Fiona graduated in Chemistry and Food Science, a far cry from the role of HR Consultant that she now holds. Fiona spent her first 5 years of employment with Nestle, in a variety of roles ranging from Quality Systems Auditor, Technical Legislation Assistant, Production Team Leader and Supply Chain Executive, and then moved on to become a Management Consultant for a niche Consultancy specialising in HR. She is a competent trainer and facilitatorIn 2001, Fiona set up Blue Apple HR Solutions Ltd with business partner Claire Cooper to provide an outsourced HR consultancy service to SMEs. Initially focusing on clients in South Wales, the company grew to take on clients across Wales and in Birmingham, London, Bath and Oxfordshire. Fiona's work centred on guiding clients through the minefield of employment law, by providing timely practical hands on advice, either remotely or face to face. Projects have included HR health checks, redundancy consultations, training needs analyses, grievance and disciplinary investigations, developing performance management systems, ad hoc advice and developing staff handbooks and contracts of employment and rolling these out to staff. In December 2006 Fiona joined forces with Darwin Gray to set up the HR Consultancy department, such that a holistic HR and employment law advice service could be provided to clients through one point of contact. What does the business do?: Essentially, Fiona acts as the outsourced HR Department for SMEs that are either too small to justify a permanent HR resource, or want the peace of mind that comes from advice from an independent expert. Her services range from carrying out disciplinary and grievance hearings, appraisals, pay reviews, sickness absence monitoring and consultation on redundancies and transfers of undertakings right through to providing a full outsourced HR function. Recent professional accomplishment?: completing a course in Indian Cookery. I learn something new on a daily basis, by virtue of sitting amongst a team of employment lawyers. I hope that my intervention helps my clients accomplish what they need to ensure their businesses remain competitive and efficient, and in that respect, it would be hard to single one out. What got you into the profession?: This is where I would love to say that it has been a lifelong ambition, but in truth it hasn't. My earlier roles within Nestle played to my virgo traits of being an analytical perfectionist; when I came back from a year's travelling I consulted friends and family for ideas, and they all said I should work with people, so the ' Aspiring Consultants wanted' ad by a niche HR Consultancy in the Times grabbed my attention, and the rest, as they say is history. Hobbies: Cooking and eating, drinking wine, pottering, planning travels to new places and putting those plans into action. What one thing would you take to a desert island?: You know I said I was a virgo, therefore I am a perfectionist? If I were to go to a dessert island I would take a Tiramisu, but if I were going to a desert island then it would be my collection of cookery books - I never tire of reading them and planning menus!. Favourite saying: " Let it go." I hear these words in my head, spoken in my boyfriend's half Geordie half Welsh accent, when I can feel my stress levels rising over something trivial, and I immediately change my outlook on the situation. Sum yourself up in three words: Open, organised, perfectionist. Worst fault: Can't say no. 12 profile FIONA CRAWFORD Name: Fiona Crawford Birthday: 19th Sept Star Sign: Virgo Company: Darwin Grey Solicitors Job Title: HR Consultant ... when I came back from a year's travelling I consulted friends and family for ideas, and they all said I should work with people... If I were to go to a dessert island, I would take a Tiramisu...

2. There is a table underneath an open window. On the floor there is a pool of water, broken glass and two dead bodies. What has happened? 3. During a medical examination Gerald's blood pressure is found to be three times that of a normal healthy person, yet neither Gerald nor his doctor is particularly worried about this. Why? Too easy? Try this one 4. Gertrude went to buy a parrot " Does this parrot speak?" she asked the pet- shop owner. " This parrot, madam, will repeat every word it hears, I can assure you." replied the shopkeeper. Gertrude promptly bought the parrot and took it home. Three months later Gertrude still couldn't get it to utter a word. Why not? Well, we've had the parrot sketch, so now for something ( no, not completely, just) slightly different... Use your new- found skills to think outside the box and come up with a few possibilities for this one: 5. A person is about to go into a grocery store, when suddenly they see a man apparently pointing a gun at the shop assistant and shouting, while the shop assistant hands over money from the till. What could this mean? What else ( however implausible it seems) might it also mean? See how many ideas you can come up with. by Allyson Gale, Life Coach. Allyson specialises in helping people make the most of their lives. Allyson can be contacted on: 01656 655209 or email: allyson@ a- ylifecoaching. co. uk. website: www. a- ylifecoaching. co. uk ANSWERS 1. The man was playing Monopoly. 2. Something ( a ball? a cat?) came in the window and knocked over the goldfish bowl. 3. Gerald is a giraffe. 4. The parrot is deaf. 5. The gun in the grocery store a) There's a robbery in progress. b) The gun- man is helping the shop assistant prepare for a play he's acting in. c) The gun- man needs money ( to pay for meditation classes to help him to control his shouting ?? ) and is selling his gun to the shop assistant. d) The gun- man is selling a toy gun to the shop assistant ( who is hard of hearing). Etc. etc. Things Are Not Always What They Seem. We all make assumptions. However sometimes the assumption that things are, or will be, the way you expect, can lead to problems, misunderstandings or lack of self- belief. Many false assumptions have been made in the past, and become accepted by everybody! For example, that the sun revolved round the earth, or that the only way for man to travel faster was to breed faster horses. Of course not everyone in history has thought like that. Consider Einstein, who developed his theory of relativity by asking, " What would the world look like if I rode on a beam of light?" A bizarre question, you might think, but clearly Einstein was a lateral thinker. Lateral thinking, a term coined by Edward de Bono, is a way of solving problems by being creative and using imagination rather than conventional logic. It involves breaking the ' rules' of thinking, questioning assumptions and approaching problems from new angles or, to use a well- worn phrase, thinking ' outside the box'. Often, it is only when we do this, that major leaps in progress are made. So, are you an Einstein? Let's find out. Let's start with something simple. 1. A man, pushing his car, stops outside a hotel and realises he is bankrupt. Why is this? Lateral thinking, a term coined by Edward de Bono, is a way of solving problems by being creative and using imagination rather than conventional logic. Many false assumptions have been made in the past, and become accepted by everybody! 13 member ' s column Allyson Gale