Meet the Team: Alissa

 

What’s something people would never guess about you?

I grew up in Estonia in a Belarusian family, but my first language is Russian, not Estonian or Belarusian. It was right at the brink of the Soviet Union collapse, and times were hard, but I wouldn’t know much about it as I was just a baby.

 

How did you get into recruitment?

I’m still trying to figure this out myself, lol! I started my career as a graphic designer. I moved around a bit, from in-house at a global brand, to advertising, to branding. During the pandemic, I landed my dream job at a branding agency I’ve always admired, and while I loved many things about it, something still felt like it was missing. Luckily, the pandemic left me with lots of time to think and reflect, and I figured that while I love design, I was much more interested in people. The rest just fell into place! One day, Zoe contacted me about some designer roles EdenMarsh had on, but I ended up asking about recruitment instead. We had a good chat, and I met the rest of the team, including our founder Sam. Lots of things clicked, and I soon had a job offer. I’m still very grateful they took a chance on me!

 

Who did you want to be as a kid?

Ballerina! Unfortunately (or maybe fortunately), my parents took this wish too seriously. They enrolled me into a ballet school, where I studied for four years of primary school. Hardcore ballet classes six days a week!

 

What is your most unusual talent or skill?

I’m known to have many superpowers that are awakened exclusively when the deadline is approaching.

 

How do you spend your time outside of work?

I like to draw, do fun design projects, pick up new creative hobbies, read, and watch good movies. Every now and then, I try to become the sort of person who starts their mornings early by doing some yoga and meditation, but that only lasts a few days, and I fail miserably. Lately, I’ve been working on myself a lot – I started going to therapy, read lots of literature on psychology and spend lots of time reflecting on my old habits and patterns!

 

What achievements are you proud of?

I moved to the UK by myself just having turned 17! To this day, I’ve got no idea how I managed this and why on earth my parents let me go. Since then, up until I was roughly 24, I’ve combined education with working hospitality jobs. It was difficult, but I’m really proud I made it through and of everything I’ve got to achieve professionally – all the places I’ve got to work at and the projects I was lucky to get involved in.

 

What were you like as a kid?

I was very tiny but apparently very bossy! According to my mum, I liked to boss around other kids and frequently took nursery staff duties upon myself! 😂
I also had a gigantic appetite, and once ate a whole plate of pancakes meant for six people! All that despite being half the size of kids my age.

 

What’s the most awkward thing that happens to you on a regular basis?

My whole existence is pretty awkward, lol! I have a terrible short-term memory and a rather scattered brain. I also seem to have no filter for what I say and a sense of humour not many people get. And if that wasn’t enough, I’m also frequently told I have a VERY loud laugh, but I choose to think that’s a good thing. 😉

What movie or TV show do you rewatch often?

Too many to name! Once I like something, I’ll keep returning to it. I’ve watched Forrest Gump numerous times. I must’ve seen Legally Blonde hundreds of times – I turn to it pretty much every time I’m feeling down. Recently, I’ve rewatched The Prestige again; it’s my favourite film by Christopher Nolan. We have Friends playing on repeat in our house — my partner and I can’t get enough of it. Chandler’s jokes are the best!

 

What’s your music taste?

Very eclectic. My playlist has everything from Dire Straits to Billie Eilish. I’ve been listening to A LOT of Tash Sultana for the last couple of years.

 

What’s the last thing you’ve read or a podcast you’ve listened to?

I’m currently reading ‘The Words to Say It’ by Marie Cardinal. It’s an autobiographical novel about Marie’s mental illness and her recovery through psychoanalysis. I love how it’s written- the book moves through Marie’s childhood experiences and recollections with great care. It’s quite powerful!

As for podcasts, I listen to lots of them! Been listening to Katie Cadwell’s The NDA lately, and also, ‘Creative Pep Talk’ by Andy J. Pizza is among my favourites.

 

What’s your guilty pleasure?

Dancing half-dressed to Britney Spears’s early albums. Also, anything 90s and early 2000s related. UGG boots have been coming back into fashion, and while I haven’t caved in yet, I have to say I’m tempted.

