Col Neil Jurd OBE is director of the Army Cadet Force Initial Officer Training Course. A former regular officer, Gurkha Squadron Commander and Sandhurst Instructor, until 2020 he was Commandant of Lancashire Army Cadets. In his time with Lancashire ACF, Col Neil made significant changes to the county. Over the 5 years he led the organisation more than 500 cadets participated in overseas trips, cadet numbers grew by several hundred, a charity was formed to support underprivileged cadets, and the county was considered by regional command to be the highest performing county in the UK . At Initial Officer Training he has already transformed the course, bringing in an emphasis on leadership based on connection, compassion and inclusion, driven by a clear and compelling purpose. He emphasised the importance of personality rather than rank or position in leading others.
In his day job, he is a speaker, author and coach specialising in leadership development. His series of 30 videos about leadership and teams are in use with a large number of organisations, including the NHS, and his best-selling book ‘The Leadership Book’ gets 5 star reviews on Amazon. He has directed courses for the Leadership Trust, worked with Commonwealth Games Team Scotland and run courses for Highways England. As well as his voluntary work with the Army Cadets, he also founded a charity in memory of his wife which has made hundreds of thousands of pounds to support veterans and fund developmental activity for young people. He also part-owns the company Alertacall, which works with social housing organisations. Neil was an ACF cadet in SE London ACF. In 2020 Neil was honoured with a British Citizen Award, and he was appointed OBE in the 2021 New Year Honours List. Col Neil’s book can be found on Amazon.
