As Hormoz steps back from an active role with Result CIC, Jane reflects on more than a decade of working closely with him.
Have you ever worked closely with someone with whom you truly bond? You are fortunate if so – in my experience, it’s a rare occurrence. At work, we tend to have to bump along with a variety of souls with whom we would not, if we are honest, choose to spend much time. It’s important, of course, to learn how to adapt to others, but when a colleague is also an ally and friend, that’s when magic can happen.
Following a period of intense discrimination in a previous place of employment that left me reeling physically, mentally and emotionally, I got lucky; I met Hormoz. It was Andy Hilton, Result’s (now) Director Emeritus, who introduced us. I already knew Andy from work with RADAR (now Disability Rights UK), and so I asked his advice on finding a Manchester-based co-facilitator for a programme I had been asked to run. He suggested his colleague at Result CIC, which they had recently founded, one Hormoz Ahmadzadeh.
Hormoz and I clicked immediately. At the very first workshops we ran together for a Manchester disabled-led charity, it felt as if we had worked together for a long time. The natural rapport between us – the type of communication that goes well beyond words – was something the workshop participants commented on. In fact, they said found it hard to believe when we told them we were working together for the first time. The 12 years since that first programme have gone by so alarmingly quickly.
When Hormoz and Andy asked me to join Result CIC as third Director, I felt incredibly honoured (and lucky – again). It felt so positive to be able to contribute ideas and contacts to an organisation which exists to support people who feel excluded – people like me.
An important element of the bond between Hormoz and me, was our common experience of exclusion. Despite coming from very different backgrounds, we had both experienced the searing pain of isolation because we were perceived as ‘different’. As well as working together, we developed together – helping each other both to figure out and navigate some of the twists and turns of our lives, our business and our work.
We have had some incredible experiences together at work including so many dazzling, personal breakthroughs - too numerous to begin to describe. A word we would use regularly was, ‘humbling’. To witness people taking a new, positive path and, having their experiences validated, finding themselves able to tell their story (often for the first time), was indeed humbling. And we loved being able to use our own experiences to create a safe space for these stories to be heard and these developments to happen.
I want to pay testament here to Hormoz’s exceptional skill as a leader, facilitator and coach. Many of you reading this will have been touched personally by this and will know what I am talking about. Hormoz’s ability to really listen, quietly and patiently, and to reflect before speaking is outstanding. It made – and makes – him a great coach and comrade. He also has the ability to keep perspective on issues. As someone who experienced extended PTSD from my discrimination, I tended to be pessimistic and jump on any tiny problem as evidence of how everything was about to totally fall apart. Hormoz would kindly and gently point out the many reasons why this was not necessarily the case, helping me see the bigger picture. With this help, I gradually learned to react less powerfully to those small triggers.
The work could be intense. Until fairly recently, we tended to do everything ourselves. Humour was important, as was honesty. Sometimes honesty can also be painful of course, but as Result CIC advocates openness, so we had to practise it ourselves too!
Hormoz and I are very different. We often joked that he represented the East and I the West. He is all spontaneity and fluidity, whereas and I am all about systems, plans and structures. Happily, we learned to meet in the middle and found that we complemented each other’s styles; it has all been about respecting each other’s style (and not teasing each other too much!).
After years of working with someone who is not just a colleague but also a friend, you find a natural rhythm together. How do you let go of that? That process, I have discovered, is definitely not easy. In a sense, you have to redefine the relationship and, without the structure and habits of work, almost start again. I think it’s fair to say that we have experienced separation anxiety more than once. The big changes needed to help Result CIC make this transition have taken their toll - both physically and emotionally; however, complete honesty and always keeping communication open have helped us complete this journey successfully.
I feel fortunate, grateful and am very proud to have worked with Hormoz so successfully and so happily for over 12 years and although I and my colleagues here at Result shall miss working alongside him, as my dear friend and neighbour, I know I can look forward to many more enjoyable, funny and thought-provoking conversations with him in future (no gossip though!).