Stacey Wallington has recently taken on the position of Community Engagement Manager at Intact. In our conversation with her, we delve into her newfound responsibilities and aspirations for fostering the growth of our community.
Can you share a bit about your professional background and what led you to this role as Community Engagement Manager?
I started my career as a sales manager for a gym in Ireland before travelling and working abroad for two years. During this time, I volunteered for a charity in South Africa, planning and organising events before settling and working in Australia for a year in various sales roles. I then worked for ANZ Bank in New Zealand dealing with merchant customers. In 2015, I started working in ERP in the UK where I spoke to builders’ merchants and wholesale distributers about their pain points and the ERP software they needed before moving into account management and a more customer-facing role. When I discovered Intact and realised they were the company I wanted to work for, I asked a recruitment agency to contact them on my behalf, so I headhunted them, joining the company in 2021 as Inside Sales Team Leader. Because I consider myself a people person, I wanted to focus more on customer experience, which is what led me to the role of Community Engagement Manager.
What do you enjoy the most about this role?
Given this is a brand-new role, serving as an extension of our dedication to customer experience—forging connections, fostering communication, and developing initiatives to enrich Intact's community presence—I can really personalise and shape it to reflect our commitment. I've already gained valuable insights into our customers' needs, and I really feel like I'm enhancing their overall experience with us. Planning customer user days and an educational webinar series - both things that our customers have told me they really value - has been a lot of fun, and it’s been fantastic working with the marketing team to brainstorm ideas and get the ball rolling!
How do you plan to approach building a community among Intact’s customers?
It would be risky to launch new initiatives without knowing whether they would add value or not, so building the Intact community with our customers must begin with them. If we listen to and understand them, we can make the improvements they want. That’s why I always encourage them to openly share their ideas and suggest improvements. My goal is to create a community where they feel completely at ease when they engage with us.
What would you like to see moving forward?
My aim is to foster robust connections within our Intact community, encouraging positive relationships and mutual understanding. I'll be organising a range of events (workshops, meet-ups etc), collaborating with local partners, and ensuring our company's strategies align with our community's needs and values. Top on my to-do list is organising more customer user days, offering a platform for our customers to connect and network.
When you are not interacting with customers, how do you spend your time outside of work?
For a start, I spend way too much time on Skyscanner! I’m always planning my next trip. I already have Rome and Japan lined up for next year, but I’m always thinking ahead of where I can go next. I spend a significant amount of my free time outdoors—I'm happier in the sunshine! I’ve also been running my own ceramics business on the side for the last six years, so a lot of my spare time is spent making pottery.
Finally, given your expertise in communication, if you could enjoy a dinner conversation with anyone, who would be your ideal dining companion?
I feel like I should say someone influential here like Beyonce or the Queen. But while I do value serious and honest communication, I also believe in having fun! For that reason, I’d love to go for dinner with a comedian. I think Russell Howard is great because he approaches serious topics but sees the funny side of things. Ok, maybe Sarah Millican too...and Trevor Noah; can it be a group of people? I think sitting at a table full of comedians would be hilarious. Why wouldn’t you want to go to a dinner party and... laugh?
