International Women’s Day at Hippo: Meet the females breaking barriers in the motor trade

At Hippo Motor Group, one of our goals as a company is to pave the way for more females to join the motor trade. What is considered a traditionally male-dominated industry, automotive is a fast-changing arena and at Hippo Motor Group, we know the importance of highlighting, supporting, and celebrating our female staff across the business. To mark International Women’s Day, meet some of the female-led roles here at Hippo and their perspectives of working in the automotive industry…

CRYSTAL ELWELL, SALES TEAM LEADER

Newly promoted to Team Leader, Crystal has been an integral part of Hippo for five years now. Her time with the company has been a journey of progression; starting on reception, moving to enquiry management, then underwriting. But it was Crystal’s years of automotive knowledge teamed with her hunger for sales and passion for good customer service that spurred her to join the sales team. “I wanted to be part of the company’s success,” Crystal says. “Whilst being in sales, I achieved senior sales status two years in a row, and finished top of the company, excelling all my original expectations of what I could achieve in this role.”

Crystal’s daily motivation starts from the moment she comes into the office, which she describes as a “lively and fun” setting. “Hippo is a family run business and the people who work here are so friendly,” Crystal adds. “I always want to better myself and coming to work gives me these chances daily and I am very grateful for that. I also wouldn’t be able to function without my cuppa for motivation!”

Personally, she feels that the motor industry is, still, male dominated. “I feel like there is a stigma that women can’t do well in the motor trade, but I think this opinion is dated as we have had some genuine success stories at Hippo,” Crystal explains. To move away from this school of thought, Crystal recognises that more female-led success stories should be shared, both across the motor trade businesses and the wider industry.??

In the case of Hippo Motor Group, Crystal says: “Hippo is a fantastic place to work. Every department plays a key part in the business and without everyone working as hard as they do the company wouldn’t be as amazing as it is.

“Hippo has given multiple internal promotions as they like to reward people for their dedication, so if you are thinking of applying, do it!” she adds.

What would Crystal advise women who want to get into the motor trade? “Go for it,” she says. “I started at Hippo with no vehicle knowledge and no sales experience, and I have achieved a lot in the time I have worked here. I’m a firm believer that if you work hard, you will see the rewards.”

An ambitious individual with passion and determination to be a role model to others, Crystal’s competitive nature and drive to constantly better herself percolates into her new role. “My new goal is to help my new team of account managers succeed here at Hippo,” Crystal says. “I want all of them to see the earning potential there is here as it can be life changing. It’s my priority to get them all to their personal goals as well as my own.”

HANNAH BENTLEY, HUMAN RESOURCES MANAGER

Hannah joined Hippo in October 2015 to handle all HR and customer care activity. As the company grew, she played a key part of the wider business, helping to significantly grow and nurture several departments as well as the HR team at Hippo, too. Her daily motivation stems from the positive work atmosphere at Hippo, which she credits to “working with great people and having so much variety in the role”.

Like the other women we’re celebrating on this list, one of the reasons why Hannah loves working at Hippo is because the company provides a number of progression opportunities and is constantly evolving which makes every day different and exciting.

“Hard work and commitment will ensure you progress to where you want to be,” Hannah says. “The atmosphere in the motor trade is brilliant and you get the perfect balance of professionalism and fun.”

However, Hannah notes that the motor trade industry is still male heavy. This is something that Hippo is pioneering to change. “Hippo is great at providing career opportunities and progressing its staff,” Hannah says. “It is great to see more females being promoted at Hippo and continuing with these opportunities will allow this progress.”

When asked to describe herself and work ethic in one sentence, Hannah says: “I am dedicated and genuinely care about the company. I always strive to work to the best of my ability whilst simultaneously working to improve the company, too,” she adds.

Over the next year, Hannah’s goals are to be more involved with Hippo’s growth plans and continuing to help the business to develop and improve.

SARAH POUNDER, LEAD MANAGEMENT TEAM LEADER

Gaining herself a place into the official Hippo Legends club (a status achieved after , Sarah has been with the company since its early days in 2008. She worked three years in finance and progressed into sales, building on her knowledge of all things automotive to become an essential member of the business.

Following her maternity leave, Sarah returned to Hippo in 2021 as a Team Leader. So, what has kept her loyal to the company? “It has to be the great atmosphere, plus my knowledge from 13 years’ experience, the team spirit and the peace of mind that I am supported by my team and management around me,” she says.

