“Do not be afraid to question and challenge things… there is so much opportunity to influence the company.” – Hannah Gooch, Head of Talent Acquisition at OVO Energy talks about essential traits needed to succeed in HR.
As part of our commitment to support candidates in developing fulfilling careers, we’ve invited HR Leaders from a wide variety of organisations to share their insights on building a career, the challenges they face and what advice they would share with those hoping to follow their footsteps.
This week, we had a great conversation with Hannah Gooch, the current Head of Talent Acquisition at OVO Energy. Hannah has been thriving in the HR industry for about 13 years, having started during her placement year. She joined and made an impact on several organisations including a talent strategy group, a recruitment agency, and now, an energy supplier.
Throughout her career, Hannah openly embraced roles that came her way, leading her to find her real passion: recruitment and talent acquisition.
How did you know that you wanted to pursue a career in HR?
From a young age, I’ve always loved working with people. I worked in my early teens and did everything from supermarket work to waitressing and washing up. But I enjoyed the people aspect rather than the actual job itself. This is something that I wanted to explore further going into the university.
I started at Hays in their construction and property arm during my placement year. I was doing a recruitment consultant role with business development. It wasn’t my preferred sector and I felt that while this will be a good experience, this is not what I want to do long term.
My manager at the time went on maternity leave and I was given the opportunity to move into the internal recruitment team. I absolutely loved it. I was fairly quickly put in charge of their graduate and placement year scheme. I liked that internal role and realised it is what I enjoyed and thrived on.
I then went back to school for my fourth year and did my dissertation on graduate schemes then rejoined the internal recruitment team of Hays during my final year of uni and after I graduated.
I also had a brilliant time at Adlib, where I focused on client-side marketing recruitment. I started in the resourcing world and moved up to being a consultant. I had a really good relationship with the Managing Director, but he knew that I did not come to do 15 business development courses. I was with the agency for two and a half years and had a great time. But I always knew that the in-house role was what I wanted to do and to be hands-on in recruitment.
When I first joined OVO Energy, we were about five hundred employees. Now, we have grown to about four to five thousand people. In those eight years, I feel like I’ve been on a huge journey both personally and career-wise. It was after my first maternity leave that I felt my career was going in the direction that I wanted. It gave me a sense of ambition that I hadn’t felt before. And that’s when things started to progress for me.
I always wanted to be a manager. I knew that that’s where my passions lie. I loved people and I loved developing people. I loved to see people do a really good job while they were having fun.
What are the key challenges you are facing right now as Head of Talent Acquisition?
The challenge last year was the volume of hiring. We hired around 1,200 roles into OVO Energy. With that much volume needed, you have got to stand out as an organisation.
COVID caused a huge shift for everyone and hugely changed working life for the better. Remote working and flexibility have become significant factors that people look for before joining a company. Luckily, we were ahead of the game as we were already promoting flexible and choice-based working before COVID. But it accelerated things for us.
We needed to focus on early careers and getting people into roles predominantly on the tech and product side early. There’s a shortage of good people in that area. We need to look earlier on rather than trying to get people when they’re halfway through their careers. I think that is where we can shift the diversity because we have an incredibly inclusive culture. With that goal, we needed to make sure that we are an appealing company to potential joiners.
What advice would you give to someone preparing for a long-term HR career?
Being personable and approachable is key to any leadership role, especially in HR. It needs you to be a true people’s person. It is essential to be warm, open, honest, transparent, and truly genuine to people.
You should also know when to admit that you do not know the answer and when to ask for help. Do not be afraid to question and challenge things if you are not comfortable with the way that a project is going. There is so much opportunity to influence the company.
Being a part of HR, we need to push the culture of an organisation. It is quite a powerful role. Particularly when you’re in a leadership position, you’ve got to stand up for your team, sing their praises in any way possible and champion what they are doing at all times.
Hannah joined OVO Energy in 2014 as a Talent Acquisition Advisor. She moved up the ranks and she took on the bigger challenge of being the Head of Talent Acquisition in January 2022.
If you are interested in having a confidential conversation about your career or would like support growing your team, please get in touch today.