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Only now that her daughter is nearing school age, has Mum gathered up her years of experience in the work force to form her own business, an idea that had been brewing for some time.
Meet Mum of one, Leanne Stevens. This is her inspiring story:
Hi, my name is Leanne and I'm the director of Emergico, a boutique Migration Agency which specialises in providing an end-to-end service to people relocating to Australia.
How it all started...
My introduction to motherhood was quite late - I didn't have my daughter until I was 41. Before that I'd racked up 23 years of corporate life, mainly in the health sector, working as a paramedic, both in clinical roles and in management. I'd also had a few entrepreneurial ventures, having run a couple of businesses before. I was pretty much a full-on career person, and I'd studied 4 degrees including an MBA.
In 2006 I was working as a senior level manager in ambulance, when I was approached to co-ordinate an international recruitment campaign for paramedics from the United Kingdom. It took almost a year in total, and in that time I went to London twice, interviewed dozens of prospects, attended a major Exposition where we showcased our organisation and our jobs on offer; completed the recruitment process; and set up a special agreement with the Department of Immigration to enable us to sponsor visas for the applicants. I helped all of the applicants to apply for visas; then worked hard to make sure they had enough information before they arrived; and that they settled well into their new life.
It was pretty full on, but very rewarding, and I enjoyed seeing what a difference I had been able to make to so many British families, who were finally able to realise their dream of moving to Australia. What many people don't realise is that Australia has some of the toughest immigration laws in the world, and a permanent residency visa is highly sought-after.
I was pregnant in 2007, and I worked in an Executive level job right up to 38 weeks gestation. I fully expected that I'd be bored after a few months at home, and that I'd be dying to get back to work once the baby didn't need so much of my time - at the absolute outset I thought that would be 6 months!
And Along Came Baby...
In September, I gave birth to Sylvie Eloise - 2580 grams and 50 cm - and I don't need to tell you that life changed forever! By 6 months, I was a different person, and there was no way that I could even contemplate leaving her with anyone - let alone going back to work! Strangely, "my-career-is-my-life" had moved aside and given way to "I-never-knew-mums-had-so-much-fun".
I knew I didn't want to put the uniform back on and have my daughter in care so early, but I did want to do something meaningful and stimulating as well. So I went back to university again, and completed a Graduate Certificate in Migration Law, part time. This gave me the qualifications to become a Registered Migration Agent. I also developed up a business plan for a new business, Emergico, which would provide an end to end service for migrants, from recruitment through to relocation.
Unfortunately, Emergico was launched just as the Global Financial Crisis hit, in 2008. Sharemarkets plummeted, banks were bailed out, and the world was nervous. Overseas recruitment in some sectors literally stopped overnight, as business confidence plummeted and employers stopped committing to long term strategies, not knowing where it would all stop. So the best laid plans did not quite get off the ground at that stage.
While I didn't give it up, it's fair to say it went "on hold" while I spent more time with my daughter and focussed on some other things.
Since then, however, there's been a turn in the Australian economy at least - and we're now in the midst of an unprecedented resources-fuelled boom, with labour shortages everywhere. The immigration industry has never been so busy.
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| Leanne with daughter Sylvie |
How does this fit in with being a Mum? Well it's actually not too bad! Much of my work is done at night, when Sylvie is asleep - one of the side effects of dealing with people on the other side of the world. Lots of emails come in at night, and contact through the website. I do my best to keep a routine, and every weekend Sylvie has "Mum and Dad time", where we all do "family stuff" together.
I couldn't imagine not being a mum, and I couldn't imagine not having a business. It's the best of both worlds. Working for myself gives me the freedom to say when I will spend more time with Sylvie, and when I will focus on the business. Being a Paramedic for 23 years, it always gave me immense satisfaction to be able to help people who were sick or injured. Now, being a Migration Agent provides a different sense of fulfilment. It's so rewarding to meet interesting people in other countries who have a dream to live and work in Australia. Working with them to achieve that dream, and knowing that I've helped them to a better life, is just great!
Leanne Stevens,
Registered Migration Agent
Email: migrate@emergico.com
Website: www.emergico.com
Twitter: twitter.com/#!/Emergico
FB: http://www.facebook.com/Emergico
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Posted in: Success Stories
2 comments:
What a great story!
its wonderful hearing how Mums are making a go of things while being there for their children...
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