Eloise Rowan

Said the following about Samantha Lear:

“Just over a year ago I bumped into Sam whilst she was hosting an Environment Roadshow and I signed myself up to take on the voluntary role of Area Champion for the Environment (ACE). Since that day Sam has consistently gone above and beyond in order to help me. She has supported me both in a personal and professional capacity.

Without Sam's help, several of my biggest success stories/projects would not have made it past the initial stages. She always makes time to listen to my concerns or queries and goes out of her way to aid in my success and development and she never asks for thanks.

I'd really love for Sam to realise how extraordinary she is and the impact she's had on my career. I think she truly deserves some recognition.

As I considered my nomination, I realised that Sam's incredible work ethic and attitude was probably not limited to my experience, so I contacted her line manager.

Jase Brooker, Head of Environment forwarded this glowing report;

"Since Sam started at GTR she has become a valuable asset to the team, she has huge potential as a future leader and has proven time and again that her quality of work, positivity and dedication to her role goes above and beyond the values of this organisation.

Sam has taken the lead in some high-level activities and has shown her dedication to safety by represented me at key decision-making meetings which has ultimately help set the direction of the Safety and Environment Team at a strategic level.

Sam has shown pure excellence through the incredible amount of work she has done to lead and develop our Environment Champions, supporting them in their own voluntary roles and providing the support they need both face-to-face and remotely. This has allowed the ACE programme to expand, the success of which would not be possible without her valued input.

Sam shows leadership in continuous improvement by supporting and inspiring personal development for our champions and herself. She recently gained Associate Membership to the Institute for Environmental Management and Assessment (IEMA) where received an overall examinable score of 93%. The exam to gain this qualification is not easy and a result as high as that shows her deep knowledge and understanding of the role, exemplifying her pure professionalism and commitment to protecting the environment.

Sam promotes the value of working together within the Safety and Environment Team by voluntarily taking an active lead in charity work within Safety & Environment by promoting not just our corporate charities but others as well. She actively engages the team as a 'Let’s Talk' ambassador where she takes on extra responsibilities to promote engagement within the organisation on behalf of Safety and Environment; and she sits on the Excellence Panel for reviewing submissions to the staff excellence awards.

Sam is committed to customers through the support and leadership she shows to our customer facing teams, not only does she promote GTR’s values in everything she does, but she also shows all the behaviours associated with our Inspiring Leadership Framework. Sam is a fantastic role-model not just for our Environment Champions but for management grades across the organisation. This role-modelling without doubt improves the customer experience through the attitudes of our teams that she influences.

As the Head of Environment and Sam’s line manager I fully support this nomination and I think it is incredibly well deserved."“