60 Seconds With Cathy Donnelly

What is your role?

My job role is as a Client Executive specialising in Health & Safety within the Operations Team based at NQA's Head Office in Dunstable.

Part of my role is to complete technical reviews of audit reports once they have been submitted by our assessors in the field. 

I also look after the SSiP scheme (Safety Systems in Procurement) within the company for which I am a main point of contact for our clients and assessors.

Although I specialise in H&S I am also a point of contact for many of our UK based clients and field colleagues across several standards and help with any queries they may arise. I started in March 2012 with NICEIC and moved to NQA in January 2014.

I am Nebosh qualified and have worked in various sectors ranging from being a Corporate Building Manager for the NHS within Mental Health, Section Manager at a depot for a well know cash handling/security company to making specialised surgical instruments before coming to NQA.

Most memorable moment at work?

There are a few over the last seven years, but the one that stands out is a team building outing to Top Golf in Watford. Despite not ever having played the game I came away with 2 trophies, one for the 'Nearest the Pin' and the other as the 'Event Winner'. They now proudly sit on my desk as a reminder of a great day with my colleagues.

Favourite things about working for NQA?

Everyone here is so supportive, and the ability to be able to stretch your knowledge and gain further qualifications a real bonus. But mainly the teams I work with every day, they are very knowledgeable and supportive with a great sense of humour.

Top tip for people looking at certification?

Ensure you look for a credible certification body who is accredited to a high standard by an organization such as UKAS or ANAB.

Certification should be an asset to you and your company, so choose a certification body that will deliver and support you as your business grows and develops.

It is always of benefit to ensure you are able to be completely informed and up to date as possible. The training we offer is a great tool to have coupled with our workshops, webinars and coffee mornings and can be a relaxed informal way of building knowledge and to network with like-minded people.

How might you be able to help our readers?

I am always happy to help with queries and enquires, I am currently a technical reviewer for ISO 9001 (Quality), ISO 14001 (Environmental), ISO 45001 (Health & Safety) and ISO 50001 (Energy), and SSiP so please feel free to get in touch as I have a good knowledge of some of our most popular standards.