IT’S election year and we are all familiar with the term ‘running for office’.
Well, for Naked Leader’s Sue Cabot, life is more about running the office and politics rarely raise their head above the parapet such is the smooth operation behind the scenes at the company’s Woking headquarters.
Sue is the organiser, planner, appointment maker and the type of all-round admin star all small businesses need if they are to thrive.
What’s more, she completes her daily tasks with a smile, not to mention with an air of studied professionalism, in keeping with the quality of client on Naked Leader’s books.
‘I’ve been here for eight years and look after David and Rosalind’s diary, making all their appointments, as well as taking care of the data base and accounts,” says Sue. ‘Every day is different and I love the job.’
Naked Leader founder David Taylor has a reputation for having a positive impact on people’s lives – and working with him at close quarters, Sue knows the reasons why.
‘David is good at what he does because he has a great love of people,’ she says. ‘He is very engaging. I don’t often see him speaking but when I do I am overwhelmed and say to myself, “okay that’s what he does and that’s why he is so influential.” I see him in action maybe only three time a year but I also see the feedback from clients and they are all positive. David literally changes people’s lives.’
So, does Sue use any of Naked Leader’s positive messages in her daily life?
‘Yes, obviously at work, although I probably use them most on my three young children,’ she says.
‘I don’t ever say “no” to them any more. I reword it. And the other thing I do is if I want to get the children to do something and they won’t do it, I think of another way around it and I keep going until it’s get sorted.’
There it is, that ‘if you do something and it doesn’t work, do something else, and if that doesn’t work, do something else, and if that…’
She adds: ‘I don’t always have time to listen to my children and sometimes they are following me around trying to talk to me, especially one of them who is more demanding.
‘I just say “let me just do this one thing and then we will sit down and have a discussion” and that’s how I deal with it.”
Sue enjoys interacting with clients, often ringing rather than emailing to add that personal touch. And she relishes the flexibility given by David and company CEO Rosalind Howard.
‘They are lovely people to work for and so supportive,’ she says. ‘They understand families for instance and absolutely know how to look after their staff.’
Rosalind knows that a happy employee is a productive one and she adds: ‘When people ring up, Sue is amazing. She makes people feel at ease and that’s vital because we have important clients and they are comfortable contacting us.’
Sue’s enthusiasm rubs off on other colleagues too.
Office politics? Certainly not on her watch.