France started her career as a marketing professional in the payment and tourism industries, specialising in product and services launches. She was fortunate to lead exciting projects such as the launch of innovative payment cards throughout Europe for MasterCard, the Airmiles scheme (now Avios) with BA, launching eurotunnel and the eurostar train service and bringing to market contactless payment cards at American Express.

She then applied her knowledge in contactless payment to develop digital and point-of-sale charity donation capabilities at Pennies, working with FinTech providers to support over 50 different charities.

At that point - and after working with a career coach - France went back to studies to become a career consultant herself, building on her skills as a marketing professional to help people stand out from the crowd in a challenging job market. She worked for global outplacement leader LHH (part of Adecco) for 6 years and set up FDB Associates, her own career transition company to help people secure new jobs better suited to their needs and aspirations.

France lives in Reigate and is a mother to James and Camille who both attended, enjoyed and benefited from RGS.

France's Top Tip

"Don't be embarrassed to ask for help and advice”.

Networking is key in finding either that first job or at any point in your career.

Don’t hesitate to call on people’s experience, they will be happy - and flattered - to share their knowledge of an industry, of a company or profession. People enjoy talking about their experience and discussing what they are passionate about. That information will be invaluable for you to decide where to work, to differentiate yourself when applying for jobs and to prepare for interviews.

To make sure you get the most out of your discussions, prepare for your networking meeting. Look up who you are meeting, learn about their company and the industry and come with a clear question; you should also be ready to explain who you are (your elevator pitch) and why you are interested in speaking to them.

That way, it will be a very interesting conversation for both parties – and you will hopefully be a step nearer to a new job!"