ARCHITECT OF HER OWN FUTURE: Joanne Harding is making strides as a secretary for Norwich architecture practice Feilden and Mawson with the opportunity to move up the career ladder.

SECRETARIAL

More to this job than just deskwork.

Frequently donning a hard hat and heading out on site, Joanne Harding takes her job as a secretary in a firm of architects extremely seriously.

Joanne, 22, from Norwich works for city company Feilden and Mawson and enjoys getting out and about to find out about the projects she is working on back in the office.

“To be truthful I have always wanted to be a secretary,” said Joanne, who took her GCSEs at Acle High School. “I think I am especially lucky with my job here as I find it particularly interesting.”

After leaving school, Joanne went to City College Norwich where she studied her Advanced GNVQ in Business.

“That took two years. It was largely college-based although I did do some work experience,” she explained.

“When I finished I had a few months of doing part-time work, which included some PR, while I looked for a permanent job.”

In July 2001, Joanne was taken on by Feilden and Mawson as a trainee secretary.

“It was on-the-job training which I was keen on,” she explained. “I wanted something that was hands-on rather than sitting in a class all day.

Everybody was very helpful and I found I picked things up quickly.”

Joanne found there were many different facets to her work and she enjoyed the responsibility that came with the job.

“I like preparing the marketing bids and helping the large team I work with,” she said.

“I work on some major national projects which I find interesting and I love going out on site to learn more about the projects I am working on back in the office.”

Joanne has also recently been studying for her NVQ in Administration Level III at Paston College.

Robert Todd, a Partner at Feilden and Mawson said: “We always encourage our staff to continue training. Joanne is an excellent example of somebody who is continuing to develop within the practice.”

Long-term, Joanne has various options open to her. She might become a personal assistant, a company secretary or possibly move into marketing.

“The main thing is that by following this route and taking this job I now have lots of different opportunities,” she said. “It has also given me a great deal of confidence and I have found something I really enjoy.”