As we have been expanding our consulting team we thought we’d get to know our newest member, Therese, who recently joined us as a solution consultant.

Hi Therese, how are you settling into Ampersand?

I’m settling in well thanks. Ampersand has a fantastic environment and the team are so dynamic; It’s great to have different conversations everyday. The company has such an honest ethos and there’s a ‘we’re all in this together’ feeling, which not only defines how Ampersand employees treat each other, but also extends to client relationships. 

What does your role include? 

My role as Solution Consultant entails being the bridge between the client and the development team on larger scale discovery projects. I’ll be working to get under the skin of business requirements, really getting to know the why behind the what, and translating that into tangible business-specific solutions to deliver real results tailored to each individual client. 

What brought you to Ampersand?

I came to Ampersand because, working client-side for a number of years, I came to understand the gap between client and agency. It’s not always necessarily the knowledge gap for which the agency is employed, in this case technical development, but equally the gap agency side to really understand the business requirements within that specific business. Whilst it may sound cliché to say, an agency really should be an extension of an in-house team, and that is exactly the kind of service Ampersand offer: Each problem is client-specific and so too is each solution. I came to Ampersand to help businesses better understand their problems, but most importantly to deliver the best solutions.

You come from an ecommerce background, can you tell us a bit more about that? 

Absolutely! I worked client-side in Ecommerce for almost 7 years before I joined Ampersand; Most recently as a Head of Ecommerce in the Home and Garden industry. I have a broad background in B2C ecommerce from scoping out a marketing growth and optimisation strategy, to building an internal team from the ground up. I’ve worked to implement trading and conversion rate optimisation techniques, which is where my experience is rooted. One of my highlights working in ecommerce was the opportunity to train and develop team members – it’s great to watch people grow knowing you’ve enabled their development. In recent years I’ve worked closely with external development agencies and in-house employees to integrate new and exciting integrations at the forefront of technology. I have a solid understanding of commercial requirements and experience of balancing ROI for discovery work.

What excites you about your future at Ampersand?

Many many things! I’m excited to work on a diverse range of projects, whilst really getting to know different businesses. I’m excited to swap out teaching others and continuing to learn and develop my own skills and knowledge. I’m equally excited to be part of an agency that delivers time and again for its clients and I can’t wait to be part of that journey.

What will hybrid working look like for you?

For me hybrid working is exactly that. I’ll be spending a couple of days in the office each week and the rest at home. Since covid hit I’ve found it’s great to have some quiet time at home, but equally important to make sure you have some face-to-face time with colleagues. I believe communication is best done in person, at least from time to time, to truly develop relationships.

You’re studying a computer science masters – we’d love to hear more?

I started a masters in Computer Science last March at the University of York. It’s something I’d been considering for a couple of years as I wanted to get back into learning again. I’ve learnt a lot over my career in ecommerce commercially, but I wanted to gain a base knowledge to aid my understanding of the technical landscape and help me transition into a more technical role. I’m almost halfway through the course now and I can honestly say it’s one of the best decisions I’ve ever made. Working full time and doing a masters is extremely challenging, but I’d recommend it to anyone considering furthering or changing their career path. Studying whilst also being able to apply that knowledge in your field as you go is really rewarding, even if I’ve swapped Friday drinks for Friday assignments for the foreseeable!

What advice would you give to other women in tech wanting to get into your field?

The advice I’d give would be to find out where you’re trying to get to and map out what it is you need to do to get there and how long that will take you. For a couple of years I pondered what roles were available in technology that fulfilled my ‘business problem-solving’ requirements. Speak to as many people as possible in the field about what the role is like and ask as many questions as you can. Ask yourself if you need further education or training: Manchester as a city has so many opportunities for re-education or further education, particularly for women wanting to get into tech. Equally there are so many online part-time courses available: You don’t need to give up your day job. Go to conferences and meet-ups [covid permitting!]. But most importantly stop pondering and start doing!

If you want to join Therese as a new starter, check out our careers page here to join us as a Technical Solutions Consultant.