Have you ever wondered how a person got to where they are in life? How their various career decisions brought them to their current position? Well, in the case of Careersix co-founder, Clair Bush, the route to establishing a multi-disciplinary agency that empowers companies to showcase their employer brand through immersive careers websites, couldn’t have been clearer.
Keep reading to find out all about Clair’s journey, including how her ability to embrace change, technology and collaboration – not to mention several career paths – all led to Careersix.
Digital Pioneer In The Right Place At The Right Time
Clair’s journey began in London, during the early days of the internet. “I started my career working for a traditional publishing house, but surprisingly found myself at the forefront of digital innovation. My first (proper) job involved marketing a digital magazine that distributed law reports from the High Court, pioneering the transition from paper to digital records.
“Whilst navigating the sharp end of Sales (tasked with 60-plus cold calls a day, booking meetings and selling subscriptions), I lent on my education in marketing and a knack for technology (plus a real dislike for cold-calling), to explore lead generation using basic applications and direct mail.”
Clair’s aim was to simply connect with individuals and create interest ahead of cold calling. The approach was a real success and enabled the business to scale significantly. Ultimately, it was a great model for creating demand and adding value to the sales funnel.
“After transitioning to another legal services business, I continued to focus on developing my marketing and commercial skills, leveraging brand awareness and relationship development, which led me to develop a passion for networking and connecting communities. My love for party organising, and random but radical events, was born.”
The Holy Trinity Of Marketing, Tech And People
Clair’s career took an unexpected turn when she transitioned from the legal sector and entered the world of recruitment in 2006. Taking her first contract role, she went to work for a recruitment agency that had recently been acquired by Randstad.
“Under the mentorship of Randstad’s CMO, and leaning into the relationships I’d established in the agency, I gained insight into the commercial value of branding and the bottom-line impact of marketing. I learned to speak in numbers, emphasising the importance of marketing as a commercial asset rather than a cost – and that’s been a part of my career narrative ever since.”
After a few good (and challenging) years leading the brand and marketing efforts in some well-known recruitment agencies, Clair made a significant sector change and career step up to European Marketing Director at Broadbean, an established SaaS business.
“This phase of my career gave me the freedom and flexibility to really channel all I’d learnt tactically, but also to really think about strategic marketing, brand value, relationship, partnership dynamics, team and stakeholder management.”
Broadbean, with the support of the visionary senior leadership team, of which Clair was part, provided the thriving environment that continuously encouraged collaboration and commercial orientation. The results have been well narrated and include commercial success for Broadbean, its partners and clients, as well as defining Clair’s perfect career trifecta: people, marketing and technology.
The Importance Of Knowing When To Leave
Despite her success, Clair’s entrepreneurial spirit led her to seek new challenges. She recognised the importance of staying at the forefront of innovation and decided to leave Broadbean.
“After almost five years, I decided it was the right time to move on, push out of my comfort zone and look to learn something new. As a European Marketing Director, the next logical step was to become more global in my purview, and when an International Marketing Director role at Bullhorn came up, it seemed like a logical step.
“Although there were a number of challenges, (three global time zones from Australia, via Europe, through the UK and into the US), the role gave me such valuable experience in managing multi-continent teams and navigating cultural dynamics. And due to the ambitious business strategy and a successful acquisition, my time in the role was cut short after just 10 months.
“I’ve been made redundant a number of times throughout my career and, fortunately, I have levelled up after every one. Call it resilience or, as I prefer to look at it, the opportunity to pivot, I have been able bounce back into work with ease. This time around, however, I knew it was going to be a very different proposition – I was going to launch my own business.”
All Points Lead To Better Employer Branding
With a wealth of experience, Clair founded her own business, AM-Bush, where she offered accelerated marketing strategy and consulting services. This venture allowed her to connect with and support various organisations across the recruitment and HR tech sectors. However, the unpredictability of consulting became apparent when the pandemic hit, leading to the business hitting a hard stop after nearly three years of trading successfully.
“Another bounce was required when the pandemic hit, and thanks to my network I was able to get quickly back on my feet with the team at Ph.Creative. When I joined them, although heading their marketing function, I was thrilled to explore and expand my understanding of employer branding and EVP (employee value proposition), which I did for just over two years.
“Exposure to both EB and EVP strategic design enabled me to develop my proposition of combining and uniting employer and commercial brand value to double down on the opportunity for growth. This proposition is one that I now actively bring to all my clients.”
Empowering Communities With Simple But Highly Effective Technology
“Cut to the present day and I’ve realised that in order to do the job that I love doing, I have to be both an entrepreneur and a practitioner. I also need to be embedded in my community, and connected on all sides.
“The opportunity to pivot again and collaborate with my co-founders at Careersix is another bounce into the unknown, but I’m excited by having my perfect trifecta and a blend of fractional roles that keep me learning, listening and leading. I get to work with great people, delivering and supporting recruitment marketing, and empowering my community with simple but highly effective technology. What’s not to love?”
Clair’s diverse career journey and her unwavering commitment to embracing change, seeing opportunities to continue to develop, and seek out innovation have led her successfully through many good and great recruitment, talent and tech businesses. Whether by design or by embracing the opportunities that have emerged, one thing is for certain, Careersix, its partners and clients will certainly benefit from every bump and bounce, whilst she’s involved.
If you want to build a beautiful, engaging, SEO-friendly careers website, contact Careersix today.
