Hello! This is us. Who are you?

Mon 17 Oct 2022 | Uncategorized | 0 comments

The team at Talented People want to get to know you better. You’re more than just a CV, after all.

“Hold up”, we hear you say suspiciously. “Why do you want to find out more about me?”. There are lots of reasons but here’s a few:

1. So that we call you when the perfect job comes up (huge football fan? WFH? Always wanted to travel?)

2. To fairly represent the richly diverse talent in our industry

3. To make the search and hiring process more human and personable for everyone involved

4. To sensitively support you with the when / how of any disclosure during the application process

We know that if we know you better, and if difference and lived experience is celebrated in a truly inclusive workplace, then WOW – our clients will have a vibrant, happy, confident team who fizz with creativity and positively affect the content that the world can watch on their screens. We want to continue our ongoing work in this space to support our clients – your employers – to make better choices about interviews, hires and the overall culture of their workplace.

Over the next few weeks, some TP team members and friends will be telling their very own story of difference, because frankly, if we’re asking you to tell us more about your world, we want you to know who’s asking. Also, we hope that these personal stories will support and encourage you to be your true self at work. Please do update your details here – but of course there is no obligation, we know this stuff can be personal so it’s completely your call.

This is Katie’s story. What’s yours?

I made the move into Talent just under 9 years ago and joined Talented People in January 2018. Last year I had to have 2 major, unplanned back operations within a month of each other. As a mum of 2 young kids this was hard both mentally and physically. I was suddenly being told that things I did before (and took for granted) like going for a run and picking up my children, I shouldn’t do again. I’d have to change my lifestyle and adapt. This was incredibly challenging and a very emotional time for me and my family. Talented People were amazing and I couldn’t ask for more supportive employers. They helped me phase myself back into work and ensured I had what I needed to work comfortably from home. Working flexibly has allowed me to look after myself and I know that if I have flare ups in the future, I will be supported.

I now very happily work as Head of Talent, a job share with Naomi, allowing me the perfect work life balance. 

This is Emma’s story. What’s yours?

 I come from a very busy production management background and I have thrived in the fast paced world of television production. Once I had my little boy, my perspective changed. Going back to work after 8 months of my son being born made me realise how much I was continually working, never really taking a break. Once my son started getting poorly from all the germs flying around it was getting difficult to juggle. I decided to make a change, it was time to free up evenings and weekends for my son. I also needed to be in a better place mentally.

Having flexibility as a new(ish) mum has meant the world to me. Being so well supported by a wonderful team has made me a happy worker.

To have the ability to switch off at a certain time in the day and over the weekends has restored my wellbeing, so much so that I have been able to take up running again. Something I was getting quite good at but stopped due to a hectic work pattern and being a new mum. There simply wasn’t the time to do the things I love. I feel like a new me and working for a company that is really championing the way that we think about our work/life balance is a privilege. Working in Talent has been a joy, I have learned that I love to talk, and I love to help people who might have been through difficult times.

This is Joty’s story. What’s yours?

Joty Chopra, Talent Coordinator

Hi I’m Joty. Originally from Pakistan, I now live in Glasgow and am a proud South Asian Scot.

Prior to working at TP, I was as researcher and worked on various projects across the country. As much as freelance life was fun, it was also very restrictive in having a work life balance and it was taking a toll on my health. The fact that I can work remotely has meant a lot to me and the support provided by the team to manage my own working hours (when I am not in Scotland) has benefited me in many ways.


After having an honest conversation with my bosses, I was able to travel to Pakistan to spend time with my extended family and plan my wedding while also working. That really helped me to be completely myself again and strike the right work / life balance.

So now and again I take my laptop, get on a flight and work from a different continent without it affecting my performance – or my health.

This is Naomi’s story. What’s yours?

 
Naomi Callan, Joint Head of Talent

 

I’m a Mum of two young kids and before I moved into Talent Management, I was a Series Editor/Exec. My wife also works in TV, and we felt it was impossible for us both to work in production and be ableto spend any time with our young kids. We wanted to be able to see the nativityplays, attend sports days (although not necessarily taking part in the Mums’
races!) and be there for them emotionally too.

