I knew I wanted to work in events, ever since a meeting with a careers advisor when I was 14 and they said I’d do well in the events industry.
So for me, it was key to work hard at my A-levels so that I could go on to university to study events management. I used my 3-year course to soak up all the knowledge I could, learn from the best and get stuck into as many work experience opportunities to get a flavour of the type of events I wanted to do – working on the Dubai airshow, the Manchester International Festival, and charity events to name a few.
After University, in 2009 I applied for an internship at The Manufacturing Institute (TMI) as their events assistant – that was before TMI was part of GC in 2017 (but in my mind, that’s when I started my career with GC). It was there that I really got to develop myself from the ground up. I went from promotion to promotion and stayed with TMI for 11 years before I dipped my toe into the wider industry.
I was drawn back to the GC in 2021 when I saw an advert for Senior Events Manager to work on the Progress21 activity. After taking a step back in my career due to the Pandemic, this was the perfect opportunity for me to get back into the world of events and with an organisation that does great things.
One of the best things about my roles at GC is that I get to work with so many teams and I’m always learning. GC has always provided opportunities to upskill and keep learning with various courses, shadowing etc.
After a re-organisation in the team, in 2022 I moved into a Communications Business Partner role, a really different area for me. A key skills set I’ve lacked before GC has been marketing, but from being part of the marketing team I’ve been able to get involved with so much and understand much more.
I left GC in 2023, I wanted to get back into events as that’s where may passion lay. I moved into an events role in the private sector, but I very quickly realised that one of the things I loved so much about GC was the fact that what we do at GC really matters – we exist to purely do good, to help people, communities and businesses.
Going into the private sector, I didn’t feel that I was ‘doing my bit’, or doing work that made that difference – and in all honestly, I massively missed the culture and the people at GC. I soon embraced an opportunity to return back to GC as Senior Events and Engagement Manager.
For me GC is unique in that once you’re in, the opportunities don’t stop. Whether it’s opportunity to upskill in your own role, to apply for roles in other departments, get involved in volunteering opportunities or EDI activity. GC’s an organisation that cares about its people and that goes a very long way.
Thanks for having me back GC!