This month on Meet the Hiring Managers, we’re enjoying a cuppa with our newly appointed HR Business Partner, Larissa Nieuwkoop!
Tell me about your role within Namos.
I am an HR Business Partner. It’s a new role for me (I moved into the role in February this year), and it’s a new role for Namos as well – they’ve never had an HR Business Partner before. My role works closely with the senior management team to support the Executive Leadership Team, helping to shape, drive and support the delivery of the business’ ambitions and key strategies. My role is about supporting and collaborating with our Chief People Officer, Anna Clarke. I work with Anna to develop our HR policies, procedures, and guidance, ensuring that our line managers have the support they need to implement agendas in their areas. I also offer advice and support on a range of different employment issues. Anna and I also work closely with our Learning and Development Lead, Tracey Weetman, supporting our consultants and employees through their development and learning. I also manage a small team, made up of Recruitment, our HR Assistant and the Executive Assistant to our leadership team.
Can you talk me through your previous experience?
When I first came to London, I had no HR experience at all. I came from an insurance background, after doing a bachelor’s in communications at university, majoring in Journalism. I did an internship for a magazine, and after that I worked for Vodafone in New Zealand as a Sales Representative, before moving into Insurance. From there, I moved into Property Management. The property world in the UK was a whole different ball game! I decided that I wanted to try something new. There were so many opportunities in London at the time, and I wanted to find my passion, my career. A lot of the skills I gained in Property Management were transferable to HR and Recruitment.
What led you to join Namos?
When I moved to London, I really wanted to join a large organisation. Coming from a small town in New Zealand, you don’t get those opportunities. I wasn’t sure what I wanted to do, but I knew I wanted a change from Property Management. As you do when you move to a new country, I registered with a recruitment agency. They came to me with the role for Namos – I’d never heard of Namos before! But I attended the interview and was lucky to meet with Anna, who was from Australia and like me had moved from the other side of the world. We had an instant connection. Although Namos wasn’t my initial first option, I felt that there was a lot of opportunity for me to grow in the role and gain some great experience and skills. I’ve been fortunate really, as lockdown came shortly afterwards, and it turned out to blessing in disguise! I was able to put my head down and really focus on my role. I was promoted to HR Manager 3-4 months into the role, and I’m grateful for that. As Namos was a small company at the time, I really felt that I could make the role my own and grow into it. I feel like I’ve found my passion, as I was given so much room to grow. The leadership team listened and took my ideas on board, and it was great to see that.
What do you love about working for Namos?
For me, Namos feels like a family. Coming from New Zealand and going through a global pandemic when I couldn’t return home to see my family, Namos was my home away from home, my family. When I joined Namos, we were at 40-50 employees, and I on boarded 100+ employees, and developed close relationships with everyone. I love that people can come to me with any issues, professional or personal. My door is always open.
Talk me through the typical roles you recruit for within your team.
Within the Internal team, we hire administrative roles and positions related to Recruitment or HR. We’re a small team of 6 people currently. But as HR, we’re also responsible for recruitment across Namos, and we look at new ways of attracting talent, such as our Associates and Veterans programs. We give opportunities to candidates without Oracle experience, who want to get into the Oracle world, or those who have left the Armed Forces and are looking for a change. These programs are a great way for us to bring in enthusiastic, driven people, who are ready to dive into the world of Oracle! It’s been rewarding seeing those people come in, grow, and develop.
What qualities would make someone a good fit for your team?
For the Internal Team, I like to really understand the candidate’s motivations for applying – this way I can understand their drive and ambition, and where they see themselves going. I love to see a positive, can-do attitude, as I think it that will always go a long way! Being able to think outside the box, bring new ideas to the table, and able to work both within a team and independently – this is particularly important given that we work from home. I look for people who live and breathe the Namos values – Professionalism, Expertise and Trust. Team fit, for me, is more important than experience. I would rather hire someone with 1 years’ experience and know that they are the right fit and can grow into the role.
Which aspects of your work are you most passionate about?
I enjoy helping people. I’m a real people person, I love making sure that employees are supported, looked after, and that their questions are being answered – that’s what drives me every day. I like employees to have a really positive experience with Namos, from onboarding and throughout their journey with us. I’m also passionate about improving what we can do with our internal processes. Having grown so quickly from a small to a medium sized company, it’s about making sure that the company is where it needs to be as it grows.
What does the future look like for your team?
Namos is growing, and naturally our Internal function will grow too. In the short term, we have our Payroll Manager, Sarah Griffiths, joining us from Finance. Beyond that, I’m really excited to see what the future brings!
What advice would you give to candidates starting out in the Oracle world?
It’s not a destination, it’s a journey. I had never heard of Oracle when I interviewed with Namos! I had to do my research, and with Oracle you’re constantly learning. There is so much going on, and Oracle is constantly changing. I have never been an Oracle Consultant, but I have watched our Associate Consultants and know that it can be challenging at times. My best advice is to keep your enthusiasm going, keep your drive and push through – you will succeed in the end.
Join us again next month, when we’ll be chatting with our inspirational Operations Director, Karen Street!
About Namos Solutions
Namos Solutions are an award-winning Oracle OPN Modernised Partner specialising in the implementation and support of ERP, EPM and HCM business solutions, both in the Cloud and on-premise.
Although based in central London, we work wherever our clients need us to be. Many leading organisations located all over the world trust and rely on our expertise to deliver industry-leading business solutions. Namos customers can currently be found in the UK, Europe, Middle East, Asia Pacific, North America and Africa.
For more information, please visit www.namossolutions.com or email info@namossolutions.com.
Follow Namos Solutions at LinkedIn and Twitter.