So, it was brilliant to join Talented People who are incredibly supportive of the life/job/children juggle. My role as Head of Talent is a job share – enabling me to focus on work for 3 days a week, but completely switch off on the other 2 – because I know Katie has
everything covered.

I’m pleased to say that Television Production is becoming more flexible (partly as a consequence of enforced WFH during the pandemic) and I enjoy supporting people who are also looking for flexible or job share opportunities.

This is Jessica’s story. What’s yours?

 

Jessica Endonyan, Talent Manager

 

I am a proud Nigerian, born in the UK and a mum to a beautiful 1 year old girl, Leona. My faith means a lot to me and really helps me balance my mind and has a positive impact on my mental health – chocolate helps too! 😉

It can be difficult managing being a mum and balancing work/family life. Working in an environment where my colleagues are in the same boat as me and understand this, makes a huge difference. I don’t feel like I am being a burden or ‘letting down’ the team when I have to attend to emergencies related to my daughter or change my work schedule around due to childcare issues. 

The flexibility of my working hours has helped me to not feel anxious about what would happen to my daughter if I was unable to be there for her. It has helped my general wellbeing because I know that I will be listened to and valued. Also, working in a team with people from different backgrounds is amazing and very necessary because in the past I felt like I stood out like a sore thumb being the only person of colour on different production teams, but now I’m just part of the wonderful mix!

This is Rosie’s story. What’s yours?

 

Rosie Turner, Joint MD

 

Life can throw anyone a curveball at any point. I wasn’t born with it, but I have developed a heart condition that means my heart speeds up to 2-3x its normal speed for long periods of time, often for no apparent reason and while at rest. 

It can be hugely debilitating, but as an invisible condition it’s hard for others to understand.

At its worst it made work impossible for a while, as everything that I did triggered an attack.

It’s impacted my life a lot over the past couple of years, but with medication and more understanding, I manage to keep it mostly under control.

Working flexibly has allowed me to manage things much better and I’m lucky to have an incredibly supportive team and business partner. Being open and honest has been imperative and has meant I’ve been able to return to the work that I love. I also now never take anyone’s situation for granted, and can empathise with the talent we work with and support them with disclosure to make sure they’re well supported to do the job they love to the best of their ability.

This is Tors’ story. What’s yours?

 

Tors Sorby, Talent Manager

 

Hi! I’m Tors, and I’m hard of hearing – I have no hearing in my left ear.

This has been a life long disability from contracting Mumps as a baby. Throughout the early part of my career, I didn’t really think of my partial deafness as a disability, and therefore didn’t disclose it to people. As a result, I sailed/struggled through my working life missing things, trying to fill in the gaps in conversations where I’d mis-heard things, dreading events and social situations in case I wasn’t able to hear, and feeling anxious that colleagues and stakeholders might think I was being rude and ignoring them.

Working in an industry that is becoming more and more inclusive, and now feeling able to let people know about my disability from the outset, has been life changing. Such a seemingly small thing – not being able to hear very well – had, unbeknown to me, been causing me a lot of anxiety in work situations for years.

I now feel comfortable disclosing this small, but important, side of me – and letting people know immediately takes the pressure off me. I don’t have to struggle to hear or pretend I’ve heard when I haven’t.

Now, in one quick sentence, I can explain my disability and feel comfortable in all interactions, from hectic Zoom calls to loud and busy social events with clients.

Our team would love to hear from you… Send or update your CV and details here, and browse the roles on our jobs board here. Talented People’s Live Sessions on Facebook are popular, so watch our social feeds for the next important and inclusive industry chat and join in with your own questions. You can find all previous ones on our site here. Follow Talented People on TwitterFacebookInstagram & LinkedIn so you don’t miss good TV industry talk and news, as well as our latest job opportunities

**As a proud champion of diversity and equality in production, Talented People takes positive action to reach and represent marginalised or under-represented groups in the industry – be that race, disability, sexuality, gender, socio-economic background or religion, or indeed any other personal circumstance we can encourage conversation to support to get the best talent into the right jobs without prejudice e.g. jobsharing / flexible working requirement.**

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