TESOL trained, with a degree in Linguistics and an Oxford University MPhil in Modern Chinese, along with a sound sales and project management background, I combine my language skills, academic and business experience to benefit my clients.
As Asia Sales Manager at Oxford University Press I trebled sales in three years to over £1.5million, managed a team of 10 international agents and reps and introduced bespoke products to Asian markets. Whilst working on trips in Asia, I designed and instigated an offline quotation system to enable reps to produce instant quotes for customers which they had previously delayed until a return to the UK. The system was adopted across other regions and resulted in a vastly improved sales success rate.
As China Project Manager at Ethical Trading Initiave I manoeuvred my way through the politics of corporate, NGO and union interests, to succeed in setting up a labour rights project in southern Chinese garment factories. I focused on tailoring project documents and ideas to the stakeholder's motivations: feature/benefit charts to encourage corporate engagement; longer, evidence-based documents to encourage NGO or academic involvement. This was key to achieving consensus in diverse project groups. Whilst at ETI I wrote the brief for a global database incorporating member, freelance, international NGO, union and company resources which facilitated partnerships long after I had left.
With whatever organisation I'm involved, I always find better ways to work; more streamlined systems that save time and money. I have experience in implementing database and web strategies and am personally motivated to find ways of how technology can be used to make things more efficient. I am particularly focused on matching text and style to intended audiences: from website content to academic journal articles, and from doctoral theses to business proposals.
For more information on my background, my CV can be viewed here.