In this instalment, we explore a career in HR, the variety of fractional leadership, and the role of AI in people-focused work, framed through Fractional HR Director Jackie Burn.
Tell us about what you do.
I am currently a fractional HR Director. Having been HR Director at a Hospitality business for 15 years until 2023, I decided for personal reasons to step away from my corporate role and set up my own business supporting organisations who need help with their People Strategy.
I currently have 4 clients on a retained basis in different sectors and the nature of the support I provide to each business varies enormously. Some don’t have a People function and therefore I provide both tactical and strategic support, others have People Team that need some additional leadership or mentoring. One of my clients is a private equity business that own a number of operational businesses that I am involved in which provides a great deal of variety!. This business model provides flexibility for both the organisations and myself which really works.
How did you get your career started?
I actually started my career in financial services as a management trainee but realised quickly that this probably wasn’t going to be my chosen career. As part of this training programme I became more involved in training and people development and so moved into a pure HR role and the rest as they say is history. I have been an HR generalist throughout my career and thoroughly enjoy the variety that that brings.
What is the best part of your day?
Without sounding cliché it has to be variety – people can be very unpredictable! Also given that I support a number of businesses in different sectors no two days are the same. It is a bit like wearing different hats and remembering the different organisations, their culture, ways of working and the regulations and processes that apply to each one.
What is your biggest achievement so far career wise?
I have been lucky enough to have some brilliant people work in my team and my greatest success is seeing their progress and development. When I left corporate life in 2023, my Head of HR became my successor which was just brilliant.
What advice would you give to someone leaving school right now who wants to get into HR?
I would say go for it! It is such a varied role and can be really rewarding. I would say get yourself a good mentor – HR isn’t an exact science all the time (despite various employment laws that guide us) and it helps to have someone in a safe space with whom you can discuss specific situations or scenarios.
Do you have any comments on the current landscape – AI in particular?
I think that AI has its place for sure when it is used properly, however an HR function is about people and human connection. I have seen businesses who overly utilise AI lose their authenticity which is important from a cultural and leadership perspective. Some employees for example may use and AI tool to help them navigate a specific situation in the workplace but this can become tricky when AI will interpret only having received one version of the truth. Whilst AI can help speed up activity, recruitment screening for example, the right information needs to be provided in the first place for this to become effective.
What is something unexpected in your personal life that work has actually enabled
When you work in an organisation you make connections on a professional level but may not necessarily know if these would extend to a friendship outside of the workplace. When I left my full time role in 2023, I was fortunate enough that some really special people who I had worked with became friends whom I still meet on a regular basis today.
