Roisin Williams - The importance of 'Taking a Punt' with job applications, ED&I before it was even called that, and life as a Freelancer
In this episode I'm joined by Roisin Williams who has been in HR for over 30 years and has been a freelancer for the past 3 years. Roisin's career is a fascinating one as one of her first roles was as Equality and Diversity Adviser for Cheshire Constabulary. This was the late 90's where equality and diversity wasn't as broad a topic and was more about improving equality for women in the workplace. Apart from a degree in Women Studies, Roisin admits she had no practical skills or experience to do a job like this, however, she 'took a punt' and submitted an application and ultimately got the job. That approach of 'taking a punt' is one which she applied throughout her career and it's a concept we discuss and why more people should adopt it.As well as working in senior in-house HR roles, Roisin has also worked for some large, well-known outsourced HR providers and we discuss the pros and cons of working in outsourced HR. We also cover what life is like as a freelancer, good and bad, for anyone who might be interested in their career taking that route.On top of all that we talk about the amazing work of a charity called Smart Works, where Roisin does some volunteering. They provide work outfits for disadvantaged women for interviews and Roisin offers coaching for CV's and interviews. It's a phenomenal charity and this part of our chat alone is worth listening to raise awareness of the amazing work they do.Support the show