The HR Dept appoints new marketing director

Felicity Kenny promoted three years after joining the business as marketing and franchise recruitment manager

Human resources outsourcing specialist The HR Dept has promoted Felicity Kenny to marketing director.

Felicity will take up a position on the company’s board three years after she joined the company as marketing and franchise recruitment manager.

The appointment will see her continuing to lead a marketing team of four at the company’s central offices just outside Bristol.

“The HR Dept is an amazing and unique company and I’m honoured to be chosen to sit on the board as marketing director,” Felicity says.

“Marketing is a crucial part of our company ethos, enabling us to provide the best support to our franchisees and enhance the effectiveness of our professional network.

“As we emerge from the coronavirus crisis and as the companies we serve around the UK, Ireland and Australia come to terms with its business impact, our offering has never been more relevant or important.

“With an increased focus on digital marketing, with online solutions to optimise what our licensees offer their business, we have an opportunity to support small and medium-sized enterprises around the UK with services that can be vital to their survival and prosperity.

“It’s a demanding yet exciting time for our business and I’m delighted to be involved on a more strategic level.”

The HR Dept has a network of 75 franchisees operating in 112 territories, with 11 in Australia and the rest based in the UK and Ireland.

Providing outsourced HR advice and support, the network serves more than 6,500 SMEs in the UK alone.

Felicity says that the past few months have seen unprecedented levels of engagement between The HR Dept and the UK’s community of smaller businesses.

“The work we’ve done since the coronavirus outbreak has been our biggest marketing campaign ever,” she explains.

“Through our network we’ve been able to provide some vital support for business owners, creating webinars, knowledge hubs and campaigning on their behalf.

“The voice of the SME is often lost in the national debate, so we’re proud to see the impact of the work we’ve done.

“We have seen a significant increase in our website traffic since we launched our Coronavirus HR Hub at the beginning of lockdown. Our new Job Retention Scheme FAQ page alone has received more than 85,000 visitors since we set this up in April.

“So the value of HR during a crisis like this, which affects every aspect of employment, is clear.”