Ever wondered what it’s like to work in finance at Guernsey Electricity? Charlie gives an insight into her role as Accounts Payable Invoice Officer.
What is your role at Guernsey Electricity?
I’m an “Accounts Payable Invoice Officer” within the finance team which might sound like a bit of a mouthful, and it is, but it’s simpler than it sounds.
My role is to make sure that we pay suppliers the correct amount for any work carried out or supplies used, before passing the payment on for processing. Another part of my role is keeping on top of other departments orders, ensuring they’re up to date and paid on time, this means a large portion of my role is communication. Although the role does include a lot of numbers and emails, which I enjoy, I do also love communicating with the rest of the business.
How does your job help keep the island running?
If supplier invoices weren’t managed, we wouldn’t receive any supplies - no supplies means no business. We need our external suppliers to stock the store for example as well as other sectors in the company requiring supplies from beyond the island (think of our generators as another example, we need parts and servicing that typically is off island). I manage payments and supplier relationships to make sure we have timely receipt of products, engine parts, retail items, and more, ensuring services to the island continue smoothly.
What other industries have you worked in?
Ever since I finished college, I’ve mainly worked within retail and customer service – you’ve probably seen my face if you’ve shopped around the island!
I was often moved around different stores to cover missing staff and was a trainee supervisor for a short while before deciding to explore a new career path.
Before that the only other experience I gained was through my high school work experience where I dipped my toe into the world of radio for a week. Here, I was part of the news team and found it so interesting, spending my time writing quick snappy news stories and interviewing individuals for audio clips.
What does a typical day (or week) look like for you?
For me, a typical day starts at 8:30am, though I’m usually in much earlier (gives me time to have a small breakfast bar and get ready for the day, sometimes with a coffee too!). My morning always starts with a brief email check where colleagues will provide me with invoices that need registering/paying or statements that need a check over to make sure we are up to date.
Next on my list is to either go through open transactions to see what can be processed for payment or checking that colleagues have received their supplies. I work closely with all different sections amongst the company as different departments all make their own individual purchases.
What is your proudest achievement so far?
Learning how to travel alone; especially travelling to meet one of my best buds.
Travelling is something I’ve always aspired to do and I’ve only recently learned how to travel on my own and get a grip on how to do my own bookings and get around new places. So far, I’m starting fairly close to home by exploring the UK, but plan to travel further soon! I really love Manchester and will be visiting there again this summer. I'm still pretty young and have lots of big achievements ahead, but I'm proud of the little things I've done so far. One of the best moments was that week I spent with my best friend - it made me so happy. I can't wait for our next trip together!
What was your dream job growing up? Or what did you want to do when you grew up?
As most of us do, I’ve had different phases of dream jobs throughout my life! When I was very little, I wanted to be a popstar like Katy Perry, she was my biggest idol as a kid. I wanted to be just like her!
This then turned into a desire to be a content creator on social media, think of the popular gaming channels on YouTube. If you’re familiar with this space, think ‘Markiplier’ for example. Playing video games for a living sounded like a dream… not very likely now I look back on it!
Eventually, I settled on wanting to be an actor for a long time, I joined drama clubs in primary school, took drama GCSE (and participated in the drama club there), went to the College of FE for Performing Arts (twice!), and participated in online spaces where I could use those skills.
Ultimately, I ended up preferring the simpler quieter jobs but still take up acting as a fun hobby. At GEL, I’ve recently had the opportunity to dive into being In front of the camera again to assist with some social media content! Keep your eyes peeled.
What is the most unusual thing about your job and how would you describe it to someone who knows nothing about it?
In terms of my role, I’m not sure there is much that is unusual, but the office certainly gets up to some interesting acts, just the other day there was a whole rescue operation for a baby bird that had wandered in. Always something going on in this building!
Outside of my day to day, I have been chosen to participate in a social media series for the company, which is certainly a more unusual but very delightful aspect to my job. You know, it’s actually kind of funny - it feels a bit like I’m living a version of my dream job! Getting to do a bit of acting and keeping things lively and engaging while on camera. It’s a lot of fun.
Watch Charlie's International Women in Engineering Day video feature here.
If you could swap jobs with anyone for a day- who would it be and why?
That’s a tough choice! Do I take a day at a game development studio? A day as a professional actor? A content creator? A singer? There’s a lot of things I’d want to do really, but if I had to pick just one, I think I’d settle on swapping with a TV host. Like for a gameshow of sorts! Or, you know those really over the top commercials with one person in them that advertises something simple like a cleaning product? I wouldn’t mind being one of those people, it sounds like great fun to me.
Who inspires you the most?
I’d say my partner and closest friends.
We’re all one big group and have been together through it thick and thin, some of them I’ve known for almost 8 years now! They’re all incredibly talented and wonderful people who certainly inspire me to be the best version of myself. If you’re reading this ‘mundane chat’, then Hello!
What advice would you give your younger self?
Just to chill out! I always worried way too much about the future, and whilst I am only in my early 20’s, I’m starting to realise things aren’t as scary as I perceived them to be when I was back in high school. I used to over think way too much about the simplest things, I’d also tell myself to get glasses at a younger age, it would have saved me from a lot of trouble in school. (Not kidding, I kind of thought everyone just saw the world blurry.)
What are the best benefits offered by GEL in your opinion?
The nine-day fortnight seems incredibly rewarding, can’t go wrong with a bit of extra work to get a long weekend once every 2 weeks! Other benefits I would highlight is the free eyecare checks. Since I need glasses, it’s a great help to be able to get a free check-up as they can get pretty pricey. Career progression is also encouraged which I’ve found great as an individual who wants to grow and move up within the company, it’s motivating to know I have the option and opportunity to continue to learn!
Although it may sound cliché , I must say the company has an amazing work environment. As a neurodivergent individual I can’t be more thankful for the support given by the team, I genuinely can’t recommend GEL enough.
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