“Hippo is a fast-paced working environment – it’s a great place to work with supportive and friendly surroundings, where colleagues become real friends,” she explains.

With a long, illustrious career in the motor trade, Sarah is a great source of advice for women who are looking for a new role at Hippo. “Women may feel some reservation over applying for the position in sales – however, the company allows equal growth for all members of staff within the business,” she shares. “Hippo is working hard to disperse the stigma that automotive is just for men.”

What would Sarah say to inspire other women to apply for a role at Hippo? “I have never felt discriminated in my role in the motor trade and have always been treated equal to all my colleagues,” she says. “It’s a fun and challenging role, so go for it!”

A hard working, fun and self-motivated member of the team, Sarah is a self-proclaimed Hippoette with growth goals for the coming year. “I would like to build my team and progress using my experience and skills to excel for the company and my own personal goals,” Sarah concludes.?

LIANNA AKBAR, COMPLIANCE AND PROCESSES MANAGER

Lianna started at Hippo eight years ago and is another female powerhouse to earn Hippo Legends’ status. Originally beginning in the leasing sales team, she moved to set up the compliance and processes department after the business identified it was essential to have a team to oversee every area of operations, to continue delivering the most reliable, trustworthy service to Hippo’s customers.

She has built the department from the ground up into a full-fledged team that oversees everything from GDPR to financial transparency and ensuring that Hippo conducts business in a way that meets the guidelines of the Financial Conduct Authority as well as all national laws on data protection and other important transactional areas. ?

Lianna’s daily motivation stems from her passion to “help the business grow and move forwards in a positive way”.?She has witnessed Hippo’s growth first hand and highlights the role the company has played in spearheading opportunities and open doors for women in the business.

“I can't speak for the rest of the motoring world, but I've always seen Hippo have plenty of women achieving great things in the time I have worked here,” Lianna recalls. “We are very diverse and have women in all departments from valeting to the workshop, sales, and the senior management team.”

Lianna describes the atmosphere at Hippo as being the best part of working here. “It was the first thing I noticed when I came for my interview originally, and it’s something they have managed to continue over the years,” she says.

A driven, enthusiastic, and self-taught individual who is constantly trying to achieve, Lianna encourages female jobseekers to take the leap and apply for what could turn into an incredibly rewarding role at Hippo. “They should go for it,” she advises. “We've seen a lot of women at Hippo do well in all departments. I?think anyone wanting to achieve in any industry should be encouraged.”

Looking ahead, Lianna plans to grow her department whilst staying ahead of the game in ensuring that the business maintains best compliance and process practices. Her goal is to continue to positively influence the wider business as its growth plans come to fruition.

LOUISE O’ROURKE, HR ADVISOR?

After joining Hippo in 2019, Louise’s journey quickly took her from reception to HR and Compliance. She’s been working full-time in HR since October 2019, helping to pave the way for young, budding job seekers joining Hippo.

Louise is motivated by wanting to make Hippo a nice place to work for all staff. “I do my best to ensure that the company is following best HR practices and remains a reputable place to work,” Louise shares.

“I enjoy doing a good job for myself and my colleagues and knowing that people rely on me for support,” she adds.

Louise reiterates the feeling of her fellow female colleagues who describe Hippo as a fun place to work where the team always support each other and are encouraged and inspired by seeing each other succeed.

“Although the motor trade is still quite a male dominated industry, I do think steps are being made to change this to welcome more women into the industry,” Louise explains. “Recruitment processes are pivotal to help do this, and we are an equal opportunities business, so we always ensure the workplace is non-discriminatory and everyone can apply for all our roles,” she continues. “We treat all our employees, and potential employees, fairly and with respect.”

Additionally, Louise strongly believes that one of the ways Hippo is showing the change in attitudes is by how many women we have in management positions. “Especially in roles that are more male dominated,” Louise says. “Such as our Valeting Team Leader, Danielle Keenan. I think society in general still has a long way to go before it is fully equal, but in time attitudes will change and every workforce will become more diverse and equal.”

Friendly, approachable, and dedicated, Louise’s advise for women who are considering getting into the motor trade is: “Help steer the change from within and don’t be put off going into an industry due to being afraid as most people are friendly and helpful.”

In the coming year, Louise hopes to continue her learning journey and grow her role and value within the company even further.?