Graduate Profile - Bachelor of Psychology (Honours)

Name :  Lisa Huff
Degree/s Awarded: Bachelor of Psychology (Honours)
Current Position: HR Consultant, Corporate Human Resources
Organisation: Department of Primary Industries and Resources SA
Commencement Date: July/Aug 2001

Could you give us a description of what your current position involves?

The HR Consultant is an ongoing position within Workforce Management and reports directly to the General Manager Corporate Human Resources.  The HR Consultant works autonomously, providing a wide range of services to support Group HR Consultants, managers and staff across PIRSA’s business groups.  Specifically, the incumbent is responsible for managing several whole of agency programs (Employee Assistance Program, Women in Leadership Program), coordinating bi-monthly PIRSA HR Practitioners Forum, maintaining a number of HR Workforce Policy areas (EAP, Redeployment, Recruitment and Selection, Flexible work practices etc), and providing general HR consultancy services to Divisional HR Consultants, managers and staff.

Could you tell us about how your career has progressed, and what jobs you have held, from the time you left university to your present role?

Tour Guide/Duty person – Warrawong Sanctuary 1995-1998

Early 1999 - Casual consultancy work organising the Earth Sanctuaries inaugural conference, “Stars under the microscope”

Feb 1999-April 1999 Call Centre Customer service consultant at Telstra Mobilenet, employed initially through agency (Direct Personnel)

12 months “Overseas Experience”  - Solo backpacking through continental Europe.  7 months living and working in Edinburgh, Scotland.

May 2000 - Call Centre Customer service consultant at Telstra Mobilenet

October 2000 – Team Leader, Telstra MobileNet Call Centre.  Managed a team of 10-15 consultants in both in-bound and out-bound.  Involved in some recruitment and induction processes.

July 2001-current – Commenced work in SA Public Sector in Department of Primary Industries and Resources SA.  Entered through the Graduate Recruitment process into the Corporate Human Resources Unit (a lucky career break!, but a big drop in salary and responsibility was required to make the transition)

Did you undertake postgraduate study or further training? If so, what course(s)? How has this contributed to your career development?

• Miscellaneous conferences and forums, pertinent to Human Resources in Government
• Initiated a self-directed mentoring program throughout 2003 (invaluable)
• Participated in “Building HR Capabilities in SA Public Sector” development/assessment centre and follow-up professional coaching 2002-2003.
• Currently hoping/planning to commence a Master of Psychology.

With your experiences in securing employment what advice would you give to students who are in their first, second, and final year of study?

Government is a good place to begin a career and government experiences provide a solid foundation and are greatly valued (in my experience) in the private sector.  Support and assistance is provided to assist new graduates and the opportunity for advancement is available to good quality candidates. 

Be prepared to start out at the bottom – regardless of the glitzy “degree” you might have.  Be humble about your lack of experience and always be curious – there are some wonderful minds around the place who can informally mentor you, if you are open to it. 

Be prepared to initially do work in a field or industry which may not be your “dream job”…you can take out of it a range of valuable experiences which can position you well for your future career.  Timing is crucial to building an effective career…staying in your comfort zone will not get you there!  Look at other achieving people in the workplace and talk to them about how they navigate their way around the work place, and observe what they do which makes them successful.

Simple Tips:

• To be effective in the workplace face-to-face or even phone contact is much better than email!!
• To coin a phrase:  “your reputation precedes you – it either paves your way, or it gets in the way!”

Many employers presenting employment information sessions have commented on the importance of students undertaking extra curricular activities during their time at university. Could you comment on this?

I think it would have helped to make my university years more enjoyable.  I would have connected more with other students..... I felt quite isolated for most of my degree because I was “far flung” in terms of the subjects I studied (to gain degree), geographically on the campus (eg: sociology, psychology, law & commence building, computer science) and the first year psychology intake was well over 1,000!!  Need I say any more, this was not conducive to helping students mix and feel “at home”. 

How did you go about finding employment?

Tried a variety of approaches.  It was not easy.  Try to build on work experiences – the key is to get a “foot in the door” so you can prove your worth to an employer.  The graduate recruitment scheme was how I eventually “broke through” – nearly a year after I submitted my application.  Patience!

Can you briefly describe the application process relevant to your position?

• Resume
• Cover letter
• Address the criteria requested in the application process
• Interview

What did you do to prepare for the interview? What questions were you asked?

I was given the interview questions 15-20 minutes in advance and this was very useful to enable me to collect my thoughts and think of the most effective response. 

It was helpful that I wasn’t feeling desperate to get the job, so I felt quite easy-going walking into the interview.  If I knew then, as I do now how amazing this opportunity was for me professionally – I’m sure I would have been more nervous!!  Read up on the organisation, understood the key business and elements of the strategic plan.