Nicolas Weir, Head of International Sales and Delivery

Describe your role

As Head of International Sales and Delivery, I'm responsible for looking after our international area managers. I also devise our strategy for how we can grow the international arm of the business, and how we can best look after our current network of partner schools to make sure they use our platform effectively.

On top of this, I'm the Area Manager for Switzerland, so am personally responsible for growing our number of partner schools there, and maintaining great relationships with the schools we work with there already!

What’s at the top of your bucket list?

I love snorkelling, snowboarding, fishing and climbing - any 'outdoor' sport really! Last summer I went to the Alps and climbed the Zinalrothorn, from where you get to see lots of other peaks in the Alps. One of them was Dent Blanche, or ‘White Tooth’, which is just over 4,000m high - it’d be great to climb that next summer.

What motivates you at Unifrog?
 
I’d say there are three main things: firstly, I love building great relationships with counselors and teachers at schools around the world; secondly, it’s great to provide students with access to a fabulous tool that I would have found immensely helpful myself when I was a student; finally, I love working with a brilliant team of people and doing my bit to help the company grow!

What’s your favourite memory of being on the road for Unifrog?

Greg and I recently went to a conference in Bangkok and on our way to the venue we were fortunate enough to be able to take a Hello Kitty tuk tuk through the streets. We saw some great views of the city and I won’t forget that journey easily!

Ben Mahoney, Area Manager

Describe your role as an Area Manager at Unifrog

My key role at Unifrog is to build strong relationships with schools. This means ensuring they’re getting the most out of Unifrog, fully embracing what the platform has to offer, and keeping abreast of the ongoing developments. Area Managers are crucial in spreading the Unifrog ethos - leveling the playing field so everyone has the same opportunities -  I am part of the larger process of delivering this, while ensuring all the effort the company puts in to make this happen has maximum impact.

What gets you out of bed in the morning to go to work?

People normally say their alarm clock, and I'm no different, but once the alarm clock has done its job, then I'd say it's the nature of what I do - no two days the same, working with a diverse range of schools, delivering training and support on a fantastic product, and helping literally thousands of people access a resource which makes a real and positive difference to their lives; as the saying goes, 'find a job you love and never work another day in your life'.

What’s the most surprising thing you’ve learnt working at Unifrog?

That a tool like Unifrog can really change a young person's life, and how different my own pathway might have been if I'd had the benefit of its guidance.

What would your perfect weekend look like?

I’ve got young children and so my perfect weekend would be spending time as a family, getting outdoors, walking, playing football, trampolining - anything active to tire them out.

Jacob Lovick, Account Manager

What does a day in the life of a Unifrog Account Manager look like?

The day breaks. I open one eye, then the other, looking forward to another day of evening out the playing field for school students. I open my laptop and delve into the treasure trove of a fresh inbox, filled with teachers’ carefully worded queries. Perhaps I’ll be out on the road today, plying my craft with a head full of Year Plans and a school network-compatible laptop at my back. I’ll deliver Staff Trainings that change lives, days, moments. I’ll field phone calls that could make a teacher’s day, year, career, with intricately curated advice and feedback. And then I tread satisfied, once again, to bed. Satisfied in the knowledge of an Account that truly has been Managed.

What part of your job do you find most challenging?

Concise answers. Though it is perhaps possible to be too enthusiastic about the services and benefits that Unifrog can offer a partner school, I often struggle to keep my answers tight and focused to the specifics of the question that’s been asked. I find myself stood at the top of a mountain of metaphors with a dizzy head and wondering how I’d got there. But I hope that, like a Sherpa, my love for the tools that we offer, the range of things available and my willingness to help, will overcome this mountain, and get teachers to where they want to be.

What’s the funniest thing that’s happened to you when you’ve been visiting a school?

The teacher that greeted me at the school reception with the phrase ‘Robert! Great to have you back!’ I have never been to this school before, and my name is not Robert. He took me round the school, introducing me as ‘Robert!’ to absolutely everyone, far more than was necessary. He even once or twice stared at my name badge, which clearly read ‘Jacob’, before proceeding to call me ‘Robert!’ twice or even three times in the following sentence. I then stood up in front of his colleagues, having been introduced as ‘Robert!’ by the same man, and began with the phrase ‘hello everyone, I’m Jacob’. Ashen-faced, the teacher stood and left the room. I didn’t see him again.

What about you always surprises people when you tell them?

I also do a lot of writing and comedy outside of my work for Unifrog. People tend to find this extremely surprising.

Kim Anderson, Area Manager

How long have you worked at Unifrog and what have been the biggest changes in that time?

I'm pretty old school at Unifrog, joining the company way back in 2015. I can remember the early days when we only had three tools. Unifrog is constantly developing and improving so there isn't just one big change. I guess the main change is that there’s now too many of us to all fit around one desk at Team Day!

What’s your favourite tool on the Unifrog platform? 

It's like asking which is my favourite child! The UK university tool will always be a stand out winner,  it never fails to impress people when they see it for the first time. It also makes me wonder how I made a decision on university back in the day, basing my decision purely on the  pictures in prospectuses. Other than that the Subjects Library - in particular the 'Geek Out' section - as it’s jam-packed full of cool stuff. I would definitely have loved it as a student.

What part of your role do you find most challenging? 

Getting hold of teachers! You guys are always so busy that trying to find time to speak to a teacher is like trying to pin down water. 

What’s your favourite film and why? 

