Our supporters Scoutess Recruitment Consultancy held a charity fundraiser event for Smart Works on the 24th January. Talking women and leadership, the event, held in Leicester, was focussed on discussion from a panel of senior female business leaders, which included Patricia John, Customer Service Director at Arriva Bus, Andrea Gray, Operations Director at Hastings Direct and Sarah Coop, Human Resources Director at Flogas.
“It’s a career must-have to network, for any aspiring women”, said Karen Orton, Recruitment Director for Scoutess, who specialise in placing junior, middle and senior manager into the commercial and hospitality sector. “We know that career paths are unclear and that we need to go out and seek the skills we need for the next role as women, which is why having a network that offers insights, thoughts and an opportunity to meet senior peers is important”.
“The evening was about highlighting the challenges women face at work, whether that be returning, starting or advancing”, said Karen. “We had a mixture of ladies who attended, with varying viewpoints, one thing that did stand out is that we need to do more to help each other. I am passionate about helping women in business, which is why I am dedicated to supporting the wonderful work carried out by Smart Works. It’s evident from our discussions on the night that confidence and self-belief is what holds many women back, so for me, it’s about doing something that helps tackle that.”
The evening also saw the introduction of a Mentoring Connections Programme, that Scoutess have put together. “I’ve been lucky that I have been able to help many women get a job, however, I know we can do more to help women advance once they have found one” said Karen. “My background was originally training and development, so putting a programme together that enables women to help each other by providing support, advice and guidance, is a real passion for me. The programme is being supported by a team of business women, who are doing this on a voluntary basis to help a woman advance locally”.
The main purpose of the evening was to continue to fundraise and support Smart Works, which was achieved.
“Having a purpose and using that to channel our passion and efforts, is what’s important to many women”, said Karen. “Our values at Scoutess are driven from our purpose, so being able to provoke action and make a real difference to women who need it, is at our core”.
Thank you to Scoutess for continuing to support Smart Works and to Hastings Direct for hosting this event.