We recently held our first Autumn term tutor enrichment workshop: Your Ticket to Interview: A Cover Letter Writing Workshop. This workshop was the second in our Employability Skills series. The workshop was led by four expert panellists, all of whom have extensive experience in reviewing cover letters (as well as writing them) in a range of industries across their careers.
The purpose of the event was to share insights and top tips about writing an effective cover letter that will increase chances of being invited to interview. There was also an interactive breakout room session, during which attendees received bespoke advice on writing cover letters for a specific job role.
Meet our panel of experts:
Timothy Way: After an early career in a Civil Service Personnel Department followed by two years as an Industrial Relations Adviser in the Paper and Board Industry, Timothy moved to the commercial sector joining Whitbread (Brewing and Leisure Retail) as Assistant HR Manager. Promoted to more senior positions, including a period of two years as an Area Operations Manager, he then joined Redland (Building Materials) for a brief period as HR Director before moving to United Biscuits (Food production) and working his way up to become Group Corporate Affairs Director. On the sale of United Biscuits, he then joined Computacenter (IT Services) as their Group HR Director. After 7 years at Computacenter, Timothy set up his own consultancy business, working largely in the Public Sector helping re-organise County, District, and City Councils, finally working as the Interim HR Director for Greater Manchester Police. Now retired, he spends time working in the local community and supporting an organisation raising money for small local charities.
Natasha ‘Westie’ Westover: With nearly 3 decades of experience in the finance and charity sectors, spanning large corporations like Shell, Barclays, and HSBC, as well as holding senior management and leadership roles with organisations such as Autotorq and The ai Corporation, Natasha’s journey includes serving as a Finance Director and CEO, along with fulfilling the role of charity Trustee, where she believes in partnering with organisations to promote growth and impact. Alongside these roles, she works as a Recruitment Associate for NFP Consulting and with private clients as a Business and Career Coach, specialising on empowering women in finance and the charity sector. Natasha’s passion lies in helping others thrive, using her experience to guide and support those navigating their own professional journeys. Her commitment lies in fostering environments where individuals can succeed, make a meaningful impact, express their creativity, and have their voices heard.
David Carey ACII: David will be joining Ecclesiastical Insurance Company as the UK Managing Director in February 2025. David has worked in the Insurance industry for over 35 years, at Zurich, Aviva and Allianz where he has held Directorship positions in each, accountable for the profitable development of various business areas and leadership of hundreds of employees.
David is keen to give back to the industry he holds in such high esteem. A particular passion is to ensure everyone, irrespective of their background and education, can see Insurance as a potential career option, alongside promotion of a more inclusive culture within the profession.
David is a member of the Chartered Institute of Insurers & Association of British Insurers (ABI), he sits on the ABI Commercial Insurance committee, together with being a board member for the charity, Insurance United Against Dementia – a charity established by colleagues to raise awareness and funds for the Alzheimer’s Society UK, in the fight against this cruel disease.
John Mullins: John Mullins is an Investment Director at Wellington Management – one of the world’s leading independent asset managers. He also volunteers his time as a Trustee for Team Up.
After introducing themselves and sharing their career journeys, our panellists shared their top tips for writing cover letters. Here are just some of the pearls of wisdom shared during the event:
- Be authentic. Don’t include anything in your cover letter that you can’t substantiate or discuss further at interview and beyond.
- Make your cover letters succinct. Our experts recommend writing no more than 1 page for your cover letter. Distinguish between your CV and cover letter. Your CV should include your experience, whereas your cover letter should detail why you are suitable for the role.
- Before you start writing, review the role profile thoroughly. This will help you to consider the skills that you have that are relevant to the specific job role.
- Consider the skills or experience that you have that others won’t. Your volunteering experience with Team Up will have supported you in earning a broad range of invaluable skills and experiences that others may not be able to demonstrate.
- Your cover letter is also an opportunity to address any red flags from your CV. For example, to explain any gaps in employment and write about the skills and experiences that you gained during this time.
Team Up would like to thank our panel of expert speakers for the wisdom and knowledge they shared during the workshop. We hope that our tutors left this workshop with a clear idea of what to include (and what not to include) in a cover letter to make you stand out to a hiring manager. We wish our tutors the best of luck in their future job applications!
Keep an eye on our social media channels @teamuphub to hear about more upcoming seminars and workshops, exclusively available to our Team Up volunteers and alumni.
If you are interested in joining us to tutor on our upcoming programmes (and gain access to more seminars like this!) please contact us at: tutor.applications@teamup.org.uk or apply now to start your Team Up Journey.