1Why were you attracted to Berkeley?
After graduating from the University of Newcastle in 1995, I spent my early career with Andersen Consulting, as it then was. It was a great place to cut your teeth in consulting but ultimately I found it unsatisfying being a small part of large project teams with very little direct influence on the overall outcome. Berkeley offered me the chance to build my own client relationships and much greater responsibility and autonomy in my work.
2What did you get out of your time at Berkeley?
The support’s there when you need it but they really trust you to get on with the job with minimal supervision and interference. I also enjoyed the variety: small and large projects and a range of industries. The highlight was a large-scale change programme for an oil and gas client which was a very demanding but gave me a great sense of achievement personally and meant a lot to the firm.
3Where did you go after Berkeley?
After five good years with Berkeley, I decided I wanted a change of direction. My main driver was wanting to be part of the longer-term direction of one business rather than moving from one client project to the next, so that meant a move from consulting to in-house. I felt I could be completely open with the partners about my plans and they were constructive and supportive in helping me to make the move.
Following a bit of time out, I took up a great opportunity with rightmove.co.uk. After 10 years with the company, I became Chief Executive, working in a very different role. The skills I learnt about leadership at Berkeley have been incredibly useful.
