THIS week's High Flyer is Becky Mercer, head of business consulting at Zymplify in Belfast.
What was your first job?
My first job was in a very dear friend’s café in Bangor where I was a waitress, ice cream scooper, soon-to-be supervisor and finally restaurant manager. I learnt everything about providing excellent customer service, being organised and enthusiastic about the working day.
What do you attribute your success to?
I would attribute my success to the people that I have had the pleasure of working alongside who have taught me so many invaluable lessons in business and in life. I have worked with people with a range of skills from time management to financial forecasting, coaching and mentoring and been given a push when I needed it most.
I worked in a heavily male dominated environment for a long time and I have to thank the guys for making me the woman I am today, learning to stand on my own two feet in important debates, speaking my mind, having the confidence to give my opinion without being shy and learning how to pretend I watched the football highlights or what the best odds were in the Champions League before the morning brief
How would you describe yourself to someone who had never met you?
My friends and family would probably give a different answer, but I would describe myself as down to earth, hard-working, very driven and genuine. I am most certainly a people person and will always go the extra mile in all that I do.
How do you get the best out of people that work for you?
My motto has been and always will be, ‘know your people’.
Knowing why they come to work, knowing their strengths, weaknesses and knowing how to get the best out of each person who works for you.
Also, as the saying goes in Belfast finding the balance of ‘craic’ and work is key to a successful operation.
I will always look after those who do their best for me. It’s all you can ask for.
If you could change one thing about doing business in Northern Ireland, what would that be?
I’d like to us to host more business conferences at scale where local Belfast businesses can showcase who they are and what they do. Many of us attend trade shows like this in the south, or across the water.
In a rapidly growing city, I think it’s important for us to support each other and give our people the chance to share their success at home in their city.
Northern Ireland has some great success stories and some amazing speakers. It would be great for our city to host a spectacular conference in an iconic Belfast venue to share what our country has and what we can do from a business perspective.
What’s the most rewarding aspect of your job?
The world of digital marketing and marketing automation can be overwhelming for business owners, especially people who have been in business for 20, 30 or 40 years and are being challenged to move with the times.
I get to be a friendly face and slowly guide these clients with our platform and show them how digital marketing can save time, money and effort.
Tell us something interesting about yourself?
I fancied myself as a dancer in my teens. So much so that my two best friends and I entered ‘Got to Dance’ on Sky and made it to the live rounds. However, we didn’t have what it takes to win over the Pussy Cat Doll ‘Kymberly Wyatt’, who sent us packing before the big finale.
What’s your greatest passion outside work and family?
My greatest passion outside of work and family has got to be dance.
Although I didn’t make it myself it’s something I have been into since I was a child and I feel it will always be with me and hopefully my children in years to come.
Have you any unfulfilled ambitions?
I would love to be fluent in Spanish. I studied it in school for GCSE and A-Level, but I’ve let it slip. I need to take up some lessons again for sure.
If you could swap jobs with anyone else for the day, who would it be and why?
Michelle Obama. Her morals, her vision and how she views the world is fascinating and she is the type of businesswomen, wife, mother and friend that I aspire to be. I’d like to find out how she does it.
