Meet Harriet Glyn-Jones, Senior Public Affairs Manager at Universities UK

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Harriet is Senior Political Affairs Manager at Universities UK. She has 13 years of industry experience and is also mother to a 3-year old. As part of our Parents in Corporate Affairs initiative, she joined Olivia to discuss how she balances her career and raising a family.

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Can you give us a brief overview of your career so far?

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I’ve been firmly anchored within the Public Affairs space for the past 12 years. I spent just over four years at Dods as a manager within the team of political consultants and have been at Universities UK, the membership body for universities, for the past 8 year progressing through various roles in the Political Affairs team.

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What drew you to corporate affairs, and what has kept you passionate about it?

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I really do enjoy that no two days are the same. Working in public affairs means you have to balance proactive, strategic activities with being agile and reactive at all times. The political world has been many things, but not dull, for the last few years which keeps you on your toes.

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What advice would you give to people earlier in their career who aspire to work in a senior position within corporate affairs and communications?

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I would advise them to go along to as many meetings with senior staff as possible, and build their networks. Public affairs isn’t a particularly ‘technical’ profession so a lot of the skills are acquired by learning from others and knowing how to make those subtle adjustments to your tone – lots of this is learnt ‘on the job’.

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How has becoming a parent influenced your perspective on leadership and career?

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I’ve definitely found I have a newfound respect for other parents! I’ve also found others have shown a lot of kindness and understanding along the way, whether they are parents themselves or not.

I found that in my 20s it was easy to compare yourself to others and their progression and/or salaries, but I’ve learnt not to stress as much if progression comes at a different pace now, and realising it isn’t always linear. Priorities do naturally have to shift with maternity leave/s and limited bandwidth for actively seeking out opportunities.

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Have you found that parenthood has shifted your priorities or decision-making at work?

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In some ways I think I’ve become more decisive since becoming a parent. With babies and small children you’re constantly taking micro-decisions and I’ve found that can speed up my decision making in the workplace.

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Corporate affairs and communications can be all-consuming. Do you feel the need to set boundaries or work more flexibly? And if so, how have you go about asking for this?

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I returned to work 9 months after my daughter was born, on a 4 day a week (80%) basis.

I do often wonder how different things might be for working parents had we not gone through the Covid pandemic. In terms of advice on asking for flexibility, my only advice would be to enter into discussions with a clear sense of what would work for you and what you’re aiming for.

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