Wow, June already! How did that happen?? The last few months have been a whirlwind for the team with May 2023 being the busiest May ever!! A key cog in the team is our lovely Conference and Events Officer, Sarah McLeary, who started with us back in September 2021. In a rare moment of downtime, we caught up with Sarah to hear how she became interested in working events and what a typical day in TIC looks like for her!
‘It's been great coming back to Strathclyde after graduating with a degree in Marketing and Spanish and seeing the changes on campus, especially the new Learning and Teaching Building, the refurbishment of the Business School and the state-of-the-art Technology and Innovation Centre which didn’t exist when I was here! I have such fond memories of my time here whilst I was studying so it’s been lovely to return.
Coming from a family where both parents worked in education, I initially considered a similar career, following a brief dalliance with wanting to become a pathologist when I was growing up! However, after a year working as an English language assistant with the British Council in Madrid as part of my University degree, I realised this wasn’t something I wanted to progress with, as much as I enjoyed my year abroad!
After graduating, I was still unsure about what line of work I wanted to get into, so I began looking after events for a restaurant chain in Glasgow and this is where I realised how much I enjoyed helping people’s ideas come together. I was (and still am!) known as the ‘social convenor’ amongst friends and family; I love planning the next get-together, day out or holidays and I’ve always been a very organised person with great attention to detail. I realised I could use these skills every day working in the events industry.
Before taking up my role in the Conferencing and Events Team in TIC, I started working for Glasgow Life as an Events Coordinator which involved managing a range of events across some of Glasgow’s most prestigious venues including City Halls, Old Fruitmarket and Glasgow Royal Concert Hall. I looked after all the weddings for the Concert Halls and have had the privilege of working with over 200 couples to organise their Big Day including a couple of celebrity weddings!
As with any job, starting my new role here at Strathclyde was a little daunting, particularly during a pandemic, but everyone made me feel very welcome and my colleagues are the most supportive and talented group of people I’ve ever worked with.
No two days are the same in TIC but that’s what makes it fun & exciting! A ‘typical’ day starts with a team huddle to chat through the upcoming events, any changes/challenges and to make sure that all teams are ready for the day ahead. We also plan room turnarounds for events arriving the following day, ensuring everything is as it should be for our next set of clients. A chunk of the day revolves around communication - emails, venue showrounds, client meetings and zoom/teams calls. When I’m not at my desk I can be assisting clients with any requests, helping with event set ups (occasionally in a glamorous pair of steel toe cap boots!) or problem-solving operational issues that arise. There’s a lot of multi-tasking - one day I could be looking after a large international conference then the next day there could be a live TV broadcast or concert taking place. All while having to remain calm under pressure. On the plus side, I don’t need to worry about my 10,000 steps each day!
I really enjoy the wide range of events I get to work on and meeting new people every day. I thrive under pressure and love the buzz of the event days, seeing it all come together for our clients and their delegates, sometimes after months of planning.
When I’m not at work, I relish spending time with my partner, friends and family - especially my niece and nephew who make me laugh every day. I’m still a social butterfly and enjoy nothing more than dancing the night away with friends with a glass of bubbles in hand. Since my year abroad, I’ve continued to travel and love visiting new countries when I get the chance. I’m also a keen photographer and am hoping to add a drone to my collection soon as I recently passed my flyer ID test. I’m really looking forward to doing a bit more cycling over the summer and enjoying the beautiful Ayrshire countryside and coast!’
Thanks Sarah! We’re sure this will have inspired some budding events professionals! If you’re keen to chat to us, about anything event related, then we’d love to hear from you!