Careers at Spabreaks.com: meet our People Advisor Imogen Nurse

Our team at Spabreaks.com embodies everything we want to represent, bringing energy, enthusiasm and commitment to everything we do. Advocates of the things that matter to us, from accessible wellbeing to customer service, it’s the individuals who make the difference. Amongst our valued individuals is Imogen Nurse - our People Advisor, who joined us earlier this year. From what an average day looks like to why she chose a career with us, we wanted to introduce you, so here goes…

What’s your role and what does that mean you do at Spabreaks.com?

I work as a People Advisor, which means I look after the full employee life cycle at Spabreaks.com. That goes from recruitment and onboarding (ie induction) to organising our Path to Wellness scheme and the monthly payroll. It’s a very varied role, so what I do in a day changes from week to week. As a result, it’s always interesting and challenging. I also take responsibility for our internal team related communications. So I’m often sending out congratulations awards for long service or reminding everyone to sign up to our subsidised gym membership.

My job is to provide advice and guidance to our managers and staff at Spabreaks.com, to make sure that everyone feels supported and has everything they need to complete their roles as best they can. I can often be seen running around the office to various meetings, taking part in our lunchtime yoga classes and occasionally having the privilege of judging our in house baking competitions!

Why did you want a career in HR?

I’ve always enjoyed helping others and found that, from a young age, a lot of people would run things past me and ask for my advice. I did a psychology degree at university and afterwards I wanted to pursue a profession that would utilise the information I’d learnt about what makes people tick, in combination with me being a ‘people person’. HR seemed the perfect choice as we’re a general support system for both the business and employees and I spend my working days talking to everyone across the business!

What qualifications did you have to do for your job?

I have a degree in Psychology (which is not required, but is helpful) and I also have a diploma in Human Resources. I am a member of the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD), which is a forum for HR professionals to discuss, share and research best practice as well as keep up to date with changes to employment law.

There are many different routes to get into a career in HR. I managed to get into my role by working my way up through various HR department roles from recruitment to advisory work. I also studied for my diploma part time while completing full time HR work. You can also do both undergraduate and masters degrees in HR.

What did you do or where did you work before joining the Spabreaks.com team?

For the majority of my career I was in the public sector working for the NHS in various roles in the HR team at Brighton hospital. From there I moved to the Dogs Trust, the dog welfare charity, and was there for almost three years. My role at Dogs Trust (prior to moving to Spabreaks.com) was in an advisory capacity supporting staff in the 21 dog rehoming centres across the UK. This involved lots of travel as the region I looked after had centres based in the north and south west. The charity does fantastic work and I do miss having dogs around the office!

What attracted you to a career at Spabreaks.com?

Firstly, who doesn’t love a spa? I was excited to join an organisation whose purpose and product is something I really enjoy personally and identify with. I was also moved by Abi’s commitment to advocating spa experiences for people going through cancer and making spa experiences accessible to everyone.

I enjoyed the relaxed and positive atmosphere which came through both on the website and when I visited the lively office. Mostly what I was impressed by was the passion and drive that all the team members at Spabreaks.com have, and that they are a fun team who challenge each other to excel in their roles.

What do you like most about it so far?

I am enjoying the variety in my role, and getting to know the hardworking Spabreaks.com team!

Tell us an interesting fact about you…

I really enjoy sports and keeping fit. So I try to complete one charity sponsored event per year. This year it was the British Heart Foundation London to Brighton bike ride.

I am particularly proud that three friends and I independently navigated and cycled to Paris from Brighton (minus the ferry trip to Dieppe) over three days. We raised over £1,000 for the specialist Brighton cancer centre; The Park Centre, and they were able to buy a new screening machine with our donation.