DRIVE meets Inspiring Automotive Women 2021 winner, Clare Beynon
The Automotive 30% Club will shortly be announcing the winners of the Inspiring Automotive Women 2022.
We caught up with Clare Beynon, Talent Acquisition Marketing Manager, DRIVE editor and the 2021 winner of this prestigious accolade, to find out more about Enterprise’s work with the Automotive 30% Club, the importance of winning and of being nominated – and of being an ally for others.
“Enterprise’s “lattice” approach to helping employees build career can help people expand their personal and professional skill set”
“I’m celebrating 20 years at Enterprise this December, and I’ve been all over the place with my career,” Clare Beynon admits.
The starting point was the Enterprise Management Training Programme, which is the beginning for so many people who go on to become Enterprise leaders. She progressed quickly to branch manager. This is when her career took its first interesting turn. Due to Clare’s strong track record developing her employees, she wanted to pursue a role in employee development.
“I wanted the opportunity to explore the team development aspect, so I successfully applied for a promotion into talent development, which I loved.”
By year five of her Enterprise career, Clare had been promoted several times and became group HR manager. She was just 27 years old.
“I was having my first child, I was in a big business support role,” Clare tells us. “I was an example of the career potential that Enterprise offers its employees.”
Clare stayed in the role for about five years, moving to another region as HR Manager, and increasing her role as an advocate for gender issues.
“I facilitated our Women In Leadership programmes, I joined the DRIVE editorial board and I started advocating with external partnerships,” Clare explained. “I had a great role.”
Then it was time for another switch. When the opportunity came up, Clare applied for an Area Manager position and was offered the role.
“I was seven years out of rental and there had been a lot of change, but I wanted to get closer to the business,” she told DRIVE. “I knew that my leadership experience in talent development and HR would be invaluable.”
Clare talked about how Enterprise’s “lattice” approach to helping employees build career, as distinct from a career “ladder”, can help people expand their personal and professional skill set to become a better business partner and leader.
“It takes trust to take someone from HR into area management,” Clare says. “The beauty of Enterprise is you can develop in different parts of the company and learn different skills without leaving the business.”
“I felt it was important to show that I could do it, as a mother of two girls, which I did, as I successfully moved my branches up the balance analysis.”
“My daughter is now inspired to be active herself. There is huge power in being a role model at work which extends into the home. It makes a huge difference”
After three years as an Area Manager, Clare went back to her roots and was appointed a group Talent Development Manager
“I was seeing a real change in the numbers of women progressing in rental and wanted to partner with the group leadership team to ensure this continued,” she said.
During this time Clare also focussed on giving back to her local community and was voted in as a local councillor, as the only female ensuring she pushed to support and lead on family initiatives.
Clare was also awarded fundraiser of the year for her drive and passion to give back, supporting our partner charity, Children In Need, which included travelling to Mont Blanc to take on the ultimate Mont Blanc challenge, raising over £60,000 for the charity
Then Covid hit and a role leading the Talent Acquisition team emerged.
“The opportunity arose to create a new shared service from the ground up during one of the most challenging times and I just had to have a go.”
The new centre of excellence for Talent Acquisition splits the function by discipline, and Clare is responsible for marketing.
They helped the business to emerge stronger through one of the most turbulent periods in employment, with huge operational changes and many new hires.
Then in 2021, Clare won the Inspiring Automotive Women Award.
To be nominated for the award, you have to be recognised for promoting equity, inspiring women to be successful in their careers, and supporting women in the workplace.
“I was absolutely blown away by the fact that people should think this of me,” Clare told us. “It was such a delight to be recognised for the work that I’ve done.”
The impact of the award goes beyond the internal.
“My eldest daughter wrote a story about me at school, and she said how she is so proud of me,” Clare says emotionally.
“The thing is to be a role model. My daughter is now inspired to be active herself. She promotes women’s football in her school and is very outspoken in women’s issues. There is huge power in being a role model at work which extends into the home. It makes a huge difference.”
If you are interested in a career with Enterprise, please visit our recruitment website at careers.enterprise.co.uk
