Meet Tim; Media and Communications Manager
What attracted me to working at the House of Commons was the experience I had in a previous role, where I needed to keep a close eye on the debates over the UK’s membership of the European Union. It had been a world I initially was not too interested in, but it all came to life when the issues began to matter and people became more engaged. It also gave me a familiarity with parliamentary procedure that I had never paid much attention to before. Although my knowledge still pales in comparison to many of my current colleagues, I became the relative source of procedural knowledge in my previous office.
Before joining, I worked as a news producer for Japan’s public broadcaster, NHK, which is effectively their equivalent of the BBC. I mainly covered economic stories across Europe, although I sometimes worked on stories further afield.
My career journey has been somewhat unconventional. During university, where I studied Sports Science, I realised that the career prospects in that field were fairly uncertain. After finishing my course, I decided to pursue my interest in the Japanese language and moved to Japan to teach in junior high schools while learning the language. I returned to the UK at the start of the 2008 credit crisis for family reasons, and with a very tight employment market, I worked in retail for around four years while also completing a part-time Master’s degree in Japanese Studies.
The London Olympics proved to be a turning point. Through my Japanese teacher, I was introduced to a subsidiary of NHK who needed bilingual support for camera operators during the Games. It was through contacts made there that I later heard about an opportunity with the NHK news bureau in London, which I joined the following year.
Since taking on a management role, I’ve been focusing on courses and development opportunities to strengthen my management skills. I want to be the best I can be for the benefit of the team, and to reflect the faith that previous managers have shown in me.
A typical day is difficult to define, as no two days are quite the same. There are some consistent elements, such as keeping up to date with news and developments related to committee work, and stakeholder engagement with clerks, journalists and chairs. Alongside that, there is a more strategic aspect, thinking about how best to publicise reports and the work of the committee. Over a typical week, that might include writing press releases, carrying out audience research and considering how best to reach those audiences.
One of my proudest achievements relates to my work with the British-Irish Parliamentary Assembly, which comes as part of my role supporting the Northern Ireland Affairs Committee. The Assembly’s website has required updating for some time, and after several years of work to align agreement, we are now just weeks away from launching a new version. I have been involved in pushing this forward and project managing it alongside my main responsibilities.
It does feel like being part of something meaningful. Parliamentary Committees have significant influence in the work they do. At a time when debate can often feel divided, it is increasingly valuable to have voices from across the political spectrum coming together to hold the Government to account. By helping to maximise the publicity of their work, there is an opportunity to amplify that influence and support meaningful discussion, and sometimes change, in key policy areas.
Overall, one of the things that stands out to me is that no career journey is achieved alone. Progress is shaped by the people you work with through support, collaboration and even small day to day interactions. In that sense, my own development reflects not just my efforts, but also the colleagues who have helped shape ideas and turn them into something more fully formed.