During both of my degrees I have honed my ability to use a wide range of research tools and methodologies, to develop a through evidence-based understanding of complex issues, as indicated by my Masters thesis. I have attained a high level of data analysis and am familiar with varying tools to get a clear and objective sense of the facts on any issue. Throughout my academic career I have utilised my critical thinking, creative, persuasive communication and collaboration skills.

I have successfully combined work and other commitments showing myself to be self-motivated, organised and capable of working under pressure. I have a clear, logical mind with a practical approach to problem solving and a drive to see things through to completion. I enjoy working on my own initiative or in a team. I am reliable, trustworthy, hardworking, innovative and eager to learn and have a genuine interest in current affairs and policy analysis.
I am a IAM Advanced Driver

Queen Mary University of London

MSc International Public Policy - Merit

Modules Completed: Implementation and Evaluation, Theories of Policy Making Process, International Public Policy: Concepts and Practice, Globalisation and the International Political Economy of Development.

Dissertation: South-South Cooperation: An analysis of agricultural knowledge-transfer implementation influencing smallholder food losses. An analysis utilising the case of Kenya and Ghana.

The Open University

BA (Hons.) Politics, Philosophy and Economics - 2.1

Began studying towards a BA (Honours) in Politics, Philosophy and Economics in February 2012. Completed modules ranging from Exploring Philosophy, Power, dissent, and equality, Running the Economy and International Relations.

Economics Project: What were the main strengths and weaknesses of the EU carbon trading scheme at Phase 2? An economic analysis.

International Relations Project: In what ways is security still central to other areas of international relations?

Institut Français

Debutant Français

Began studying towards A1.1 French, with an aim to C2 Fluency. Member of the Institut Français, visit the Bistro and cinema to deepen my knowledge of French language and culture.

Oxford Brookes University

BSc (Hons.) Motorsport Technology

Studied towards a BSc (Honours) Motorsport Technology in October 2008. Completed modules Basic Electrical Engineering, Basic Mathematical Methods and Basic Mechanical Engineering.

Hertford Regional College

Advanced Engineering Diploma (Level 3 - Completed)

Studied and completed an Advanced Engineering Diploma in October 2005. Modules studied ranged from Static Mechanics, Thermodynamics, Fluid Dynamics, Computer-aided design and Computer Engineering. Achieved my diploma in May 2008.

Southgate School

9 GCSEs inc. English, Maths and Science

Attended Southgate School from 2000 to 2005 and gained 9 GCSEs.

Over 10 years Customer Service Experience as a Supervisor and General Merchandise Assistant at a busy Sainsbury's superstore in North London.

Currently I am in the process of learning French to fluency (C2) with the Institut Français, this will be followed by German, once C2 level has been achieved with French. Throughout my work and academic career, I have shown that I have an innate abilty to learn and adapt quickly, with a excellent attention to detail.

Able to communicate effectively when working within a team or dealing with clients. The extensive experience above displaying, an excellent record of deliverance in customer facing roles with my years of experience in retail.

Continually seeking to advance my knowledgebank by taking FutureLearn courses and attending events. Always seeking self-improvement, particularly on topics regarding Politics or Economics. The certificates I have attained can be viewed below. One notable course taken was Right vs Might in International Relations provided by the University of Glasgow. This increased knowledge of international law and legal responses to terrorism significantly by the end of this course.

Expertise in Customer Service

I have over 10 years of experience working in a busy environment. I am currently a supervisor at Sainsbury's and my role is to ensure an efficient checkout process whilst making sure exceptional customer service is delivered on over 30 tills.

When a customer failed a partial trolley rescan, which required a full trolley rescan at the smartshop tills. Simultaneously, I was alerted by a colleague who was working on a till, that there was a spillage at another till at the other end of the store. Effective prioritisation is crucial, as spillages and broken glass are hazardous and is something the company can be held liable for. There is a procedure which must be followed to prevent injury to others.

Making sure the hazard identification policy was followed, I collected a "wet floor" sign and made my way to the spillage, whilst using my work phone to summon the in-store janitor. All the while, remembering the customer at the smartshop requires a full rescan. When I returned to the smartshop checkout area, I was informed by my colleague that the customer was angry and was becoming rude. I apologised to the customer for keeping them waiting, telling them what had happened and I listened to what they had to say. I explained to the customer that I will open a till especially for them, so that their shopping would be processed quickly and efficiently.

I called a colleague to open a till and the customer was satisfied that they did not have to join a queue at a busy checkout and they composed themselves. The hazard was also dealt with promptly and safely adhering to Sainsbury's policy.

Expertise in Research

Whilst attending and participating in events during my Masters in International Public Policy, I became interested in many facets of UK and international political and economic debates. I am particularly passionate about behavioural policies and the end stages of the policy process, the implementation stage.

