Maggie Reid – External Speaker Talk

Students at St Mary’s and Emmanuel enjoyed an informative presentation by Maggie Reid, independent Human Resources (HR) contractor, about careers in HR. After graduating in Modern Languages, Maggie worked for charity organisations in Africa.

She has a wealth of experience in HR, having worked for the University of Greenwich implementing large-scale pay review projects and, more recently, as an independent contractor for the professional body, The Law Society.

Maggie spoke about there being many subjects at Sixth Form and degree level, which can open up a career in HR including English, History, Modern Languages and social sciences like Psychology, Sociology and Business. She emphasised that certain skills were important for the role. Practitioners need to be good communicators with strong interpersonal skills, willing to work in a team and be organised. HR professionals may find themselves in conflict resolution and advocacy roles, which requires confidence and attention to detail. Others may find themselves in a training role, both in-house or externally, or managing corporate change or transformation projects. In essence, there are many different aspects to HR so it is a career offering variety.

In terms of advice, Maggie urged students to take up as many opportunities as possible within and outside their current programme of study, to gain experience and develop transferable skills.

Maggie is also currently supporting the College in a voluntary role as a member of our Partnership Advisory Board.