Madi Read talks through her Accurx day
Back in February, I shared my first impressions of Accurx as a new joiner together with my fabulous fellow People Ops Partner Zoe Kefford. One month on, I’ve hit cycle goals, presented company-wide and raced around a go-karting track as part of Friday Society. 😊
Having fully settled in, I thought now’s a great time to share what my role is all about. Like so many teams at Accurx, the People Ops team is expanding so I wanted to paint a picture for anyone interested in taking on a similar position at Accurx in the future.
A quick intro to my role
Depending on your work background, you’ve probably heard job titles like ‘People Ops Partner’, ‘HR Business Partner’ and ‘People Partner’ before. In theory, they all mean similar things. They’re all generally centred on nurturing a happy, healthy work environment that’s productive and rewarding for people.
In practice, the daily responsibilities and expectations of these roles can vary hugely from company to company. So what’s my role as a People Ops Partner at Accurx like? The best way to answer is to talk you through a typical day, which is what I do below. NB: I’ve used a day in the office as an example to avoid the inclusions of doing my washing, making my smoothie and taking my dog Fox for a walk, all of which come with my WFH days! 🐕
A day in the life of a People Ops Partner
9am(ish) — Get in, get tea, get warmed up ☕
Alarm clock goes off. Kettle goes on. I’m up and out the door at different times, depending on whether I’ve summoned the energy for a pre-work gym workout or have snoozed my alarm. Either way, I’ll generally arrive at the office between 8.30–9.30am.
I start my morning by grabbing some breakfast from Accurx’s permanently-stocked kitchen (fresh fruit, muesli and peanut butter) and catching up on any slack messages from the previous day. I also check over my to-do list to keep me focused for the day to come.
10am — People Ops Team Stand-up 🧍♀️
Every day, I have either a stand up with Zoe, the other People Ops Partner, or with my wider team. We use these meetings as a chance to say hi, share what we’re working on, and discuss different work topics like comments received on our employee survey tool Peakon or progress on our cycle goals.
10.30 am-12.30 pm Trust Clan Hangouts 🗣️
As People Ops Partner, I work with Accurx’s Trust Clan (which is a kind of super team for everyone across Accurx working on how we’re used in hospitals and the community). So I spend lots of time with people from this clan. Each month, I try to chat to everyone in the clan to hear how they’re doing, gather feedback, and ask for their input on anything I’m working on.
I usually have one or two of these catch ups each day. They usually last about half an hour and are very casual. We might go for a walk, sit in the dining area, or grab a room depending on what it is we want to chat about. Afterward, I confidentially collate themes from these conversations to share back to the clan leaders and the People Ops Team so the team’s feedback is factored in to any decision making. 🤔
12.30pm Lunch 🍱
Lunchtime! Nobody books meetings from 12.30–1pm each day so we can enjoy lunch together. We have meat-free meals, and reduce waste as much as we can collectively to reduce our carbon footprint as much as possible.
After lunch, I might head out for a walk with anyone who wants to join me. I always feel good after getting some fresh (albeit London!) air. ☀️
1.30pm Focus Time 🧠
I jump into some focus time, working on any projects I have on the go. Most people at Accurx work in cycles, including us in the People Ops team. At the start of each cycle, we agree our goals based on feedback we’ve heard and what feels urgent to us. These projects range hugely and can include anything that’s focused on improving employee experience.
A few recent examples include creating a Parental Leave planner, implementing a corporate gym discount and setting up internal processes for our People Ops team.
3.30pm Trust Clan Manager Catch-up 👂
I catch-up regularly with managers in my clan to hear updates about their team and get their input into what I’m working on. We can chat about a wide range of things, from how to progress top performers to planning for their next hire.
4pm People Ops Team Learning 🤓
My team love to share interesting articles, books, webinars or general learnings in our People Ops Learning slack channel. So I like to take some time out during the week to research something interesting and make a summarising post for the team.
My recent post topics have included preventative strategies for mental health in the workplace, nutrition for brain health, and employment law updates.
4.30 pm Focus Time 🧠
I finish the day with more focus time to catch up on any emails or slack messages. I might also use this time to work on things related to other groups I am part of. This could be ordering some craft supplies for the next craft club or preparing resources for LGBTQ+ history month.
5–6 pm Finish 🏠
Time to log off! You can often find people playing pool, having a drink or headed out for a gym session at this time. Depended on the day, I will join them or head home to do some knitting and to give Fox the dog his dinner.
At the end of the day…
I feel super lucky to work as a People Ops Partner at Accurx! Two months in, I find it a great blend between face-to-face time hearing from the accuFolk and creative time building and improving how we do things. It’s incredibly rewarding for two big reasons.
First, because life moves quickly at Accurxand it’s easy to see the impact of your work. Second, because supporting accuFolk and helping them have a great employee experience allows everyone to do their best work connecting people across healthcare. We really do have an impact.
If you’re interested in joining the Accurx team, check out our careers page for current roles!
