CAREER DEVELOPMENT INSIGHT
Diary of a student…
Lucy Foster MCIPPdip Payroll technician/HR assistant, Carbolite Gero Ltd
social life is not easy. Getting up at early on Saturday mornings to attend distant module review days and tutorials took sheer determination. Having the support of my family helped me to keep pushing myself and not to give up. Once an assignment was complete, I would always do something nice and give myself a bit of relax time before starting the next module. With module one completed of your course, how do you think you did and was it what you expected? I had to get into academic writing and using Harvard referencing which I quickly did. I was determined to succeed and committed to the course, so I put in a lot of wider research and that reflected in my grades as they got higher each module. The course was much more than I expected. Not only do you learn about some of the more technical aspects, it makes you look at payroll strategically and think about the importance it has in the business and its link to other functions such as HR and finance. I would love to go on to do the higher level, BA (hons) and learn more. For someone who is thinking about studying for a CIPP qualification, what would your advice be to them? invaluable. You have got to be prepared to put the work in but what you get out of it is extremely rewarding and if you plan your time well then you can still fit in a social life. There are times when it gets tough and it can be stressful but you just need to keep thinking of that goal that you are aiming for at the end of it, that all the hard work and effort will be worth it when you graduate with letters after your name. n If you want to further your career in payroll, the Foundation Degree is
Can you give us an insight into your career and qualifications background? After leaving school with six GCSEs and enrolling on to a professional secretary course at the University of Derby Buxton, at age nineteen I was given the opportunity to learn payroll with Carbolite Gero. I was a payroll clerk responsible for processing the monthly payroll for 150 employees reporting to the HR and payroll officer who gave me frequent in-house training and lifelong learning opportunities. As I developed in the role, I grew to enjoy calculating pay and the processes whilst facing quite a few challenges as I learnt more. I’d been working in payroll for six years when I discovered the CIPP. I wanted to extend my payroll skills and knowledge whilst gaining a formal qualification, so I did the Payroll Technician Certificate – and benefited immensely. I enjoyed studying the subject in depth and subsequently felt confident in my role because I’d learnt to do manual calculations and had the skills to calculate a payslip manually from gross to net and not just have to rely on a system. I then progressed into the position of payroll technician/HR assistant. Which course did you study and why did you choose it? I enrolled on to year two of the CIPP Foundation Degree in Payroll Management. I had lots of other duties in HR but I had a keen interest in payroll and enjoyed this part the most. By this time, we’d been through two payroll software changes and I’d gained valuable experience working on these
projects, so I was excited to be studying for a degree in payroll management with the support of my employer. I chose the course because I wanted to further my payroll knowledge and have a qualification to go with my experience. I was also interested in learning more about the operational and management side of payroll. Did the fact that the CIPP is Chartered or recognised within the industry influence your decision to enrol with the CIPP? Yes, it did. There is much complex legislation in payroll which I learnt more about as the course progressed, and there is no other leading body that can teach it. Being a member of the CIPP ensures you stay up to date and compliant. The modules and assignments are all work based so you can apply learning to the work place and think about how to improve processes and be more efficient in your role. It’s very important as I now have an industry-recognised qualification which has given me the confidence to be able to progress into a senior role. Being CIPP qualified gives me the ability to apply my newly acquired skills to my current role and future opportunities as my career progresses. How do you cope with work-life balance and study? I’m not going to lie, studying whilst having a full-time job and trying to fit in a How important is this degree in relation to your future career?
| Professional in Payroll, Pensions and Reward | September 2019 | Issue 53 14
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