A day in the life of Rita
Senior Marketing Specialist
Career background:
After university, I spent nine years working in retail. I then returned to full-time education to follow my passion and become an accredited journalist. After three years in digital marketing and freelance journalism, I had a baby. Once my priorities changed, I wanted to find a new job that was flexible, exciting, meaningful, and challenging.
What do you love about working at Spectrum?
Every day is so varied and different. When situations arise within any of our sites, it makes you look at things from a completely different perspective – which I love, because it allows for mental growth. I enjoy learning something new every day! I really appreciate how patient and understanding my colleagues are, and that I am encouraged to fully switch off once my working hours are over.
Why do you recommend others work at Spectrum?
You’ll be joining a work family that is welcoming, helpful, passionate and driven. I’ve never worked anywhere that is so understanding of a proper work/life balance. It’s a sector that is challenging, but obviously rewarding; you are given the opportunity to make a difference and that is special in today’s current climate.
Top tips for working at Spectrum:
Be patient and openminded; I last worked at a fast-paced digital agency focused solely on eCommerce and profit, so Spectrum was a shock to the system.
Something you wish you’d known before starting at Spectrum:
I knew the public sector would be different, but I wasn’t prepared for how different! Being so used to such a money-driven and KPI-led profession, it was refreshing to finally work for a caring organisation where the patient is truly at the heart of what you do.
This is what a day in the life of a Senior Marketing Specialist can look like:
After the school run, I make myself a strong cuppa before logging on just before 9am. I have half an hour to go through my inbox, make a list or plan for the day, and check the news/ websites, before our team meeting. Every day is different; I can be dealing with an external press release for the media in the morning, and then dealing with staff requests for patient comms and writing an internal piece for the staff newsletter Across The Spectrum in the afternoon. I didn’t come from a healthcare background, so it is really interesting to learn about how different healthcare teams work, e.g. our sexual health clinics, substance misuse teams, or prison healthcare. It’s eye-opening and makes me appreciative of how things are run behind the scenes. I’ll have my dinner break at about 1pm – usually something simple like a sandwich. Most of my colleagues are based in Wakefield, but everyone is just a quick video call or message away if I need any help.