Julia Stones DistFHRNZ

What was your first HR role, and where are you today?

My first HR role wasn't a dedicated HR role. I was a Director of a small, privately owned consultancy in London and we were growing fast as market leaders in our sector so the ability to attract, develop and retain talented people was critical. I had always been interested in what motivates people and makes them tick so I naturally became involved in the HR aspects of our business.   We were all flying the plane as we were building it in terms of looking after our people well and we introduced some first to market initiatives like giving people  a day's holiday for their birthday, implementing candidate care consultants and introducing the concept of a candidate charter.

Tell us about your 'career in HR' story - how did this become your career and what brought you to where are at today?  

I was initially involved with HR responsibilities for the business where I was a Director and shareholder and we designed and implemented some innovative people best practice initiatives that became best practice in the London sector. I was later approached to lead a dedicated HR consultancy in London, working predominantly in the public sector. This was a really interesting role working with a team of occupational psychologists to design large assessment centres and leading edge development centres which was really innovative at the time.
This was followed by immigrating to NZ in 2005 where I led the HR portfolio for an Auckland based consultancy and first engaged with HRNZ as a volunteer.   This involved many roles over a number of years: initially organising the monthly networking sessions and then elected President of the Auckland branch. This led to appointment of the HRNZ Board for ten years and election to national Vice President and National President.    
After working for a number of consultancies where I specialised in executive search for senior leadership roles with a specialist expertise in HR, I established my own consultancy in 2017 which focuses on the complete lifecycle of a career: executive search to Board level, active career coaching, harnessing the unique Career Blueprint which I designed, and outplacement support.

What continues to inspire you about this profession?

HR is such a complex and invidious function for an organisation where ambiguity and nuancing play a continuous role as people are such complex beings. HR is kaitiaki for the wellbeing of the people employed in an organisation while being employed by the organisation so there is a continual tension to ensure it can do both.  No other function in an organisation has such a breadth of specialist areas which all combine to ensure HR should be the engine room for organisational and individual success.

Looking back across your career, what moments or achievements come to mind?

Helping people to flourish and succeed in their careers provides enormous reward for me. I was asked to be the HRNZ Board Sponsor to work with HR professionals and academics to design and implement chartered membership and CPD for the HR profession in New Zealand which was a two year project involving six national workstreams and over 100 volunteers. I was honoured and humbled to receive Distinguished Fellowship of HRNZ in 2020 as a Chartered Fellow. Receiving the Outstanding Services Award from HRNZ in 2024 is undoubtedly the highlight of my career.  I am delighted that the Career Blueprint, the career scoping tool I have developed, has now been adopted by HRNZ as part of the professional development programme to help HR professionals with their career thinking.

What wisdom would you share with early-career HR professionals?

Remain curious with an open mind! People are endlessly unpredictable so never assume you have fully captured the whole person as they will always surprise you.

What difference does HRNZ make for HR professionals?

It can and does make an enormous difference to HR professionals at all stages in their career. It provides professional education, accreditation and ongoing professional development and support as well as a strong  community of interest. For people like  me who come to New Zealand in mid career as a skilled migrant, it has been an invaluable resource as I rebuilt my career in a new country but more than that, HRNZ has provided me with a strong professional network and a truly valued friendship  group.

Becoming a Distinguished Fellow is a significant achievement. What has the journey been like for you?

Very unexpected! It was a huge surprise to be awarded this and probably like a number of people, it was accompanied by a large dose of imposter syndrome. I am super proud of my post nominal as it signifies contribution to and recognition from a profession I am very proud to be involved with.

What are you excited about working on these days?

I continue to be excited by the people I work with, either to career coach to help them find the right career /next role or support them through outplacement so they can realise fulfilling and rewarding careers and lives. It's a huge responsibility and privilege to work with people during these milestones and I can't think of anything more rewarding.  I am also a judge for the annual HRNZ awards and work with members as a mentor. The Career Blueprint is now part of HRNZ's professional development programme so working with members to help them become accredited via Charter Assist or to help them with their HR career thinking is incredibly worthwhile