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What does your job actually entail? What do you see as your main responsibilities?
I'm responsible for democratic and representative structures within the Union (elections, AGM, student council...), helping to co-ordinate all Union campaigns (from Invest in Sport to the current February campaigns), maintaining positive relationships with the local community (public relations, working with the council etc) and overseeing Union finances - I allocated £600,000 to areas of the Union within 2 months of starting my job. On top of this, I'm deputy to the President, am on the board of directors of the Union and am one of the trustees of the Union charity.
What do you think the job demands in terms of personal attributes or skills?
I think you need to be approachable, confident and passionate about what you do. The job requires dedication and a sense of key priorities as you only have a year to achieve a lot! Excellent written and verbal communication skills are also a must.
What do you enjoy most about the job?
The job is really varied, which is why I love it. You are involved with so many different projects and get to work with so many different people. People listen to your opinion and you are one of the key decision-makers within a large organisation. You get to work with your peers in a vibrant environment, have formal dinners with the University's Vice-Chancellor and travel the UK meeting elected representatives from all the other universities.
What are the challenges/obstacles you face?
Time, or a lack of! You only have one year to achieve all your goals. Large organisations can be slow to respond to ideas for change, and this can be really frustrating at times. You have to be able to hand over your projects to your successor and hope that they will carry them forward.
What have you achieved since coming into your position?
I have set up the University's first Freshers' Crew scheme from scratch and I have helped to kick off an entire review of the way the Union is run, which will hopefully lead to some major changes over the next 12-18 months. I've created a link between our Students' Union and the Unions of the two other universities in Cardiff, and we are now taking a joint approach to community relations. As a team we we are also introducing a University-wide award which recognises outstanding achievement amongst the student body.
What's next?
I am currently making significant changes to the elections, in an attempt to get far more, and much clearer, information out to as many students as possible about the process. We're giving democracy and representation a bit of a facelift within the Union (I'm currently organising the Annual General Meeting) and I'm helping to make plans for developments to the Union building. We're changing staff structures and are about to recruit a brand new senior manager to help us sort out some key areas within the Union.
Would you recommend your role? If so, why?
Definitely. The job provides an incredible and pretty unique opportunity to gain work experience in leadership, project management, campaign co-ordinating, event management, marketing, politics, budgeting, PR, managing individuals and teams and so much more.
It really is what you make it, and is a great stepping stone onto your future career.
