Renewed Postings

Apologies for the long delay in posting anything new, a lot has been happening over the past couple of weeks regarding my grandfather.

Yesterday I was at his funeral in Banbury, a beautiful service and enlightening to say the least. I had never known how he had changed his path from farming to being one of the top Physicists at the Rutherford labs, nor had I know about his senior position at Searne. As far as I knew, he was simply happy in his work researching on a variety of topics.

Alongside this revelation, I met up with my Nanna's brother, Dr D. Jefferies; a man I have little recollection of meeting before. I must have been very young when we did meet because he certainly knew me. I found out that he was heavily involved in the early Environmental movements, was is responsible for bringing the Otter and Peregine Falcon, among others, from certain extinction. He also has over 200 papers published, his very first in Nature.

Earlier in the weekend a friend and I went for a short break to a log cabin (solar electric lights, wood aga and all the lights are LED's) and met her uncle, who upon hearing of my career aspirations and chatting with me all weekend, gave me his card to look up the company he works for.

What do they say about silver linings?

Guardian Blind Date Mock Interview

For the mildly curious, my Blind Date Interview is here.


For the lazy and technically inept, it follows here too:


Alice Wignall
Saturday May 17, 2008
The Guardian

Nina Fowler graduated in June last year from the University of Derby with a degree in product innovation and eco-design. Now she's interested in starting a career in the environmental sector, assisting industry in moving towards sustainable business and environmentally responsible techniques.

"I knew when I applied for my degree that was the kind of thing I wanted to do," she says. "I've always been very into environmental stuff and in thinking about creative ways of living so you can have a more sustainable and ethical life."

She opted for a fairly broad degree. "I didn't have a strong enough interest in pure science subjects," she says, "and the degree I did had creative aspects and a broad spectrum." She focused her studies on modules that related to the environment with a future career in mind. "Eventually I'd like to be supporting and encouraging business to make their processes more sustainable."

We asked Gary Parke, executive director of Evolve Energy, to mock interview Fowler for an entry-level job. "Our job is to deliver energy and carbon emissions savings," he says. "We generally work with large corporations with energy bills of over £1m." He explains that his company's work is motivated by both business interests and environmental concerns. "First of all, we did see a gap in the market," he says, "but the environmental factor is also a driver. Our clients want to see the evidence that we can save energy and cut costs. They are financially motivated but they also are drawn to the environmental message. It's part of our message that there is so much that can be done that both reduces energy use and saves money."

Similarly, Parke says his company is looking for people with a range of skills and interests. "Most importantly we're looking for people who are capable of problem solving, who are creative and innovative; who can sit down with our clients and figure out what the issue is for them and how we can solve it."

He also notes that the growth of "green" industries presents an immediate problem of a skills shortage which graduates can take advantage of. "There's an absolutely huge opportunity for people who are interested in this area," he says. "Nina is a classic example of someone with the right background in terms of a formal education who can see the opportunities in the job market. She's a fresh thinker and can bring a different perspective to a company."

Parke thought that Fowler has the right combination of conviction and practicality to make a success of a career in the environmental sector. "She's very honest, very open with her ideas," he says. "She's got very strong ideas and beliefs and she is able to communicate them, but she's not naive or arrogant about them. She would be a great person to work with clients, who can often be quite overwhelmed by the range of messages they're getting about sustainability, to talk to them, figure out what they're after and how we can deliver it for them."

He suggests that she could do more research into exactly what role she is interested in. "She will come across more clearly in interviews if she has a firm idea about that," he says. "But right now if you asked me if she was good raw material, I would say 'absolutely'."

Fowler says that she enjoyed the interview. "It was really good to meet Gary," she says. "He is obviously really passionate about what he does. From the point of view of the personal satisfaction he obviously gets from it, it's the kind of job I'd love to be doing." She also felt quite confident with the interview process. "I don't mind interviews too much," she says, "because I try to take time to answer the questions. I hope I came across well - I tried!"