Film would be my specialist subject on Mastermind. I'm such a geek - surely no-one can have a favourite? I probably have a favourite in every genre. Growing up with a big brother definitely formed my taste, starting with the Goonies, Rocky and Lethal Weapon (I didn't say it was good taste!). But now being a mum, you don't really get a say, although Moana and The Lego Batman Movie are actually surprisingly good.

Matthew Jones, Area Manager

Describe your role as an Area Manager at Unifrog

Every day is different and there is no ‘normal’ or ‘repetitive’ week. As I cover north west England, north and mid Wales, Northern Ireland and the Isle of Man, I travel quite a bit. One day I can be over in Enniskillen in Northern Ireland, the next in Greater Manchester (take a look at a map of the UK, it’s some distance)!

There’s no normal 9-5. Some days I’m on the road at 5.30am or catching a flight over to Belfast at 6am and not walking back through the front door until gone 9pm later that night! Whilst demanding and often very tiring, it’s also exciting, rewarding and most importantly, doesn’t bore me to death! I enjoy the role as it keeps me on my toes and at the end of every day I feel like I’ve achieved something.

You've lived in Anglesey all your life, tell us your favourite fact or thing about what it's like to live there?

Bar two brief stints elsewhere yes, I’ve lived in Anglesey my whole life! When I was 16, I left Anglesey and joined the British Army as an Electronic Avionics Technician in Harrogate. But it wasn’t what I anticipated and I left after 12 months to go back into education and work towards university.

Anglesey really is such a beautiful place to live and many of the teachers I meet love coming over to Anglesey in the summer! What I most love about it is it’s a great place to bring up my daughter (who’s now 2)! It has everything - from my family and friends, beautiful beaches, countryside, the mountains of Snowdonia just round the corner and the cities of Liverpool and Chester within a short commute.

What made you want to work at Unifrog?

So, it’s quite an interesting story. I was at home (set the scene) doing some work when I got a call from a friend (and now colleague Tom) asking if I was interested in speaking with his boss regarding a possible job. Out of interest I accepted and Alex, Unifrog’s co-founder, setup a Skype call to show me what exactly Unifrog was.

At the end of the call, Alex asked me for an answer. In my mind I already knew I was going to say yes but I didn’t want to look overly keen and asked for a few days to consider his offer. The next day, I called Alex to accept and made my way to the old office in Bethnal Green on the Saturday afternoon to start training for the following week - dedication!

Seeing how fantastic Unifrog is for supporting kids to make the right choice, to really broadening their horizons and how they can make their aspirations a reality is what sold the job to me. When I joined the army, I wasn’t aware of half the options available to me. I made a naive decision at 15 without really considering all my options. So you could say what made me want to work for Unifrog is the fantastic product, Alex and Coralie’s vision and my own experiences from having made uninformed decisions!

What do you do to unwind?

I love spending time with my beautiful daughter Raya and dog Baxter (yes, named after the dog in Anchorman)! Whether it’s family days out or just a walk with a pit stop to the park. A simple walk will be the best thing ever, with Raya jumping up and down in muddy puddles (all parents will be able to relate). Other than spending time with family, I’ll have the occasional day out with friends watching football - from the lunch time kick off to the evening kick off and every match in-between!

Simran Pooni, New Business Lead

What do you enjoy most about working at Unifrog?

Firstly, the platform itself is amazing and has helped thousands of students and teachers with all things careers. As part of my role here at Unifrog, I get to speak to schools and colleges across the UK and explain how the platform can benefit them. It's a great feeling when they decide to come on board. The second thing I enjoy most is how supportive the team are - everyone always takes the time to celebrate each other’s successes. 

How would you describe working in the office?

Working in the office is great! It's sociable but also definitely a productive environment where sometimes we stick our headphones in and power through all our work. The office has lots of plants and a very colourful mural full of frogs that was painted by Alex and Coralie. There’s around 12 of us who work in the London office Monday - Friday and it's always a pleasure when other members of the team pop in for the day.

What have you ticked off your bucket list so far?

The first thing that I ticked off was Skydiving. I've also been on the fastest roller coaster in the World (Formula Rossa in Abu Dhabi) and bungee jumped in Whistler, Canada!

If you could live anywhere in the world, where would you choose and why?

Mexico - it's been my favourite place I've travelled to so far - the people are so lovely and friendly. I live for the sunny weather, Mexican food and I’m obsessed with Reggaeton music.

Stephen Rodwell, Operations and Finance Lead

Describe your role as Operations and Finance Lead at Unifrog

I'm responsible for the smooth running of the office from day-to-day, whether that means coordinating our programme of UK and International conferences or helping to improve our team workspace. I also manage the company's finances along with Hayley, our Head of Operations. Essentially, this means I keep a close eye on our income and expenditure and try to save money wherever possible! If I ever find a spare moment (rare!), I really enjoy getting involved in other parts of what Unifrog do, whether that's writing and editing for the Unifrog platform or getting stuck into data research.

When you first started, what struck you about Unifrog?

It's a great team of people who support one another and celebrate each other's successes; everyone is eager to help and push the platform forward. It's also inspiring that we have a group of experts in Higher Education and post-16 opportunities who are helping lead the discussion about the future of young people.

As a former teacher, why do you think that what Unifrog is doing is important?

Although I worked in a primary school, I know that my Year 1 pupils would still have loved exploring the different careers on the platform! Every year my class made a ‘Book of Dreams’ where each child drew a picture of what they wanted to be when they were older. In a way, Unifrog is just a grown-up extension of that! Even from a young age, giving children ideas about what careers are out there is hugely important in shaping their aspirations.

If you were stranded on a desert island, what three items would you want with you and why?

A corner sofa, the Beatles discography, and a lifetime supply of cheese. What more could you want?