplier relationships, commercial partnerships and creating targeted campaigns to different audiences – drawing on a range of techniques – is transferrable and should come in handy when we look at how to raise funds to achieve the Foundation’s social mission.
Looking to the future I would like the Foundation’s social purpose to be understood by all, including its complementary relationship with Volleyball England, and for its financial health to be robust enough to deliver on its strategic priorities.
One of the areas I’m going to lead is on LGBTQ+ initiatives and I hope to look back in a year and see that we’ve implemented initiatives that will drive formal inclusivity in the sport for the first time.’
Welcome to the Foundation Joelle, we are all looking forward to you being part of our Foundation family.
