Melissa Steel joins us as Communications Manager for 10 months to cover the maternity leave of Eppy Harries-Pugh. Take a moment to find out how she could help you with your communications and why her hobbies really pack a punch. Tell us a bit about your previous role/where you’ve come from… I’m on a secondment from Sport & Exercise, where I held the role of Communications and Marketing Officer. If you’ve ever seen social media posts, articles or emails about the gym in the University, then there’s a good chance I had something to do with them! I have also managed communications for its Peffermill Playing Fields, FASIC Sport & Exercise Medicine Clinic, Performance Sport and Active Lives branches, so my remit has always been broad and interesting. I was the Editor of the staff ‘Enews’ newsletter, so it’s good to be back at the helm with the Finance Bulletin! What is your role in Team Finance? My role is to manage our internal communications, spreading the word on key issues and celebrating our successes as Team Finance. I can also advise on communications in general, so if you’ve got a project coming up, get in touch. What have you got coming up in 2019/20? We’ll be continuing regular updates for the Finance community in Director’s Updates and the Finance Bulletin, among other things. Priorities on the horizon include collating and editing the Annual Report and Accounts and publicising our Autumn Event. A big thanks to colleagues who took part in our photoshoot at the Summer Away Day – I’m looking forward to making you the stars of the show in our future marketing materials! I will also be balancing this with the other half of my job, which is heading up communications for the University’s Edinburgh Local community engagement team. What does an average day look like for you at the moment? I get in and crack on with my ‘To Do’ list – it could be following up on contributors for the Annual Report and Accounts, or putting together the Communications Calendar for the year. Sometimes it will be sharing good news from the communities we help at Edinburgh Local, posting on social media or adding articles to our website. Then I might have a meeting to start the conversation with a key colleague on a new project, or be fielding requests from our Press Office for either Edinburgh Local or the Finance Department. I check in on social media throughout the day but I’ll have a final sweep before heading home. What keeps you busy outside of work? We recently got a Klee Kai (mini husky) puppy and his antics with our cat are a good alternative to a Netflix subscription. I still like to keep active at Sport & Exercise (I recommend their Boxing Blast class) and enjoy trying new combat workouts, I’ve had a go at everything from Krav Maga to Muay Thai! This article was published on 2024-07-01
