Career development insight
Diary of a student…
fellow colleagues which I find particularly useful.
Lubica Kadlecova Payroll and reward manager, University of London
How important is this degree in relation to your future career? I believe that every professional regardless of the nature of their trade, who wants to be successful in their career, must invest in a qualification not only to help them achieve their goal but also so they stand out from the crowd of other professionals within the market. I gained a lot of knowledge in different aspects of payroll within my caree, and though I haven’t been in the industry for as many years in comparison to other professionals I feel I’ve achieved a lot already. Getting a degree in payroll is certainly the best reward for all the hard work I put into the studies. Howdo you copewith thework life balance and include your study? I would be lying if I said I wasn’t enjoying my free weekends now that I’ve finished the programme, but I miss the buzz from various aspects of studying whether attending tutorials and catching up with other students. It wasn’t an easy ride, having to juggle full-time work, family and try to keep up hobbies at the same time (as well as keeping on top of the housework and the husband fed). I think key to getting through are organisation skills and certainly having a strong support network. I am a very organised individual both at work and when it comes to studying. I must have a clear structure and strategy in place. For someonewho is thinking about studying for a CIPP qualification, what would your advice be to them? Make sure you’re organised, have a plan in place and stick to it. Utilise tutors’ knowledge and look after yourself; make time to relax and don’t be too hard on yourself. Good luck! n
Can you give a brief background into your life? I was born and lived in Slovakia for most of my life before settling on outskirts of Northampton. Can you give an insight into your career and qualifications background? Although since childhood I’ve enjoyed working with numbers I went for a career in teaching rather than study finance. After college I took a role in facilities and eventually made the decision to leave a permanent role for a temporary payroll administration role. I took a risk and thank my husband for supporting me through the transition. I started my payroll career nine years ago as an administrator helping with basic payroll input, standard starters/ leavers processing. I enjoyed dealing with employees’ queries, but lack of knowledge made me keen to explore the ever- changing world of payroll further. I was offered a position within an extremely complex payroll department, processing payroll for around 30,000 employees on several different pay frequencies. I gained a lot of knowledge and built a solid payroll foundation through day to day experience of payroll processing but also by embarking on completing the Foundation Degree in Payroll Management which gave me an opportunity to really understand the basics. From this role, I moved on to working for a payroll bureau where there was a much wider range of tasks that I perhaps would not have had an
opportunity to be exposed to in an internal payroll department. It gave me an opportunity to expand my skills further and allowed me to progress to a standalone payroll role. Though this role was for a much smaller organisation it gave me a great sense of responsibility and I made a really good use of all the skills I gained in my previous roles. Recently, in addition to working as a payroll manager I’ve taken on responsibility for reward agenda which I find daunting at times as it certainly pushes me well outside of my comfort zone. It is, however, exciting and very relevant as we try to change perception of the payroll professional to be seen not as someone who just ‘presses the button’ at the end of the month. Which course are you studying and why did you choose it? I completed the Foundation Degree in Payroll Management at the very start of my career and I wasn’t going to stop there; hence, enrolling onto MSc in Business and Reward Management back in October 2015. I chose the qualification to enhance my skills and develop my knowledge, based on real work practices in a reward agenda. As the studies were all built on real life situations, it made it extremely relevant and I often refer back to the learning outcomes in my current role. I thrive in a deadline driven environment and enjoy being pushed outside of my comfort zone – and the MSc does just that. I also got to interact with great tutors and got opportunity to build a valuable network of
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Issue 50 | May 2019
| Professional in Payroll, Pensions and Reward |
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