Victorias’ Journey
What made you apply for this job?
Before starting my job search, I knew a good work-life balance was my top priority, due to having a young family, so this would play a big part in whether a job would be right for me.
When I came across the Opex role for a part-time Business Support Administrator, the hours were perfect. This, paired with the varied list of responsibilities had me sold instantly as I prefer to be kept busy. The list of duties gave the impression I would be able to utilise previously gained experience and knowledge whilst offering the opportunity to learn a new skillset.
Although I was searching for a part-time role, I wanted to ensure I was making a career choice and not choosing a role to fill a gap.
What did you expect when joining the team?
At first, I had an idea of what joining the team might be like due to my previous office-based roles. However, after the interview, I was a lot more excited to become part of the team as the people here seemed so warm and welcoming (no they didn’t pay me to say this, I do genuinely love it!). The atmosphere and morale of the office really is thanks to how Steve and Ben run the business, with everyone treated as equal and respectfully being given responsibility for their own work, with help there if and when needed.
Did you have any knowledge or experience of facilities management before joining?
In a previous job role, I was involved in internal facilities management, making sure everything was maintained and stored properly, as well as dealing with outside contractors like pest control, maintenance engineers and calibration technicians.
This helped when entering the facilities management industry as I had a basic understanding of why maintaining buildings and equipment was important, and how FM contractors worked within businesses.
How have you found getting to grips with the FM industry?
When I first started my role here at Opex the terminology used was a learning curve, but after reading through reports and other documents, along with the help from Steve, Ben, and the team, it became a lot easier to understand. In addition to this, I was able to apply skills I already had, such as admin, organisation, and communication.
“Opex provides the perfect working environment where everyone feels like part of the team and is involved in business decisions together; it’s not the typical top-down structure you see in large businesses.”
What would you say to someone considering facilities management?
It’s a great sector to get into as there is lots to learn and achieve with plenty of progression, even in a small business like Opex. The size of the company is also a huge benefit as you can learn from everyone in the business and flip between all types of jobs, meaning I’m never stuck bored doing the same thing!
What are you qualified in?
- BRC/IOP Global Standard for Packaging & Packaging Materials Issue 4; Understanding the Requirements.
- CIPD Human Resources Secretary / Administrator
- NVQ levels 2 and 3 in Customer Service
- Introduction to NVQ level 2 in Business Administration
- ISO 9001
- Intermediate Excel
Where have you worked before?
My experience began at Emtep where I dealt with all areas of HR. I then moved over to Skymark Packaging where I worked as a Business Support working closely with the CEO and directors. Moving onto the post of Quality and Hygiene Manager, adhering to quality and hygiene regulations (BRC / ISO 9001-2008).
Next was East Midlands Trains where I became a Data Coordinator providing data and reports to the MD, as well as on-train staff, and compiling periodical reports for finance, management, and directorate levels.
I then moved to Servest where I conducted daily and monthly audits to measure compliance of staff and procedures. In addition to this, I was part of the health and safety committee team.
From there I worked for Coop Funeral Care as a part-time Funeral Administrator. Utilising an in-house database to create appointments, in addition to dealing with all queries from customers and internal enquiries.
