Although it continues to be a busy time for many of us, it’s important that we don’t forget to focus on our own development and career goals. We’re bringing you another example of how one of your colleagues has been focusing on theirs. Here’s Anna’s story …
Anna Goddard, Senior Manager, Guest Experience Planning and Change
“I joined Carnival UK in late 2000, initially working in HR on the relocation of the London offices before moving to the Entertainment Department. I loved my time in Entertainment (Ents), so much so that I stayed for 15 years! My first role was organising the theme cruises on P&O Cruises ships; I really enjoyed meeting all the celebrities from Astronaut Buzz Aldrin to Corrie’s Vera Duckworth.
I learnt so much during my time in Ents and undertook several roles before taking on the role of Ents Programme Team Lead. Here I managed a brilliant team of booking executives as well as oversaw the Ents Programmes across the P&O Cruises fleet. It was lots of fun with our non-stop singing of musical theatre songs!
Since my Ents days I’ve had the pleasure of working with Robert Palmer and the Onboard Revenue Team, leading the onboard shop transitions before moving into the world of refits and new builds. Who knew I would thrive in a pair of steel toe capped boots, a hard hat, and a fluorescent jacket!
During my time at Carnival UK, I’ve always taken every opportunity to learn and whilst in the Onboard Revenue team I was very fortunate to undertake an apprenticeship and study for my Association for Project Management (APM) qualification. This qualification cemented my knowledge and experience of working in projects and enabled me to undertake my biggest role to date, leading the Return to Service Programme (RTS).
RTS has been a steep learning curve yet such a fantastic opportunity; a cross functional programme with over 200 stakeholders from across ship and shore. I’ve spent the last 18 months working with the best people and teams from across the business and to date successfully returned six ships back into operation.
My next role
As RTS sees the last few ships into service, and with the programme transitioning into business as usual, I am excited by my next opportunity joining the P&O Cruises’ Guest Experience Team as Senior Manager, Planning and Change. I’m really looking forward to joining this fantastic team and building on my skills and experience to drive forward their projects and programmes including the introduction of Arvia later this year.
My top tip for anyone wanting to develop in their career…
I’ve learnt so much throughout my career at Carnival UK, most importantly that it’s the relationships that you build with people that makes the job so enjoyable and drives our success. My biggest piece of advice for anyone who would like to develop is to take every opportunity that’s offered to you. If you commit to driving your career, others will support you and that leads to great opportunities.”
As Anna talks about, communicating your ambitions and being open to opportunities is an important part of development. If you’re yet to set your goals for 2022 make sure you get some time in the diary with your Line Manager in the coming weeks – find out more about goal setting here.
Feeling inspired but not sure where to start? Find an overview of all development opportunities available to you, including development drop-in clinics running throughout February 2022, here.