The Heart of Bucks ‘Inspiring Buckinghamshire’ series gives local people from a range of sectors a chance to share their knowledge and insights to help inspire others.
Here we are speaking with Gina Connell, Chief Marketing Officer at B P Collins LLP.
Tell us about yourself and your connection to Buckinghamshire.
I work as the chief marketing officer for B P Collins LLP, a law firm founded in Buckinghamshire in 1966, and which is proud to be part of the community since that time. My background is in marketing, business development and client relationship management in professional services. I’m also a chartered marketer with the Chartered Institute of Marketing. I joined B P Collins LLP eight years ago and for much of that time have been working with Heart of Bucks, as part of our CSR programme, to develop and deliver our annual fund to save lives, build stronger communities and provide better futures for people in Buckinghamshire. I am proud to say that so far, B P Collins LLP has donated £90,000 to local charities.
What personal achievements are you most proud of?
I love working with Heart of Bucks. Each year I get to see the amazing work being done by charities and community groups within the county and am so proud of the support B P Collins LLP gives and for my small part in facilitating the programme. I’m also pleased that I’ve been able to draw all of our corporate social responsibility(CSR) strands of supporting Philanthropy, Community, Environment and People together to become the first law firm in Buckinghamshire, and the UK, to achieve a recognised CSRA Gold accreditation for our efforts. The added bonus is that the CSRA scheme was created in Buckinghamshire and continues to be managed from the county – so we are supporting a local business.
What are some of the challenges you have faced, and how have you overcome them?
There are always challenges in life and in work, but when dealing with them, I try to do so from a problem solving perspective. In work, if you focus on the goal or outcome you need, then it is possible to try and overcome each challenge one by one if necessary. There are sometimes challenges that can’t be overcome so instead, I try to accept, learn, do what I can to help if needed, and move on. I’m a forward looking person, which I believe is a positive attribute when trying to overcome challenges.
What is the best advice you have ever received?
There have been many that I apply regularly. My mother always said, ‘there is no point crying over spilt milk,’ meaning that when an issue arose, it was important to deal with it and move on. I believe that is very much how I approach things.
I have been lucky to have people around me who have been encouraging and supportive of doing new things. Their advice has always been to ‘try it.’ It may be as small as trying a new food or as big as uprooting and moving for the opportunity of betterment.
The final piece of advice is, ‘decisions are not finite, you can make changes.’ Having seen the amazing charities and community groups that Heart of Bucks support, I’d definitely say that last piece of advice is invaluable – there are people out there ready to help others make that change.
What is your greatest hope for the future for Buckinghamshire?
We are a large county with great wealth and immense poverty. I would love to see less poverty in the coming years and even more support for the amazing work Heart of Bucks do in that regard. We are also a creative county with a high concentration of film, TV and other creative arts. With the growth in that sector I hope that many new opportunities will be available for local talent who can continue to work, and live, in the county.
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Read more of our Inspiring Buckinghamshire interviews here.
