Jen has a Psychology Degree and Postgraduate diploma in HR Management. In her current role as Lead People Scientist at Hive, she works with Senior Leadership Teams in a consultancy capacity, in various sized organisations in the private, public and not for profit sectors. Notably Jen works with clients such as; Accenture, The Very Group, Sheffield Hallam University, Amplity Health and Manchester based firms; Horwich Farrelly Solicitors, N Brown and Henry Boot Construction. She specialises in helping leaders bring their engagement efforts to life, and deliver positive and tangible change across their respective businesses. Jen is a mental health first aider and advocate for improving mental health in the workplace.

What you wish to achieve, learn and contribute to the board and Students’ Union

The qualifications you gain at University are an important aspect of setting you up for career success, but this is only one part of the story. The purpose of the Student Union has always been to help bridge the gap between education and employment by nurturing the other aspects that contribute towards a students future career success.

In my professional capacity, the nature of the work I do is something that I fundamentally believe in, to me, the work we do for a living can contribute to the way we see ourselves, and with the right organisational set up, our self esteem can thrive. The worrying thing for me is that we are a long way off achieving this, with reportedly 11% of UK employees currently engaged in what they do.

As I work closely with senior leaders across all sectors and have a good understanding of the challenges facing Graduates entering into the world of work, in my role as a Trustee I feel it is important to share this learning to better support our students.

Interests/professional memberships/societies/other charities

I love to run and last year took part in my first Great North Run, as a Geordie this is almost a rite of passage. I achieved my goal of getting to the end without collapsing but will likely be sticking to 5K-10K races in future! Other than that I spend my free time at the coast where I live and perhaps as a consequence of establishing my career in the hospitality sector, I enjoy anything food, drink or spa related.