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Top Insider Advice
The army taught me a lot about personal values and it’s something I always look back to. Apply them into everything you do and you’ll go far. Make it clear where you want to get to in the future and take opportunities to learn and grow to get there. Always reach out to people as you never know where this will take you. Most importantly, do things outside your comfort zone regularly and what was previously daunting or hard will become easy!
Career path
Fraud Team Leader
First Central
Started 05/2021 to PresentCombat Medical Technician
British Army
From 03/2011 to 04/2018Company
What do you like about your job and the company?
I have the pleasure of interviewing potential colleagues. It’s amazing to meet someone at interview stage then, fast forward a year, seeing them pass probation and move through the levels. Growing as individuals and employees, learning skills and progressing through their own careers. It’s amazing to be part of that journey to help mentor and guide them.
Greatest achievements
This is a huge achievement I’ve always been proud of. I was a lead medic in a team based in Moyamba, Sierra Leone, treating Ebola patients alongside providing clinical support to locals. This was one of my first experiences in a leadership role and I learnt so much from the six months I spent there. It was an extremely challenging operation, however one that will stand out forever because I grew so much during this period. It was here I realised just how important teamwork is in a lot of the work we do and that’s something I’ll always take away from this experience.
Ali C
Top Insider Advice
Volunteering in Employee Resource Groups (ERGs) and Climate / Social Rights Groups can be an excellent way to get exposure to ESG and set yourself up for future career opportunities. Not only does it give you a chance to learn more about the issues at hand and the various approaches being taken to tackle them, but it also allows you to develop key skills such as leadership, project management, and communication - all of which are highly valued in the ESG space. By getting involved in ERGs and social groups, you can gain a deeper understanding of the importance of diversity, equity, and inclusion, and how it intersects with ESG. You can also learn about the various ways in which companies are approaching sustainability, social responsibility, and governance, and gain valuable insights into how these approaches impact business performance and reputation. But perhaps most importantly, volunteering in ERGs and social groups is a great way to build connections and expand your network in the ESG space. By working alongside like-minded individuals who are passionate about creating a better world, you can forge relationships that may lead to future career opportunities or collaborations.
Angela W
Policy Review Specialist
Top Insider Advice
They often outweigh the negatives but get overlooked. Is a bad day really a bad day? Weigh it up and look for the positives. You’ll probably find it wasn’t so bad after all.
Alana R
Top Insider Advice
Throughout my career I’ve been on a learning journey regarding how I communicate. When I first started out, I was very shy and found it difficult to communicate confidently. I’d be nervous sending an email to someone I’d never met and spend hours over-analysing the content to make sure it was ‘perfect’ before sending it. As I sent more and more emails, met more people, and put myself out there for presentations, I grew in confidence but I still had a lot to learn. I’d often go into the specifics of everything and give people information overload because I was worried about missing something important. I got a lot of feedback around this and was regularly asked to “keep it high-level”. I really had to work at this, and I needed to get help from peers, mentors, managers and external research to understand what this meant, when it mattered and how to be effective at a higher level of detail. With years of practice, I am now much better at communicating and that’s helped me progress into a leadership position. This is just one example of me learning a skill which I thought was impossible. If I can do it, so can you!