This month’s featured employee is Stephen Carr. Stephen has been working with the organisation for the past 24 years and during that time, Stephen has held many roles including Social Care Worker, Location Manager and he is now the Regional Manager for Living Options Models within North Dublin Services.
1. What do you do?
I support the management function across Living Options Models within North Dublin Services.
2. Describe your typical working day?
My day begins with checking emails and getting back to people I meant to get to yesterday. My calendar can look very different from day to day, I may have multiple meetings scheduled or interviews. Every day, I set aside time to link in with the people we support, staff and managers to see how everyone is doing. I have administration work to complete daily and try to keep up-to-date. Most days we are planning to meet the needs of the people we support, sometimes this can be looking at person centred planning, recruitment, or strategic objectives such as aging in place.
3. What are your qualifications/background?
I completed my Diploma in Supported Employment and my BA (hons) in Social Care with the Open Training College and I have completed my MSc in Risk Management and Systems Change with TCD.
4. Tell us about your previous work experience?
I previously worked as a Social Care worker with The Irish Society for Autism and with Community Services for Autistic Adults and Children in Washington DC. I also had the opportunity to work across different models within Gheel both in direct supports and now in a managerial post.
5. What is the best thing about your job?
The people. The organisation is very much value based at its core; we work collaboratively and in partnership with the people accessing services. Every day is different, and I always learn something new or a new way of looking at something.
6. And the biggest challenge?
Resource management and the allocation of resources can be a challenge, working within budgets and trying to be innovate with what we have available to us is a challenge.
7. What advice would you give someone considering applying for a job with Gheel?
Firstly, I would say I find the work we do very meaningful and personally I derive great satisfaction supporting people to attain their goals, dreams, or aspirations. Secondly, I would say my experience with Gheel has been incredibly positive, I have had the opportunity to work alongside very dedicated colleagues to meet different tasks or issues and we manage to work together to find solutions. Along the way we always have a laugh, and the work is both challenging and great fun.
Here are Stephen’s responses to our personality pop quiz!
- What is your idea of perfect happiness? I’m not looking for perfection.
- What is your greatest fear? Randomly enough it’s falling from a height.
- What is the trait you most deplore in yourself? Overthinking things.
- What is the trait you most deplore in others? Pretentiousness.
- What living person do you most admire? I struggled with this question at interview stage – pass!
- What is your greatest extravagance? These days its LIDL.
- What is your current state of mind? I’m staying in the moment.
- Which words or phrases do you most overuse? Really. that’s interesting.
- Where would you most like to live? Portugal – Seaview a must, did I say earlier I don’t like pretentiousness?
- What is your most treasured possession? My dog.
- What do you regard as the lowest depth of misery? I’m overthinking this question.
- Who is your hero of fiction? Deadpool.
- Who are your heroes in real life? My Nan.
- What is your greatest regret? Not having more regrets.
- What is your motto? No comment.