Questions asked

· What are your qualities that you feel would best contribute to Evolve?
· Give an example of when you influenced the work of others. How did you achieve it? What were the outcomes?
· What are the main drivers for climate change?
· Which companies are exemplars in promoting sustainability? And why?

Scorecard

Appearance 8/10
Preparation 6/10
Employability 8/10

· If you are an undergraduate or recent graduate in need of a career blind date, send your CV to graduate@guardian.co.uk

Date Etiquette

Date or interview, it's always polite to follow up encouragingly if it was a good one.

I wrote to my Blind Date interviewer, thanking him for his time, expertise and enthusiasm. I might also have sneaked in a little note about the fact I would be over the moon working for a company like that.

Not very subtle, but since when did subtle get me anywhere eh?



In other news, I'm overwhelmed by the volume of people reading this tiny little blog- even if they are my mates and just nosy, or possibly just one person refreshing the page a lot.

A Blind Date

Yesterday I ironed a shirt, pulled on a pair of exceptionally uncomfortable heels, and headed down South, for what can only be described as a Career Blind Date. In fact, it is called by that very same name in the newspaper it features in.

The idea is simple: take one fresh faced graduate, match them with a company they might fancy working for (and that could tolerate such blind ignorance from an employee), let them meet and report on the results.

Considering I only wrote to the careers section of this paper for a brief idea of what I'm doing so wrong with my CV, I think I'm exceptionally lucky.

The company turned out to be one of those beautiful, inspiring places where ideas don't just happen; they get supported and nurtured, encouraged and spread until everyone is affected. Normally, interviews are fraught experiences, punctuated by the exclamation of a carefully constructed answer to an innocent sounding question. This interview was slightly different.

I'd like to put that down to my witty manner, my breeziness and general attitude, but the reality is it took on a distinctly relaxed air once it became clear the matchmaker had neglected to provide the interviewer with my CV. Normally, I take a copy with me to interviews to refer to should the conversation eer towards the less well-remembered antics of my career past- on this occasion I did not, making the careless mistake of assuming everything would be alright.

Once we passed the initial questions regarding qualifications, why I'd left the idea of design behind and what I hoped to do next, we started on the causes of the environmental problems, the apathy, the politics, the people, the glaciers, the solutions... and yes I am a cynic, and possibly highly naive in most of my beliefs. I tried not to come across as too strong, but honesty is always the best policy (there is no way on Earth I'm telling a lie in an interview, bad words always come back to bite you at the least opportune moment), and I suspect my youthful innocence and cold appraisal of my impressions were carried across without much hindrance.

Although it was only a mock interview, and the outcome for the interviewer was only to see what fresh graduates are like and for myself to get yet more interview experience and a little guidance, I really would like to work for a company like that.

Yes, it will be in print in the national press, all my shortcomings as a candidate and a nice full length photo should ant potential employer wish to recognise me to steer well clear, but I really do hope that if the article provides any job opportunities that they are with bright, enthused and driven people such as I met there. I hope there will be a place that I can use my head and share in the life of others to build a work community and make the changes I so desperately want to see.



I'm still dreading this article though.




As a side note: I know this is a blog about my hunt for a career, but I feel it would be heartless not to mention one of the drivers in my life. On the afternoon after this interview I received the call I'd been fearing for a while now- that my granddad had taken a turn for the worse and was not expected to last the night. Apologies to anyone who had to see me spilling my tea and crying in Euston station on Friday evening.

My grandad, Bob, is a warm and loving man, despite a difficult childhood. He married young to the woman he is still married to, and together they had two boys. I am his only granddaughter and my brother his only grandson. He worked extensively at the Rutherford labs, and traveled Europe with equipment for Searne. I have these wonderful photographs of him as a young man stood near the towering electron acceleration equipment he designed.

He has a brilliant mind and a fantastically dry sense of humour. He has doted on us without spoiling us, and now lies asleep on a morphine drip. Prostate cancer is a killer, no matter how old or how blessed a life you have lead. Please check regularly for any abnormalities.