Interview with Carolyn Miller, Merlin
What inspired you to work in the sector?
I put a lot of it down to my geography teacher. She really helped me realise the importance of having an international perspective and how different global issues are interrelated. I have always been interested in working in the social field and from an early age wanted to add value to society by supporting people with less than others.
Getting to where I wanted to be was a struggle as you need the right skills. There's a lack of opportunity for first timers in international development. This is why I am especially proud of Merlin's Internship Programme as it enables people to gain the hands-on skills needed, through work experience in head office then the field, and go on to do valuable jobs in the sector.
What is your role at Merlin?
I am lucky enough to work with some exceedingly talented and creative people who have skills across a broad range of areas. My job, as Chief Executive, is to harness those skills and pull them together so that, as a team and an organisation, we can meet our goals. Working together is key to our success.
My job involves both making sure the organisation delivers effectively and promoting the value of what we do. Sharing learning on what works best and encouraging people to support our work is really important if we are to increase the value of the organisation.
What motivates you to go to work every day?
I find working with a group of very committed people who are determined to get things done, and then being able to pinpoint our achievements, very motivating. Working together with such a diverse range of people is very important to me.
What projects are you are working on at the moment?
Our campaign, Hands Up for Health Workers, highlights the need for trained health workers throughout the world who are adequately supported. There are practical reasons why this is so important. There are currently many health initiatives globally but all need a functioning health system and skilled workers. Global players need to buy into this if we are going to see the massive increase in health workers that is needed.
Merlin can demonstrate how many more health workers it has helped train but it is equally important to promote an overall increase in the workforce in different countries. I will play my part by using evidence from our work to convince others that funding trained health workers is vital to improved health outcomes.
What impact do you hope this work will have?
That there will be more health workers at primary level in particular but also more skilled managers and planners. Ensuring that health staff get paid a living wage, have access to the training that they are entitled to, and have secure working conditions, as they often work in dangerous areas, is of great importance.
What are the main challenges of Merlin's work at the moment?
One increasing challenge is the deteriorating security situation in many of the countries we work in such as Afghanistan, Somalia and Darfur. This means that in some countries we have to work in different ways - typically more remotely - as we can't put staff lives in danger. We need extra security and our movements can be severely restricted.
In addition whilst donors increasingly acknowledge the need to give priority to fragile states, many initiatives still focus on countries that are further ahead. Donors want us to respond immediately to emergencies but are less willing to commit funding to countries with weak governments or ongoing conflict. Actions don't always follow the rhetoric and we need to keep reminding agencies of the great need that exists.
What achievement at Merlin are you most proud of?
Last year, Merlin played a significant role in responding to the devastating earthquake in Myanmar. We were able to undertake a massive operation against all the odds and are still meeting key health needs.
Equally important was our role in helping the coordination. The ‘global health cluster' made up of health organisations that are able to respond to any disaster is lead by the UN, through the WHO, and there is always an NGO that will co-lead the operation. Merlin was the co-lead for the Myanmar response. We also worked closely with the tripartite group of Association of Southeast Asian Nations, the UN and Myanmar government in assessment and monitoring. Thus we were able to play our part in the international coordination at a senior level, and also respond to scale on the ground.
Are there specific skills that you need to do your job well?
Optimism is vital when faced with all of these challenges. In addition I need to have the ability to work out how to get things done quickly and when needed to roll up my sleeves and make things happen. Between two and four times a year I visit programmes overseas. My role then is to talk to key decision-makers so that I can get our key messages across to them. Strong influencing skills are vital in this line of work.
What lessons have you learnt from your career so far?
It always takes longer to do something than you think even in a fast moving organisation like Merlin - though I'm not sure that I will ever really accept this!
I therefore often need to take one step back and give myself time to adjust to reality; I can then see what can be done in what timescale.
What is the best professional advice you have been given?
A piece of advice given to me by my manager before starting work as a country director springs to mind. He said do what you think best but never do programmes with animals because they are too risky. I ignored the advice but he was right!
Another useful piece of advice I have been given is to is to stop and ask myself if I am expecting too much of other people.
What is the key challenge for the sector in the coming year?
As a sector we need to work more collaboratively. This is already happening on some levels but often to a limited extent. It's easy to give up. We need to determine then action more meaningful ways of working together. In many ways it is crucial to our survival. This is partly because of the current funding challenges but I believe we need to do it anyway. We need to work alongside each other, rather than all promoting our own work, so that as a sector we can have a greater impact.
I am optimistic that it can happen, and as a specialist agency, Merlin is already collaborating in a range of areas. It's imperative if we are to progress further.
Carolyn Miller is Chief Executive at Merlin.
