Meet Carol Parnaby, the creative whirlwind helping to keep Katchr organised.

You’ve got to have quite a mind to get through two books a week and that’s just Carol’s “downtime”. It’s often the case that someone who did A Level English Lit, can speed read and actually absorb all the information. A skill many of us are enviable of. And, although she says she’ll be putting her feet up on the day she retires (still many moons away), Carol also admits that she won’t be sitting still for long.

You’d think a creative mind would have a desk that looks like a bomb’s hit it but, as is the case with many creative people, Carol is 100% logic and her clean, clutter -free desk confirms it. The only thing on her desk is her Charlie Brown wisdom:

At two books a week, most of us would struggle to find time for any other hobbies, let alone work but there is a dog that demands long walks too, a Hungarian Vizsla to be exact. You’ll need to burn some calories to keep up with a dog like that.

We’re not even remotely done on Carol’s hobbies in fact, she also runs her own creative business. As is often the case with a creative choice of business, it often finds you, rather than you find it. This happened when Carol was experimenting with her talents as a crafter and avid baker. Before she knew it, her passion for handmade cards and gifts was monetised and she found herself with more work than she could handle – a nice problem to have. Who knows, perhaps you have already been to a wedding and seen her delightful wedding stationery, calligraphed wooden love hearts and bespoke plaques.

As for her baking skills, all acquired from her grandmother like some many children of her age, the many hours sat watching granny create magic in the kitchen left her with an initial ambition to become a chef. Nothing like cooking to teach you the value of a deadline. In fact, she started her career in customer service, which, although not especially creative is a great role for anyone operating at a high level of empathy.

It is no wonder that Graham, Katchr’s MD, noticed her shared sense of urgency and chose Carol for his PA. Anyone who can juggle life choices the way she does is perfect for an agile software company.