Valentine’s at Konsileo – Michelle and Jamie
Could YOU work with your partner all day every day?
We’re celebrating Valentine’s Day this week by telling the stories of some of the Konsileo couples who can and do…
Jamie Colvin and Michelle Eames ⠀⠀⠀ ⠀⠀⠀⠀ ⠀⠀⠀⠀ ⠀⠀⠀⠀ ⠀⠀⠀⠀ ⠀⠀⠀⠀ ⠀⠀⠀ ⠀ Jamie Colvin and Michelle Eames, based in Leicester, started Konsileo this year. After leaving the corporate world they were looking for an employer that would give them both independence and support.
“We’ve actually worked together for 11 years,” explains Jamie, “and we’ve always had a fantastic working relationship – but we only got together about 20 months ago. It was the first time we were both single, and it just sort of fell into place.
A package deal ⠀⠀⠀ ⠀⠀⠀⠀ ⠀⠀⠀⠀ ⠀⠀⠀⠀ ⠀⠀⠀⠀ ⠀⠀⠀⠀ ⠀⠀⠀⠀ ⠀⠀⠀⠀ ⠀⠀⠀⠀ ⠀⠀⠀ ⠀ “When it came down to it we knew we wanted to keep on working together,” continues Jamie, “because we’re such a great team. I wouldn’t consider working without her, to be honest. So we were looking around for someone who’d take us on as a package deal! That’s when a friend put us in touch with Konsileo.”
“Jamie really thrives on going out and doing the deals and getting the new business, and I do the support role building the relationships and taking care of clients day to day,” explains Michelle. “Our clients call us a dream team, and we really are!”
“The things is, we both know how good the other one is,” says Jamie. “I’ve never worked with a better account handler – and I know how happy and how well looked after those clients are going to be. That means I can confidently go out and about and find more business.”
“There’s massive trust and respect for each other,” agrees Michelle, “but sometimes we do disagree, because we’re both stubborn – and Jamie enjoys annoying me! But we’re pretty good at sorting things out, and we’re always able to make each other laugh.”
“It’s a good job we get on, because we sit at one big, long desk together,” says Jamie, “separated by a printer! It’s the best office I’ve ever been in. And the cat is delighted to have us home all day.”
Flexibility ⠀⠀⠀ ⠀⠀⠀⠀ ⠀⠀⠀⠀ ⠀⠀⠀⠀ ⠀⠀⠀⠀ ⠀⠀⠀⠀ ⠀⠀⠀⠀ ⠀⠀⠀⠀ ⠀⠀⠀⠀ ⠀⠀⠀⠀ ⠀⠀⠀⠀ Part of the attraction of Konsileo for the couple was the opportunity to work from home and set their own hours.
Michelle explains: “You can go to an office if you choose, but working from home is the right decision for us. Between us we’ve got three children on different schedules, including three different school runs! Now we’re able to get up and set up for the day, break for breakfast and the morning school run, continue work, then do the afternoon school run and tea, and log on to finish off later. We’re not stuck in an office 9 to 5 – which is good because our clients don’t work 9 to 5 anyway. Sometimes you’ve got to be available at odd hours, but the payoff is that you get to flex around the family.”
Michelle adds: “We don’t have a problem picking up and putting down the work. For us, it’s just brilliant to be able to spend the extra time with the kids. When everyone was at before and after school clubs we barely saw them – and my 12-year-old is now at the age where she shuts herself in her bedroom all evening! The truth is you don’t get them for very long, and spending time together as a ‘new’ family is really important to us.”
Freedom ⠀⠀⠀ ⠀⠀⠀⠀ ⠀⠀⠀⠀ ⠀⠀⠀⠀ ⠀⠀⠀⠀ ⠀⠀⠀⠀ ⠀⠀⠀⠀ ⠀⠀⠀⠀ ⠀⠀⠀⠀ ⠀⠀⠀⠀ ⠀⠀⠀⠀ “I feel like we’ve been given our freedom at work” says Jamie. “We’re free to do the sort of job we actually always wanted to be able to do but couldn’t within that traditional corporate structure.”
“In that kind of environment you’re expected to be more of a robot than a person, and it was just knocking our personalities out of us,” agrees Michelle. “For me, it’s such a relief to just concentrate on ourselves and our clients – and our family – without any of those distractions. We’re really excited to see what the future holds for all us.”
Find out more about working with Konsileo here or contact Chris Sulman directly at chris.sulman@konsileo.com or 07898 210 760.
