by Justine Violante.
When I applied for back2businessship, I saw it as an opportunity to get up to speed with what has changed in the world of Media and Marketing in the four years I had taken out to raise my family. I also wanted to gauge how relevant I still was as a job candidate.
It’s been hugely reassuring to me that whilst the digital landscape has fragmented, the traditional values of effective marketing, human networking, and experience still remain at the top of an employer’s priorities. Through the network of women on the course, we practiced new ways of applying our digital marketing knowledge and mentored each other to utilize social media in a business context.
What I didn’t anticipate so much, however, was how empowered, supported and inspired I would feel from attending this programme. From the first morning it was invigorating to move into an intellectual space beyond the school run and get together with a group of likeminded women who were all considering a return to paid work. We all had different backgrounds, yet a common hunger to further ourselves, be role models to our children, and to find a way of working that did not compromise on the strong relationships we had managed to build at home.
I came into the programme with a clear idea of what I wanted from work (a fulfilling and creative marketing management position) and had come to terms with the fact that such a role could only exist as a full-time one. What has been enlightening about this programme is the number of brilliant speakers who are women in senior positions, most with families, who manage their own flexible arrangements and support flexible working in their organisations.
Access to some of the most prominent women in business such as Sara Bennison, Bibi Hilton and Helen Fraser (just to name a few) has been impressive, inspiring and thought provoking.
back2businessship has given me the confidence to rethink my own priorities and feel more optimistic about the possibility of part time or flexible work, which can be substantial, rewarding and which recognises our talent.
Thank you to f1 recruitment, SMG and Golin for coming together to produce such a progressive and necessary programme. It will be exciting to see more likeminded companies come on board to tap a talent pool of experienced, flexible and productive women in marketing, PR and Media.
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