SCHOOL NEWS // CAREERS & BUSINESS NETWORK
Careers &
Business
NETWORK
With the pandemic forcing events to go on online , the Pocklington School Foundation Careers and Business Network was pleased to be back in March with its first face to face event for two and a half years . York Mansion House was the venue and the focus for the evening was working within global teams , and the impact of technology on modern working practices . The guest speakers were former pupils Sam Moore ( OP 89-00 ) and Matt Atkinson ( OP 85-93 ).
Sam studied Economics at Durham University and joined PwC on their graduate programme . After four years at the London offices , he transferred to their Sydney operation , becoming Director in PwC Australia ’ s tax practice . Sam moved back to the UK with his family in 2019 and is now Managing Director of his own company , BurtonWeston Ltd , providing consulting services to leading professional services firms .
Matt studied Industrial Chemistry at Sheffield University before starting his career in business development and sales in the IT and digital sector . He has held several senior roles across BT , Cisco , TiVo and Amazon Web Services ( AWS ), working with clients to deliver their business challenges with digital solutions . Matt leads the UK business which helps clients migrate to AWS delivering modernisation services to innovate their business challenges with digital solutions .
At the event , Pocklington School Headmaster Toby Seth hosted a Q & A session with Matt and Sam to discover their career journeys and the lessons learnt along the way .
Toby commented : “ We are delighted to host our latest Careers and Business Network meeting in the magnificent surroundings of York ’ s Mansion House . What better place to hear Sam and Matt ’ s career experience ! I know that our guests , including our Sixth Form students , were fascinated to hear how , although working in very different sectors , their anecdotes of organisational culture and how Covid has impacted working practices , had much in common .”
Matt said : “ I thoroughly enjoyed the evening , sharing some of my experiences and how my degree in Industrial Chemistry was the gateway into my career in sales and business development . After the formal part of the evening , I thoroughly enjoyed chatting to the pupils , teachers and Old Pocklingtonians , and found the opportunity to network a very useful one .”
Sam added : “ Thank you for the opportunity to be part of the Careers & Business Network meeting . It ’ s great as an Old Pocklingtonian to be able to give something back , and I ’ m happy to take any questions or to help offline . I also really enjoyed sharing the stage with Matt . From graduate management schemes to the competitive nature of working for international corporate organisations , it was fascinating to discover that , although we have had very different routes , our careers have had many similarities .”
A mix of current and former parents , Old Pocklingtonians and students attended the event , which is one of three organised by the Network every year . Launched in 2017 as a joint initiative between the OP Association and the School , the Network is open to everyone in the wider Pocklington School community . The Network also has its own LinkedIn group with over 530 members across the world and is a valuable career networking resource for members to draw on .
The provisional dates for the next events are : Thursday 2 February 2023 , and Thursday 4 May 2023 .
Photo : L to R : Sam Moore , Managing Director , Burton Weston Ltd , Joan Gough , President of the Old Pocklingtonian Association , Matt Atkinson , Principal Sales Manager , Amazon Web Services , Sheena McNamee , Director of External Affairs , Toby Seth , Headmaster .
For more information , and to join the Careers & Business Network , contact Jenny Preston , Development Officer , development @ pocklingtonschool . com
10 THE POCKLINGTONIAN