Our Operations Support Manager celebrates 20 years with Stafforce!

Today marks the 20th work anniversary of Laura Johnson, our Operations Support Manager. We’re excited to reflect on her journey over the past two decades, characterised by various experiences and responsibilities. We interviewed Laura to learn more…

Can you share with us your journey within Stafforce over the past 20 years? How did you initially start, and what roles have you held throughout your career here?

I’ll be transparent: my journey started with dropping out of college and landing a job at the ‘Hainton Avenue’ (Young’s Seafood) office for Marsden Road (the recently closed fish factory on the GY Docks) purely to fund my social life – I was only 16 and a half at the time. Living in a shared house with friends, I was thoroughly enjoying the student lifestyle. Young’s offered wages above the National Living Wage, making it the best job I had at that point.

Within my first year, I transitioned into a ‘Buddy’ role, supporting the on-site Stafforce team with check-ins, training new hires, conducting worker reviews, and reporting on progress and needs.

Eventually, I made the decision to take on a role as an Account Manager at another Young’s Seafood site, which allowed me to secure permanent employment with Stafforce. The prospect of owning a home solidified my choice.

Over time, I expanded my responsibilities, agreeing to travel to various Young’s sites to provide support when there were staffing gaps, new hires, or holiday cover needed.

Now, as an Operations Support Manager, I find myself constantly on the move, assisting with new site setups, training, and covering wherever necessary. It’s been quite the journey which has led me to where I am today.

Reflecting on your diverse career within Stafforce, what are some of the most memorable moments or achievements that stand out to you?

1. Achieving my driver’s license 16 years ago significantly reduced my commute time to work, which meant my alarm clock didn’t need to shock me awake as early in the morning haha!
2. Throughout my 20-year journey with Stafforce, each career step has been met with excellent support. The fact that I was continually trusted with different roles reflects the value I felt they placed on me during each phase.
3. Witnessing the success stories of candidates I’ve helped find work – seeing them secure mortgages, start families, and simply get back on their feet again. Hearing their heartfelt words of gratitude solidified the significance of my job.
4. Although undeniably stressful, the intense 7-month Pea Season remains one of my most significant accomplishments. Overnight, we’d go from zero to managing over 300 staff as soon as the call came in: “Peas are in!“. Then begins the five-month preparation of candidates, fitting around the workers’ university schedules, involving endless registrations, screenings, and online/on-site training sessions. I am thankful to the teams over the years for their dedication during the intense 10-week active season. To any colleagues interested in joining me for our upcoming busy season, I’m sure our management would happily let you lend a hand😉. It can be a love-hate relationship for sure.

What skills or experiences have been crucial for your success in each stage of your career?

People skills have been and are still important. Those who know me will know improving these skills has always been a constant ambition of mine.

My compassionate nature has also been instrumental. Without it, I wouldn’t have achieved the level of success I have.

Additionally, teamwork has been crucial, particularly in our Managed Services division where success hinges on collective effort. It does take a village to produce the best outcome.

Lastly, while not necessarily a skill or experience per se, just the sheer amount of experience itself has been invaluable. Learning from mistakes, recognising patterns in client behaviour or different locations, and continuously growing from these experiences have been important in my journey.

Collaboration is essential in operations support. Can you share an example of a successful collaboration or project you’ve been a part of that had a significant impact on the company?

Being in ‘operations support’ means being involved in the operations of numerous Stafforce client on-sites. This environment is like my career birthplace; Stafforce’s support services have been at the centre of all that I do. Yet, I can assure you, I wouldn’t be half as successful in this role if it weren’t for:

• The dedication of our Client Relationship Managers across our site locations.
• Invaluable assistance provided by our Software & Continuous Improvement teams.
• Compliance, ensuring everything runs smoothly and up to code.
• The efforts of our marketing, payroll, and credit control teams.
• And of course, my Line Manager Faye Wilkes – she deserves a special mention.

I can’t help but feel a twinge of sympathy for most of them for putting up with my passionate outbursts whenever I reach out to them!😄

Looking ahead, what are your goals for the future, both personally and professionally?

On a personal level, who wouldn’t dream of winning the lottery and spending each day on a tropical island, sipping cocktails ay?

However professionally, after two decades here, I can confidently say I am happy where I am and don’t desire to be anywhere else. I love to greet new team members and it can be sad to say goodbye to others, but there are people here I have known since day one and that itself is well worth the stay.

I wouldn’t say I don’t want to progress in the future, but the truth is I find immense fulfilment in my current role. I have a genuine passion for what I do, and the thought of staying in this position indefinitely doesn’t faze me one bit! One of the aspects I particularly enjoy is the opportunity to talk with both our internal teams and our temporary workers. Seeing the positive impact of setting them up with employment and watching them thrive over the years makes me very happy.

 

Thank you to Laura for sharing details about her career journey with us. Celebrating 20 years is truly remarkable, and we consider ourselves fortunate to have had her as part of our team for such a long time. Laura is a valued and cherished member of our business, and we appreciate her contributions and dedication to our business.