h2>Suzi McIlwain, Communications Manager, Business in the Community NI
What subjects did you enjoy at school that supported your career path?
Geography, English Literature
Did you study at university or higher education?
Yes
What course did you study?
A degree in Geography & Archaeology-Palaeoecology and an MSc in Ecological Management & Conservation Biology. When I was at school, I thought I wanted to be a doctor or dentist but didn’t enjoy chemistry and it was one of my weaker subjects. So, I decided to drop those plans and study what interested me and this kept me motivated throughout university. I’m really pleased I didn’t just stick to subjects I didn’t enjoy because it might have meant I ended up in a career I didn’t enjoy and now I’m in one that I do!
What does a typical day or week in your role look like?
Quite varied! My role in Business in the Community – the responsible business network – is to support colleagues with anything related to communicating what they do or what they offer to businesses in Northern Ireland. This could be using social media to promote an event, writing copy for a webpage, organising environment events, and more. I read a lot in my job and am constantly asking myself ‘is this idea easy to grasp’ or ‘how can I make this event or written piece better, or more easily understood?’. I am the Comms support for the Environment Team at Business in the Community so having studied relevant subjects at school and university has helped me in this role.
My educational background and the extracurricular activities I undertook while I was at Uni (organising music events and fundraising) gave me marketing and communications skills and events organising experience.
It really helps that I have a general interest in all things ‘green’ even outside of my job and education, as this keeps me motivated in my role.
What part of your job do you find most interesting or exciting?
I love the sense of purpose that I get from working with businesses to help them do better. We can all do our bit as individuals, but businesses have a far bigger opportunity to make difference. Communications in my organisation is a ‘service role’ so I get a great sense of job satisfaction from helping my colleagues achieve what they’re aiming to do, which might be getting people signed up to an event or webinar, or creating a digital toolkit for businesses to use.
What advice would you give to pupils who are interested in a career in sustainability?
I’m a Communications Manager, so i don’t have anything ‘green’ in my title, but I bring my knowledge and passion for the subject to the role regardless. Get involved in the Sustainability Groups in school, and work, or volunteer – you’d be surprised at the connections you can make by networking outside of school or your job in something that interests you, that can help you with your career. Talk to people in roles you are interested in to get your head around what they do and how you can get to where you want to be.