
Company: Wincanton
Role: Senior Internal Communications Executive
I first joined Wincanton 17 years ago as a Personal Assistant to our then Marketing and Communications Director. After various roles, all in Marketing and Communications, I’ve settled in Internal Communications. With the support of Jonathon Pinch, Head of Internal Communications and Employee Engagement, and Greer Webb, Internal Communications Executive, we keep all our lovely 19,000+ colleagues up to date and engaged with what is going on. With a diverse and varied workforce, no size fits all, so we currently use a range of methods to inform, educate and entertain our colleagues. Working for many years with WiZ, our previous limited intranet (if you could call it that!), the launch of MyPlace in 2020 was a fabulous project to be involved in. Last year, we rolled out our digital totems and screens to our sites to engage with our colleagues with real-time updates and communications. I love creating fresh and engaging campaigns and projects, working with stakeholders all over the business to support our priorities and goals. In 2023, our team were finalists at the Charted Institute of Public Relations (CIPR) Awards, with our ‘It’s ok not to be ok’ campaign in the Communications Campaign of the Year category. This was a great team effort sharing our colleagues’ stories and making Wincanton an even better place to be. I’ve also been lucky enough to have been involved with 16 Driver of the Year (DOTY) competitions, which is one of my favourite events to be involved with here at Wincanton. It’s the people at Wincanton that make it special place. And for anyone who knows me in the warehouses, they’ll tell you how much I love a warehouse too!
Most of my learning has come from on the job – being exposed to new opportunities and challenges is the best way to learn for me. Skills I’ve picked up such as project and event management, content creation and management and design have helped me succeed and move into my current role. With marketing and communications, you need a unique and ever evolving skillset. I’ve attended many courses via the Chartered Institute of Marketing (CIM), the Chartered Institute of Public Relations (CIPR) and Institute of Internal Communication (IoIC) for more tailored learning. I’ve completed bespoke Adobe Creative Cloud training for Illustrator and InDesign, attended writing for internal communications training and also attend various conferences and webinars to follow the industry and stay on top of the latest trends.
I’ve been lucky enough to have had several supportive line managers and directors since day one of joining Wincanton. I’ve been given great opportunities to lead and develop myself. I’ve found a role that’s right for me. I’m genuinely excited and passionate about what I do and where that can take me next. I would like to look into some more specific Internal Communications qualifications, such as animation and more strategic management. I’ve also finally booked myself onto a Mental Health First Aider training course this year, after promoting the benefits for a few years. My long-term goal would be to look at a specific internal comms accreditation now my girls are growing up and I have a little more time on my hands!