INSIDE VIEW – JOAN PETTINGILL, DIRECTOR & HEAD OF

Spreading Joy: Sharp Consultancy’s Annual Easter Egg Drive

At Sharp Consultancy, our annual Easter Egg Drive has once again brought together our team, clients, and community to support local charities and spread a little cheer. As a finance and accountancy recruitment business rooted in Yorkshire, we’re proud to use our network to give something back—and this year has been no exception.Led by Tom Davage, Senior Consultant in our South Yorkshire office, our team has been out and about collecting Easter egg donations from our fantastic clients. The generosity shown has been incredible, especially given the ongoing challenges many continue to face. Thanks to everyone who contributed, we were able to deliver meaningful support to three wonderful charities in our region: Paces, a specialist centre supporting children with cerebral palsy and motor disorders; St Luke’s Hospice, which offers compassionate end-of-life care; and The Family Works, a trauma informed, family support project working alongside underprivileged families.Tom, who organised this year’s initiative, shared: “When you hear the stories from the people working within these charities, it really opens your eyes to the challenges others face. If we can bring a smile to someone’s face—even through something as simple as an Easter egg—it makes it all worthwhile. Every bit of support counts.” Seeing familiar donators from past years and welcoming new ones has been truly heart-warming. It’s a testament to the kind and community-minded nature of the businesses we work with. To all our clients who donated, thank you. Your kindness and continued support make this initiative possible and help us make a real difference. If you’d like to get involved next year or learn more about the causes we support, we’d love to hear from you. Together, we can keep making a positive impact—one small gesture at a time.

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International Women’s Day (8 March) is a global day celebrating the social, economic, cultural and political achievements of women. The day also marks a call to action for accelerating women’s equality.

Ahead of this year’s International Women’s Day, we caught up with Joan Pettingill, Director & Head of Employment Law & HR at Sheffield-based law firm Wake Smith who shared why she feels it’s important to identify, celebrate and increase visibility of women's achievements to help forge equality.

What do you perceive are the main advantages and disadvantages to being a woman at work?

I’ve really never thought of my own work in terms of being influenced by my gender. There are still, I think, some industry sectors where it may be less common for women to have senior roles and my guess is there may be some small pockets of the legal profession where this might be the case but there have been leaps and bounds in this respect in recent years. At Wake Smith, we are very fortunate to be a vibrant forward-thinking firm including many women in leadership and other influential roles.

What is the best piece of advice you have been given?

Stand back from judging isolated incidents and wait and see how things pan out in the longer run. Things usually work out for the best and things which initially might appear negative often have very positive knock on effects and opportunities. Look for the opportunities in front of you and be true to yourself.

What is your biggest success or challenge completed?

As a younger person, having the determination and ability to be able to break through other people’s limiting perceptions of what can be achieved.

What would be the one change you would make to help forge a gender equal world?

In a work context, embedding a culture of diversity and inclusion and more broadly, supporting diverse role models in visible senior roles.

Who is your female role model and why?

Growing up, I was fortunate to have several female role models; an aunt who was a company secretary and seasoned traveller, a grandmother who as a single parent became a nurse and also built her own property portfolio and of course my own mother who married and settled in England from abroad, worked and brought up a family and who in her nineties is still role modelling kindness, independence and living a full life.

In a professional sense, the Managing Partner of the firm where I trained was an incredibly supportful woman who looked after her trainees and young lawyers professionally and pastorally. More currently, the Supreme Court Judge, Lady Hale, for her courageous decision making.

These days I’m also conscious that others may regard me as a role model and so for me, it’s really important to promote and encourage others to also succeed in the paths of their choosing which is why I’m an executive coach as well as a lawyer.

Joan Pettingill is a highly experienced employment lawyer. She studied law in Newcastle Upon Tyne and is a highly regarded public speaker and professional trainer having delivered courses in employment law, HR and GDPR (https://www.wake-smith.co.uk)

Sharp Consultancy specialises in the recruitment of temporary, interim and permanent finance and accountancy professionals. With offices in Leeds and Sheffield our highly experienced team of consultants recruit for positions throughout Yorkshire and beyond. CONTACT US today for expert advice on your next career move.

INSIDE VIEW – JOAN PETTINGILL, DIRECTOR & HEAD OF EMPLOYMENT LAW & HR