Senior Personnel Officer

Job Title: Senior Personnel Officer

Name: Katie Mullard

Company: Northern Food – Riverside Bakery

Professional Qualification(s):

BSc Management Science (2:1) from Loughborough University, A-Level’s in Sociology (A), History (B), Christian Theology (B), 10 GCSE’s (A-C), currently in final year for MSc Human Resources Management

Brief overview of your job: 

To act as first point of contact for the personnel department by providing an effective service on personnel related issues

What does your job involve?

  • Recruitment and Selection up to Manager level
  • With managers, ensure a fair and consistent approach is applied when implementing policies and procedures
  • Attendance management, short and long term absence liasing with Occupational health nurse, Company Doctor and management
  • Management of Occupational Health Nurse, Personnel and Training Officer, Personnel Administrator, Undergraduate Placement Student and Receptionists
  • Development of effective Industrial Relations through regular contact, formal and informal, with the Union reps, and facilitation of the management / union relationship
  • Provide advice and support to managers and employees on personnel and employee relations issues
  • To ensure site compliance with employment legislation and to develop best practice

What do you most like about your job?

  • Something different everyday
  • Feeling of sound judgement when I have applied a fair, consistent approach
  • Sense of achievement when going through challenging periods, or make a difference to ensure an initiative is made more effective by your input
  • Being able to help my direct reports focus their objectives and create a workable action plan, and seeing it and aiding the plan to fruition

What skills are required in your job?

  • Planning and Organising – without a shadow of a doubt as things land on your desk left right and centre!
  • Communication – knowing how to talk to people at different levels in different situations
  • Drive / determination to get things done. Not being afraid to make decisions and influencing others to get things done on time
  • Getting best out of self and others – looking at your own and colleagues development so they can fulfil their potential

What is your advice to people looking for a career in the food & grocery industry?

  • Make the most of the experience you have from any previous work environment – a lot of qualities are transferable to any industry
  • You are in charge of your own career – don’t expect it to land at your feet – only you can make it happen and you need to show your enthusiastic and committed

Career so far:

Northern Foods: Evesham Foods -Personnel Assistant, Cavaghan and Gray Hull

Personnel Officer, Riverside Bakery – Senior Personnel Officer.

Before this I spent time working as a Starter and sweet chef in 2 large restaurants in Hull.

Did you complete an industrial placement as part of your degree? 

Personnel Assistant with Evesham Foods (Part of Northern Foods)