This lead to my authoring of research articles where I researched and summarised complex issues with accuracy and at speed. Examples are; the closure/lack of investment of rail infrastructure and the effect it has had on inequality for local people, more recently I have conducted research into behavioural policies in order to increase rail patronage and food security and inequality.

Research

  • Researched various approaches to the policy process; top-down, bottom-up policy implementation and at ‘street-level’ where policy implementation is in the hands of citizens and where discretion or principal-agency is a significant feature
  • Analysed qualitative and quantitative data. Making the case that brief and unexpected events can establish a platform for disadvantaged, or disempowered groups to advance a policy issue
  • Another of my research interests is that of the environment and food security
  • My topic of focus throughout my masters dissertation was: food losses on smallholder farms in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA), which consists of some of the highest post-harvest losses (PHL) in the world.

Teamwork and Leadership

  • Whilst studying International Public Policy, I undertook a task that, involved working as part of a group and individually, discussing targets in the evaluation of public policy

  • Under my leadership I directed the team to answer our assigned question, “what are the strengths and limitations of targets in the public sector?”

  • Concluding that with the rise of New Public Management in many EU countries, demand for financial auditing and targets increased. The team concluded that although targets has its advantages (this can be clearly seen in the UK), the direct and indirect disadvantages can be significant, as was the case with the Grenfell Tower Fire.

Active Listening and Social Perceptiveness

  • Attended a panel on behavioural public policy and administration. Discussing how a decade after Thaler and Sunstein’s seminal publication “Nudge: improving decisions about health, wealth, and happiness” (2008) research on nudging as a policy instrument has progressed

  • A presentation was delivered by Van Deun et al., in Cardiff, who delivered their paper “Nudging in Public Policy and Public Management: A scoping review of the literature”

  • Engaged with the speaker Ellen Fobé, asking what percentage of the studies in the scoping review mention the desired outcomes of nudge policies, which is often neglected from most nudge literature.

Innovation

  • As Managing Director of Novenet Limited I identified a gap in the market and subsequently created a unique service for our brand The MonkeyPC, called MonkeyCare. This provided a service to clients less technically able or with time constraints

  • This service provided clients with their own domain and blog set-up in minutes. Becoming the first hosting company to support clients post-software installation with code edits, and software upgrades

  • Having researched the costs of independent developers, and calculating what would be profitable for the brand I set a price. The service was then successfully implemented, for just one flat monthly fee

  • The new service resulted in sign-ups for the service by clients of The MonkeyPC and also those who were hosted elsewhere. The service enticed clients to sign up for our Gorilla package. Which included the Premium MonkeyCare service.

Customer Care Colleague

Barclays Bank

Period: March 2023 - Present
Job type: Full-time
Location: St. Albans & Hemel Hempstead

Barclays, Full Time, St. Albans & Hemel Hempstead

  • Servicing customers in branch and completing ID and Verification
  • Educating customers on how to keep their accounts safe and how this is done best digitally
  • Keeping up with a digital 1st mindset I have become a digital eagle and I regularly retrain to follow current financial technology trends
  • Detecting fraudsters at the counter and reporting comprimised accounts to the fraud department
  • Taking inbound calls and completing transactions while delivering high rates of solutions at first point of contact.

Customer Experience Supervisor

Sainsbury's Supermarket

Period: May 2011 - January 2023
Job type: Full-time
Location: Winchmore Hill, London
References: Sainsbury's,
681 Green Lanes, London, N21 3RS

Sainsbury's, Full Time Supervisor, Winchmore Hill

  • Supervising self checkout and 32 manned tills in a busy store providing great customer service
  • Achieved 100% on the mystery customer measure (MCM) on numerous occasions
  • Fully trained on till operations including payment methods, refund processes and fraud prevention
  • Providing assistance to customers in need of items in store.

Researcher and Campaigner

The Hub, Waltham Cross, Broxbourne

Period: November 2021 - May 2022
Job type: Part-time
Location:Waltham Cross
References:

Citizens Advice, Part time, Waltham Cross, Broxbourne

  • Observing patterns in local data to try and stop problems arising in the first place
  • Researching into clients issues in the local area

Policy Researcher

Policy Tracker - London

Period: July 2019 - November 2019
Job type: Part-time
References: Here

Policy Tracker, Part Time Policy Researcher, London

  • I upload, edit and research how much progress has been made on each promise from the government’s election manifesto
  • My written research is guided by; being inclusive, using simple language, being friendly, non-judgemental, and independent

Managing Director

Novenet Limited

Period: March 2010 - August 2016
Job type: Part-time
London: Enfield, London
References: N/A

Day to day running on a Internet Services company, providing Website Hosting, Database repair, Server installs and other internet services.

  • Creating accounts for clients
  • Responding to support tickets
  • Installing and upgrading server software
  • Accounting & general book-keeping
  • Managing a technical team.

