Profile
Areas of responsibility within Forfusion
As Business Services Director, I have a multi-faceted role responsible for the strategic direction of finance, HR and operations. I have the day-to-day responsibility to develop and implement all necessary policies, procedures and business guidelines to maximise Forfusion’s efficiency, productivity and profitability while ensuring our culture permeates all we do and all we strive to achieve.
Industry experience
When I decided to leave the education profession, I was not only looking for a role that aligned with my experiences, but also for a business whose underlying core values provided synergies to my own.
I joined Forfusion in 2016, applying my skills and experience to the role while developing my knowledge of the private sector. It has been an incredibly interesting journey, discovering both the similarities and differences in operations, HR and finance between the public and private sectors.
As always, I thrive on managing myriad diverse responsibilities spanning finance, HR and operations. More recently, I have been responsible for defining and embedding Forfusion’s culture and wellbeing offerings, refining our financial reporting and defining our processes and policies to ultimately achieve ISO certifications in information security, quality management and sustainability.
Background
Following achieving a degree in music and education, I started my career in a completely different industry and sector; as a primary school teacher. I progressed through various roles within my 15-year teaching career, from classroom teacher to Key Stage Lead, to Assistant Head Teacher, and finally to Deputy Head Teacher, where I spent the final four years.
In my role as deputy head teacher, I played a major part in formulating the aims and objectives of the school, establishing the policies through which they would be achieved, managing departments, staff and resources to achieve the school’s aims and objectives, and monitoring progress towards their achievement.
Favourite quote
“You can have unbelievable intelligence, you can have connections, you can have opportunities fall out of the sky. But in the end, hard work is the true, enduring characteristic of successful people.”
- Marsha Evans
Other interests
Outside of work, I like to explore the Northumberland coastline, woodlands and National Park with my dachshund, Lenny. During lockdown, I also dabbled in growing some fruit and veggies in the garden. As Lenny enjoys digging them up faster than I can plant them, I’ve yet to have a fruitful harvest!
I also find reading is a great way to relax, and I like nothing more than to end a day with my kindle in one hand and a large G&T in the other.
