Five years ago, if you’d asked Danielle Hill where she expected to be on International Women’s Day 2022, she would have said in a field with a trowel in her hand in an archaeological dig.
Instead, she now works with Infinity, where she oversees teams of client support staff, booking engineers and answering queries about the Norse Group subsidiary company’s work.
She also manages various accounts as well as the finances for the operation, which focuses on property compliance and management solutions for dealing with asbestos, legionella or electrical and mechanical maintenance.
“Before joining Norse, I was an archaeologist in Cambridge,” she explains. “At one time I expected it to be a long-term career but after a while I realised it was too physically demanding to be sustainable for me.”
Danielle moved to Manchester and applied for an administration job with Infinity – and since joining the company she has risen through its ranks.
“I do work in quite a male-dominated sector but have always felt very well supported by the men I work with at Infinity. I am the only woman in management here and it would be good to see others rise to that level too, as well as to take up other roles.
“There are lots of jobs here, including working as engineers, that women just don’t think to apply for, but they could do them just as well as men,” she says.
While Danielle believes International Women’s Day is important, she would like to see more encouragement throughout the year to attract more women applicants to certain jobs; and she would like to see more of them progress up the career ladder.
“There are so many companies, right across the board, that have more men than women at the top,” she observes. “International Women’s Day does get people thinking but there should really be more than just one day a year to highlight the situation.”
Q: Is there a woman you particularly admire?
A: My mum, who took time out of her career to raise me and my brother, then found it difficult to get back into a job afterwards. She had to work really hard to achieve that, but she did it.
I also really admire Olympian Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce, who also time out to have a family and when she came back was still one of the fastest women on the planet. It inspires me to know I can have a family and a career as long as I am committed and hardworking.
Q: What advice would you give to a young woman just starting out on her career?
A: Work hard and be yourself. Never think of your gender when you are applying for a job because that can hold you back. As long as you are hardworking and are prepared to learn as you work, then you really can go far.