Customer Service Assistant

Sainsbury's Local

Period: January 2010 - August 2010
Job type:Part-time
Location: Oxford, Northgate
References: N/A

Working in a Sainsbury's Local whilst studying

  • Working on the manned tills
  • Dealing with many types of customers while remaining polite and courteous
  • Fully trained on till operations including payment methods and fraud prevention
  • Provide assistance to customers in need of items in store
  • Stock rotating and replenishing.

Ember Host (The Ridgeway)

Mitchells and Butlers

Period: July 2007 - August 2009
Job type: Part-time
Location:Enfield, London
References: N/A

Serving guests in a challenging busy environment, night and day.

  • Taking meals to guests
  • Serving behind a busy bar
  • Deal with difficult/aggressive guests
  • Making desserts from our menu
  • Preparing cocktails for guests situated on large tables.

Managing Director

Pastilles Networks - Webhosting and Webservices Business

Period: December 2005 - March 2010
Job type: Part-time
Location:Enfield, London
References: N/A

Day to day running on a Internet Services company, providing Website Hosting, Database repair, Game Hosting and other internet services.

  • Creating accounts for clients
  • Responding to support tickets
  • Installing and upgrading server software
  • Accounting & general book-keeping
  • Managing a small technical team.

PSA Annual Conference 2019 - "(Un)Sustainable Politics in a Changing World"

Nottingham, England, UK

Period: 15th - 17th April 2019
Event: Conference
References: N/A

Conference participant with the Political Studies Association, titled "(Un)Sustainable Politics in a Changing World".

  • Listened and asked questions on papers presented.

PSA Annual Conference 2018 - "Politics of Our Times: Asking the Difficult Questions"

Cardiff, Wales, UK

Period: 26th - 28th March 2018
Event: Conference
References: N/A

Conference participant with the Political Studies Association, titled "Politics of Our Times: Asking the Difficult Questions".

  • Listened and asked questions on papers presented.

European Energy Dialogue:
Debating Progress, Challenges, and Civil Society Involvement in Europe's Energy Union

Brussels, Belgium

Period: 7th September 2017
Event: Conference
References: N/A

Four day study trip with the International association of Political Science Students (IAPSS) to Paris with the subtitle "What kind of liberty, equality and fraternity?".

  • Study Trip with the International association of Political Science Students (IAPSS) to Paris with the subtitle "What kind of liberty, equality and fraternity?". Networked with students at Paris-Sorbonne University, co-organised with Politistes Sorbonne.

PSA Early Career - "Critical junctures at Home and Abroad: 12 Months Since Brexit"

Liverpool, UK

Period: 22nd June 2017
Event: Early Career Network Conference
References: N/A

Conference participant with the Political Studies Association (Early Career Network), subtitled "Critical junctures at Home and Abroad: 12 Months Since Brexit".

  • Spoke to attendees on the issues surrounding Brexit over the past twelve months. Listened to other participants outline their own positions.

IAPSS - "What kind of liberty, equality and fraternity?"

IAPSS, Paris, France

Period: 2nd - 6th November 2016
Event: Study trip
References: Certificate of achievement gained

Four day study trip with the International association of Political Science Students (IAPSS) to Paris with the subtitle "What kind of liberty, equality and fraternity?".

  • Study Trip with the International association of Political Science Students (IAPSS) to Paris with the subtitle "What kind of liberty, equality and fraternity?". Networked with students at Paris-Sorbonne University, co-organised with Politistes Sorbonne.

IAPSS - "The EU under threat"

IAPSS, Brussels. Belgium

Period: 15th - 19th March 2016
Event: Study trip
References: Certificate of achievement gained

Three day study trip with the International association of Political Science Students (IAPSS) to Brussels with the subtitle "the EU under threat".

  • Study Trip with the International association of Political Science Students (IAPSS) to Brussels with the subtitle "the EU under threat".

Enjoy keeping up to date with technology. Interests include history, languages, and staying up to date with news and politics both nationally and internationally. Also enjoy watching Formula One, playing badminton, and go-karting.

Leadership

Working in a small team grown out of a hobby

Working in computing before I started my company, focusing on computer repairs, small network set-up and virus removals. Founded my own webhosting company Novenet Limited, which ran a webhost and politics forums. Recently finished a design in partnership with someone else, and write on my own personal blog when I can (often on political/economic topics).

Policy Analysis, Formulation & Implementation

Points of interest: Climate Economics, European Politics, Democracy, The Arab Spring

I have a keen interest in the policy process.

Political, Economic & Social interests globally

Points of interest: The UK Housing Crisis, Inequality, Global Food Security, Colonialism and it's legacy in the 21st century

I regularly attend events on all points of interest. My Masters thesis is on the topic of Food Security.

Printable version of my CV below

CV Download

(PDF ~file size no larger than 1Mb)

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