01732 759725 INTERVIEW 20 In 2023, PrintIT Reseller is celebrating ten years in print. In a series of exclusive interviews over the next year, we’re inviting industry veterans to share their experiences over the past decade, what they’ve learned, and the highs and the lows of our unique and challenging industry. Here, Louise Marshall, Director of ESG and Organisational Development at Brother UK, shares her thoughts A decade in print Marketing Assistant at Brother International in the days before translation software. The product specifications would come directly from our head office in Japan, and I was tasked with translating the Japanese versions into multiple European languages and formats. Fortunately, the devices were less sophisticated back in the 80s than they are now – dot matrix models were all the rage and had fewer specs that needed translating. PITR: What has been the high point of the decade? LM: Achieving the Investors in People Platinum award in 2016 was a real high for the business and me personally. It recognised all of our efforts to stand out as a people-first employer with a positive work environment, focused on supporting and nurturing talent. We’re reassessed every three years and last year became the first company to win the award three consecutive times, chiefly because of our approach to supporting our people during the pandemic and truly living by our ‘At your side’ motto. PITR: And the low point? LM: COVID was a difficult time for us all. Our response hinged on keeping our people as connected as possible, which helped us to continue to keep tabs on how they were handling the change and any pressures they were facing. With the support we provided, we’ve come out the other side stronger for it. PITR: What (or who) has had the greatest impact in the sector in the last 10 years? LM: Undoubtedly the transition to hybrid working. It changed the face of our business and the sector more broadly. Businesses shifted how they operated and engaged with suppliers, swapping face-to-face meetings with virtual sales journeys, and we’re still continuing to help resellers evolve with that change. PITR: If you could change one thing about the last decade, what would it be? LM: That hybrid working became ingrained in our operations sooner. It has delivered a string of benefits, boosting productivity across our business while providing our people with greater flexibility. Getting the balance between our work life and our home life right is how we get the best out of our people and attract new talent. Hybrid has been instrumental in making this easier to achieve. PITR: What has been your proudest moment of the past 10 years? LM: This year we’re celebrating 10 years of being certified zero-waste to landfill and helping Brother make progress on its sustainability journey has certainly been a highlight. In a sector that has traditionally been male-dominated, another proud moment came when I became the first female Director at Brother UK in 2016. I felt that it gave me a real opportunity to inspire other women in our business and wider industry, and I’ve thoroughly enjoyed supporting our apprenticeship and graduate programmes to help young women coming into the sector thrive. PITR: Sum up the decade in three words. LM: Work-life balance. www.brother.co.uk PrintIT Reseller (PITR): You’ve been working in the print and IT industry for more than ten years. What led you to enter the sector? Louise Marshall (LM): Brother was the first major company I joined in a full-time role when I graduated from Manchester Polytechnic, now Manchester Metropolitan University. That was over 35 years ago and since then I’ve worked in nearly every corner of the business, from quality management to corporate governance and legal. Brother has obviously been a very big part of my life. PITR: What was your first job? LM: My first job was as a Technical Louise Marshall
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