A passion for education – “a real leveller”

16 Feb 2022

We talk to one of our newest Board of Governors lay members, Jatin Patel about who he is, how he and his colleagues support our University – and why he was drawn to this essential role

Our University’s Board of Governors plays an essential role in supporting our ambitions and achievements.

But it is an area of our University that may not be understood as well as it might – an issue raised in last year’s independent review of our governance by Halpin.

To give everyone a better understanding, over the coming weeks and months, we’ll be featuring a series of communications looking at various aspects of the Board and its work.

So meet Jatin Patel, who joined in September, our second Board member to tell us who he is and why he was drawn to this essential role.

Can I ask, what attracted you to a role on the Board in the first place?

I have always been passionate about education, and the role education can play in improving the lives and opportunities for young people, regardless of their background… A successful education system, including higher education, can be a real leveller! So when this role came up to be part of one of the largest and most successful educational establishments in the UK, I jumped at it. The University of Manchester can really make a difference and with my skills and experience from the corporate world, I hope I can make a difference to the Board.

What are your top three core skills (or areas of expertise) that you bring to the Board?

I have more than 20 years of experience in financial services and management consulting. I have undertaken general management and commercial roles in that time. The top three skills / areas of expertise I hope to bring to the Board are:

Digital Transformation. Over the past few years, I have led the digital businesses within the banks and insurance companies I have worked with, driving significant change to benefit our customers and the business
Launching new ventures – new products, new lines of business and new channels
Using Data and analytics to drive performance improvement across pricing and marketing

What are the three things that have impressed you most about the University in your time on the Board?

It’s early days in my role with the University but what I have seen so far has been hugely impressive.

The scale of the operation; the number of staff, the number of students, the financial commitments the University has – up there with some of biggest FTSE companies I have worked with. Everyone at the University does an amazing job to keep the show on the road.
The commitment from everyone I have met make the University a better place to work and learn – from the all the members of the Board (including the student and staff members), the Management team and other staff I have met.
The investment the University is making to improve learning and research facilities – MECD is pretty impressive!!

What have been the most challenging topics you’ve had to discuss/take a view on so far in your Board deliberations?

As I said, its early days for me on the Board, so I am sure there will be some challenging topics to come over the coming months and years, but so far:

Equality, Diversity and Inclusion. A massive challenge that society as a whole needs to solve, but the University is such an important part of society so it needs to be at the forefront of change in this space. I am glad the University is investing time and effort into improving EDI but I suspect we are only at the start of long journey over the coming months and years.
Hearing about some of challenging experiences students (and staff) have had to manage through the COVID pandemic over the past two years… I know it’s not been an easy environment to teach, learn and grow; and some difficult decisions have had to be made.
The financial future of the University. To continue to have the funds to provide top level learning and research, changes will have to be made. Fee income from UK students is declining in real terms and the environment for international students and the income they bring is fluid, so how the University reacts to that, and still provides top quality learning, is the biggest question we need to answer at the moment.

What would your top three tips to anyone who wanted to take on a Board Member role in the future?

My tips would be:

Be clear on the role of a Governor/Board member versus the Senior Leadership Team. The Board is there for oversight, support and challenge (and approve certain big decisions) not to make day-to-day decisions on how the University is run – that is for the management team.
Get to know the university and the sector challenges. Actual board and committee meetings only take a fraction of your working week/month, so having background conversations and doing background reading is important.
And make sure you contribute some of your unique skills and experiences inside and outside of Board meetings – the point of the Board is to bring some diverse and different views to the table so if you don’t do that, you won’t be doing your job!

When not working or acting on the Board of Governors, what do you focus on doing professionally?

I am Chief Commercial and Marketing Officer for Hastings, a mid-size general insurance company in the UK, with 3 million plus customers in the UK. In my role, I focus on proposition and business development, pricing, digital transformation and marketing. As part of the role, I sit on the Executive Committee of the company which means I also shape the overall strategy for the organisation. I previously did a similar role at TSB bank.

When you are not working, what are your hobbies/interests?

Well, I have three children (twins aged 10 and my eldest, aged 12) who keep me busy most of the time! As a family we love the theatre, outdoor activities (lots of cycling and mountain climbing) and I’m a big football fan (not sure if I should say this, given I am on the Board of The University of Manchester, but I am a big Liverpool FC fan!!)

And to finish up...favourite film, book and piece of music?

Favourite film: Back to the Future (all three of them!) Favourite book: Love historical fiction – Birdsong is one of my favourites. Favourite music: Imagine, Lennon.

Further information

You can get further information on our Board of Governors at: