Jo Wishart says she learned the value of stepping out of her comfort zone and voicing her opinion during many years in tough and often male-dominated workplaces, including the Police Force.
“While at the Police, I looked after all officer recruitment, as well as internal promotion boards,” she explains.
“Aside from managing a number of staff, my role was incredibly varied and busy, from running large assessment centres, working closely with Marketing and Communications to designing and creating new campaigns and implementing a shared service centre.
“I also set up and managed the Positive Action Recruitment Team for both Norfolk and Suffolk, to improve diversity and inclusivity in both forces, and ended up managing the police staff recruitment team who looked after all civilian roles throughout Norfolk and Suffolk.”
Jo’s role was civilian and was one of the key steps on her career ladder that helped her to hone the skills she now possesses in learning to deal with challenging situations.
“In my career I have worked in various environments that have been very heavily male dominated, including the Police Force,” she said.
“Making yourself heard can initially be very daunting, but these roles have helped me to become vocal in my thoughts, not to be afraid to voice my opinion.
“In the Police Force especially, I had the pleasure of working with a few, very strong and inspirational female officers, some of whom are now great friends of mine.”
Jo’s role at Norse is extremely varied. She is Head of Recruitment, responsible for recruitment across the whole Group; she can be involved in anything from interviewing and executive recruitment to restructures.
She sits on boards, structures job descriptions and manages a team that look after day-to-day recruitment.
“I try to Break the Bias in everything I do,” she admits.
“The glory of the role I am in now is that I have the platform to encourage my team and those in the wider business to address queries or issues that arise and not to let things slide – to constructively challenge something if they feel it is not quite right.
“All members of my staff have confidence in the knowledge that they have my backing and support and that they can question anything they wish.
“I believe that the more situations are challenged in a positive way, then the more likely things are to change.”
Q: Is there a woman you particularly admire?
A: I have two good friends who are female police officers of senior ranks – seeing their success within their roles is always very inspirational. One of my idols is also Karren Brady, who stepped into the football world at a very young age, just 23. Although we still have a long way to go, the last 20 years have seen more women progress into senior positions. Seeing what Karren Brady achieved back in the 1990s really stands out for me. She has gone on to have an amazing career in various roles within heavily male dominant environments.
Q: What advice would you give to a young woman just starting out on her career?
A: Pushing yourself out of your comfort zone is absolutely key to growing as an individual. Once you have experienced uncomfortable situations, barriers are removed, and you are able to realise your capability for dealing with challenging scenarios. Speaking up and giving your opinion, especially in a male-dominated environment, can be daunting, however the majority of time the responses received are engaging, positive and respectful. Often for women it can be the fear of feeling “shut down” or getting something wrong leading to embarrassment that overpowers the ability to provide valuable input. Have confidence and conviction in your knowledge and opinions and in your ability to share these constructively with your audience, whether they are male or female.
