Lessons I’ve learnt along the way
Celebrating 40 years in the profession
Resilience is important – of your ideas and suggestions, of your values and ethics and of who you are as a member of a function and team. • Patience and creativity – in HR we should be change agents, but sometimes if you are convinced that you are right, you may need a different approach, or to wait for a better time to make your suggestion to affect the change needed. • We live in a VUCA world – look at the way we needed to step up and lead during the pandemic! We should be excited that our profession is still so relevant and needed year-in, decade-out. • Continual learning important. This includes learning about what is happening in the world, what is happening with technology and what is happening culturally. You never know what may become the important ‘new influence.’
Spotlight interview with Kay Penney of Northumbrian Water
Kay Penney FCIPD, Group HR Director at Northumbrian Water is one of only 21 people professionals in the UK to mark 40 years in the profession as a CIPD member this year. She tells us more about her journey into the profession and the lessons she’s learned along the way that have helped shape her career.
My career journey into HR
CIPD membership has supported me in my career
While studying for a Business degree I had an opportunity to work in Stuttgart, Germany at the headquarters of Daimler Benz (the company which designs and manufactures vehicles under the Mercedes Benz brand). They gave me the chance to work in their Industrial Relations department on a couple of difficult projects. I graduated in a recession, so it was difficult finding my first role, but I was eventually hired to work in a Personnel team on a six-month contract. I stayed five and a half years, moving from Graduate Trainee up to HR Manager. My engineering sector experience certainly helped me on the HR ladder because it was a sector where significant changes were happening, and it was great to be able to get stuck in and learn.
In the early days, being a member of the CIPD provided me with the technical knowledge needed to contribute at work. I have spent a lot of my career working internationally and I have used the CIPD’s learning and competency framework in many countries as a way of developing the competence of my team and their ability to make a
Advice I would give to others at the start of their career journey
If HR is the career you want, go for it; no matter how hard it is to get your first role. When I started my HR career 40 years ago, I worked with many line managers who resented having a woman in my position and did their best to undermine me continually. It was tough and I had to grow hard skin to survive. Those of us in HR are expected to uphold our organisation’s values, so remember to be professional at all times; even work parties and social events are still work. Deliver what you say you will, exceed where you can, and read a lot. Find new ways to keep learning, network and keep up with colleagues who move to different organisations as you can keep learning through them.
difference in our business.
CIPD Profession Map
REGIONAL INSIGHTS
Winter 2021
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