Stories from the WISE Community: James
Hi, I’m James. I was born in Sydney but grew up in Brisbane. After high school, I moved back to Sydney to study, where I have lived ever since.
Growing up, I played a lot of sports, with rugby league being my favourite. I’m a big Newcastle Knights and Chicago Bears fan, so sadly used to many defeats. My partner Kristy and I were recently married. She is the best part of my day.
I finished University with a Bachelor’s in Sports Management and interned at the Sydney Roosters. I was hired as a Membership and Fan Engagement Executive at the Parramatta Eels in late 2018. I worked with the Eels until moving to WISE Employment as a DES Employment Consultant in late May 2021.
When I was working at the Eels, we collaborated with WISE Employment on an initiative. We created packs and a guide designed to help fans with autism have an enjoyable experience at Eels home games. These packs contained fidget spinners and noise-cancelling headphones to help during the game amongst other things.
I loved working with WISE on this project, and we got amazing feedback from the fans and families the pack helped. I found this work rewarding and loved the idea of being in a job where I could help people daily. So, I decided to apply for a role at WISE. This was a big decision because I loved working in sports, and I had an amazing time at the Eels. However, I’m very grateful I decided to move over and have loved working at WISE Employment.
I’ve been very lucky to change roles a couple of times and see career progression at WISE and am currently the Business Manager for our DES team in North Sydney.
Since beginning at WISE, I’ve been lucky to work with such an amazing team and with many great people. I’ve learnt a tremendous amount from my colleagues and managers.
I really enjoy working at WISE, and it’s been awesome to help people over the last few years. Maybe not unexpected, but you only really know a company’s culture once you start working there.
Seeing the impact we have on our customers every day is awesome. Helping customers overcome their barriers and achieve their goals is special. It’s the reason I wanted to work at WISE, and I feel very lucky to have the opportunity to do this every day.
I also work with an amazing team at North Sydney. Big thank you to my colleagues Keisha, Marta, Jolin, Sally, Vishakha, Gulay, Dana and Georgia. They make every day enjoyable at WISE, and I am very lucky to work with them.