This month’s Member Spotlight features Adam Hennessy CPMgr MIML, Access Manager at UAC and Member of NSW Sentencing Council.
With experience across government, education, and public service, Adam reflects on how adaptability, stakeholder engagement, and productivity combined with the CPMgr accreditation has shaped his leadership approach. He also shares practical insights for emerging leaders looking to create lasting impact.
Tell us about your leadership journey. How did it begin, and what defining moments have shaped your path along the way?
My leadership journey began in public safety, working in environments where decisions carried real consequences for people’s lives. From policing to juvenile justice to child protection, I learned early that leadership is about more than authority, it’s about clarity under pressure, fairness in complexity, and the ability to unite people behind a purpose. Over time, I’ve moved into senior strategy, governance, and equity-focused roles across education, health, and justice. The defining moments have always been the same: when I’ve helped a team deliver something bigger than themselves and seen the tangible impact on the communities we serve.
How would you describe your leadership style, particularly in your work with the NSW Sentencing Council? In what ways has your approach evolved over time?
I’d describe my style as measured, analytical, and people focused. On the Sentencing Council, decisions must balance legal rigour with public trust, you can’t achieve that without listening deeply to diverse perspectives and distilling them into clear, principled recommendations. Over time, I’ve shifted from being purely solutions-driven to being just as focused on how we get there, ensuring the process builds relationships, respect, and a stronger foundation for future work. This is especially vital in a high-powered environment like the sentencing council which is an amalgam of high profile extremely intelligent and opinionated (in the best way) people.
In your role at UAC, how have you adapted your leadership to meet the challenges of increasing complexity and hybrid work models? What strategies have helped you boost productivity across your team or organisation?
Hybrid work requires intentional leadership, you can’t rely on hallway conversations to build cohesion. At UAC, I’ve embedded clear structures for accountability, communication, and decision-making so location doesn’t determine influence or visibility. I invest in training, so my staff have the skills and confidence to deliver, I embed levels of autonomy that encourages ownership, of tasks and areas. We thrive in a high-trust environment, built on kindness and mutual respect, that enables people to make decisions without fear, focus on outcomes over presenteeism, and raise challenges early. Productivity comes from clarity of purpose, removing friction points, and ensuring people know that they and their work is valued and understood.
Looking back on your leadership journey, how has the CPMgr accreditation supported your growth and enhanced your ability to lead high-performing, results-driven teams?
The CPMgr accreditation has provided external recognition of the standards I’ve held myself to for years, continuous development, ethical decision-making, and measurable outcomes. It’s reinforced the discipline of regular reflection, benchmarking against best practice, and ensuring that both I and my teams are equipped to adapt to changing demands without losing sight of core values.
The Accelerate course was a great strategic thinking and analysis primer which helped shape my thinking and improve some of my processes.
How do you and your team manage competing priorities while consistently delivering high-quality outcomes?
I ensure in my team we anchor decisions in purpose, when you’re clear on why the work matters, it’s easier to prioritise and to say “no” to distractions that dilute impact. I set transparent priorities, track progress and foster an environment of kindness and trust, where people feel safe to speak up early about risks or challenges. I embed; through action that credit is less important than collective achievement. I do this by focusing on removing obstacles and protecting the team’s energy. They are lauded for the victories; I am responsible for the deficits. This blend of clarity, trust, and selfless/servant leadership keeps quality high, even when the workload is intense and competing priorities abound.
You engage with a diverse range of stakeholders, from government officials and universities to the broader public. What’s your approach to managing these varied expectations and building strong, trusted relationships?
I focus on building credibility before it’s needed. That means delivering consistently, being transparent about constraints, and actively seeking to understand each stakeholder’s priorities.
I pride myself and see it as a necessity to be the most informed and smartest person in the room on whatever the given topic/problem/issue is. This involves research, study and constant learning.
Trust is built in the small moments, the returned phone call, the extra effort to clarify a point, evidencing subject matter expertise and the commitment to follow through even when the answer isn’t what they wanted to hear.
What advice would you offer to emerging leaders who want to make a lasting impact in their field?
Lead with purpose, not just position. Anchor your decisions in values that outlast your title. Build trust as your most valuable currency, give credit away, take responsibility in. Be curious, not certain, seek diverse perspectives. Balance results with relationships, knowing people are the soil from which outcomes grow. Lead with self-awareness and empathy, recognising your impact on others. Think in decades, act in days, long-term vision paired with daily progress creates lasting change. Above all, measure your leadership not by what you achieve in your name, but by what endures and thrives long after you’ve stepped away. That is true impact.
