In the Spotlight this week is Pam Gillies, business advisory and strategic planning partner at HNH
What was your first job?
My first job was in my family’s antiquarian book business, Emerald Isle Books. I did everything from arranging shipments around the world, to designing the annual catalogue, talking to customers, to making the tea. As a 17 year old girl, fashion and pop music fan, working with first editions of Seamus Heaney may not have seemed like much fun. However, it was here that I found my interest in the business itself and discovered a talent for the ‘numbers’.
What qualifications do you have?
At Queen’s University Belfast I achieved a BSc joint hons undergraduate degree in economics and management followed by a Master of Business Administration at University of Ulster. One week after graduating from the MBA, I started my training contract and went on to become a qualified chartered accountant and am now a Fellow with Chartered Accountants Ireland.
What do you attribute your success to?
Most of my success is down to good old fashioned hard work as well as the people I have surrounded myself with. My husband Neil is one of my greatest supporters and mentors. Making sure that our work life balance is correct for our family is key and I ensure that I enjoy the time that I spend in each part of my life to the max; my family and friends keep me grounded and on the straight and narrow.
How would you describe yourself?
I would say the following sums me up: Driven - if I start something, I will successfully complete it. Authentic - what you see is what you get. Empathetic - to everyone’s voice. Engaging - enjoying meeting our clients and having a bit of fun. Family orientated - the most important thing in my life is my family.
Who do you look up to in business?
The people that I admire most are the entrepreneurs I work with at HNH; the people that have built businesses from the ground up. When it comes to starting, scaling and building a business, there has never been a truer adage than if it was easy, everybody would be doing it. The self-belief, motivation, self-sacrifice and pure grit to keep going, is always something to behold.
How do you get the best out of people?
At HNH, we are totally focused on the behaviours driven by our core values and we will not comprise on these: integrity, resilience, honesty, collaboration and client-centric. We get the best out of people by creating an environment where they genuinely want to do well for each other, our clients and the business.
If you could change one thing about doing business in Northern Ireland, what would it be?
It would be to foster a stronger culture of confidence. We have incredible businesses with world leading talent, innovation and entrepreneurial spirit, but sometimes we underestimate our potential on a global stage. How are you doing? ‘Not too bad’ are three words I hear a lot! Northern Ireland is a hub of excellence and opportunity and we should be shouting as loud as we can to promote ourselves.
What website or app could you not do without?
Professionally, LinkedIn. Personally, Instagram.
What was the last book you read?
“The Infinite Game” by Simon Sinek. A brilliant book all about the importance of strategic thinking and resilience. It also highlights the importance of inspiring trust, collaboration and innovation within your team and clients. Highly recommended!
What car do you drive?
A BMW M135i; it gets me to where I need to be on time!
How do you recharge?
To be honest, I get my energy from staying busy! I like to be ‘on the go’ during the working week and as a family at weekends. I’m not the sort of person who likes to sit down a lot. I thrive from a pre-work run to clear my head and plan my day, aim to make at least one pilates class a week and walk as often as I can with my chums. A perfect Saturday is rugby with the boys in the morning, a run along Belfast Lough in the afternoon, followed by a great meal (prepared by my husband) around the kitchen table with my family and all of our friends. Our front door never stops. Oh, and my guilty pleasure is cutting the grass. One day, I am going to write a book entitled ‘Zen and The Art of Mowing the Lawn’
