UK 
United States
I grew up in an environment where giving anything less than 100% simply wasn’t an option.
My dad and his brother were competitive swimmers throughout their youth, pushed hard by my grandfather, who never let them coast. My uncle went on to join the Tokyo Olympic Swimming Team - a legacy that had me in the pool before I could walk. That early exposure to discipline – the drive to give everything my best - shaped how I show up for everything and become a part of who I am.
When the late 1980s recession hit, university wasn’t feasible. Supporting my parents came first, so I entered the world of work. A local careers officer introduced me to HR, and from that moment I discovered a profession that fused business strategy with human behaviour.
Starting out at TEC UK Limited, a subsidiary of Toshiba, and progressing into senior HR roles at Dixons Retail, Tarmac, Philips, and Culligan, I’ve developed a strong foundation in HR best practice across a wide range of settings, including industrial environments and global manufacturing. Those years gave me two invaluable traits: resilience and adaptability. I’ve sat in boardrooms shaping strategy and stood on weighbridges talking to operators. Both experiences, exposing you to different perspectives, matter if you want to understand how culture truly works.