 

Who is your celebrity crush?

Hmm… probably Gerard Butler or Javier Bardem. Seeing Blake Lively and Ryan Reynolds’s relationship always puts a smile on my face. Can you have a crush on a couple?

 

Tell me about your favourite memory from your life…

My grandpa played a mean Santa! Before 12am (we celebrate New Year’s Eve instead of Christmas), he’d always disappear, saying he needed to get something from the shop and come back dressed as Santa Claus. I knew it was him, but it was so funny to watch that I kept pretending I believed it was a real Santa for many more years.

Also, when I was fifteen/sixteen, I suddenly developed a weird love for swimming in the fountains. There were many fountains conquered, and it was all pretty fun.

 

What’s the wildest thing you’ve ever done?

Not sure it would go into the ‘wildest’ category, but here’s a fun story…

Quite a few years ago, my friend and I went to Spain without any plan and on a VERY limited budget. We were broke students and spent all our money in the first few days on partying. What followed was a long road trip across the south of Spain. For two weeks, we slept in our rented car because we had no money for hostels. Since I had no driving licence, she was driving. It was before Google Maps, so I was trusted to guide us following the map, which was a big mistake. We ended up somewhere high in the mountains on a very narrow serpentine road (for context, we were driving Fiat Panda, which barely had any horsepower to move up the mountain). In the end, we were forced to spend the night there because it got dark, and we didn’t know how to get back down. Just imagine two young girls sleeping in a car on the edge of a cliff.

Recently, I did my first tattoo. Again, hardly ‘wild’, but considering I’m scared of needles to death, that’s something. It’s tiny, though, and took a whopping five minutes to complete lol!

 

If you could travel to any year in a time machine, what year would you choose?

Probably the 70s. I’m a massive fan of 70s rock – I’d love to see Janis Joplin live! Or young Eric Clapton.

 

What are three items on your bucket list?

I’ve wanted to go skydiving for years, but every time I make the plan for one or the other reason, it seems to fall through! I’d love to spend some time living somewhere in Africa. While studying, we had an opportunity to travel to Senegal, spend time with local artisans, and learn traditional crafts, but unfortunately, I couldn’t come. This idea is stuck in my head now. I’d also like to backpack around Asia and go to Latin America.

 

What’s your favourite food of all time?

Pizza, pizza, pizza. Also, a really nice rare steak. Mmmm… and good quality Italian mozzarella. Not too long ago, I’ve become very fond of Oysters.

Oh, and Borsht. It’s eastern European beetroot soup… doesn’t sound like it, but it’s very yummy.

 

What’s the weirdest thing in your closet?

Hmmm… Where’s Wally costume, probably? It’s just a red stripy shirt, but it comes with a set of very peculiar glasses and a hat! And I have a t‑shirt with a Baby Yoda print, but I don’t think that’s weird… it’s adorable!

 

What game or reality show would you like to be a guest on?

The Apprentice, I think?

I’d also quite like to end up on Netflix’s Nailed It! I’d bake a truly awful cake, but it would be a good laugh.

 

What was the silliest mistake you’ve ever made at work?

Luckily not too many… yet! Although I did the classic ‘CCing the wrong person’ once or twice. I’m also guilty of forgetting to respond to emails sometimes… It’s NEVER on purpose, though!

 

What’s the best advice you’ve ever received?

No one has it all figured out! We’re all just people trying to do our best, so go easy on yourself.

 

What’s your favourite thing about working in recruitment?

The people! I love love love my colleagues and the candidates I get to speak to. I love seeing that I can make a difference in someone’s career. There’s nothing better than seeing someone land the role they are super excited about or seeing someone’s portfolio flourish after a feedback session.

 

What advice would you like to give to our candidates searching for jobs?

Your portfolio is what opens the doors, and your personality is what seals the deal. Put A LOT of work into your portfolio, but work on developing your people skills too. How you relate to people, talk about your process and present work matters.