Meet the Team: Chief of Staff, Merry Whitaker

We’ve recently welcomed Merry to the team at Quirk. Merry joins with a wealth of experience across multiple sectors. Previously the Chief Operating Officer at the University of Oxford’s Sustainable Development Goals Impact Lab, she oversaw the rapid growth and operations of programmes alongside a number of major international brands. She owns several businesses and is passionate about how organisations handle rapid growth while maintaining integrity and humanity in treating their people and clients.??

As a former Intelligence Officer in the British Army, Merry is very analytical in approaching tasks and enjoys getting stuck into complex problems and processes.?

Get to know Merry a little more below.?

Can you give us a brief description of what your role at Quirk involves??

As the Chief of Staff, I ensure that all of Quirk’s operations are running smoothly. That means managing resourcing and growth, looking after the team, and ensuring our governance structures and processes are robust.?

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What excites you most about starting your new position at Quirk??

I love developing and implementing strategy, and making sure that operations are all ticking over like clockwork. Quirk’s growth and incredible team make this a really exciting place to be doing that.?

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What experience do you bring with you that will help the team??

Having scaled several different organisations across various sectors, I bring a breadth of experience in leading and managing teams. I like to think that nothing phases me anymore!?

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What’s the best piece of advice you’ve received in your career??

Being a leader doesn’t mean you can’t be vulnerable.??

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Who has inspired you the most??

Gosh, it’s too hard to pick just one person, so I’m going to cheat and pick a few.??

• Fiona Galbraith and Sarah Henderson-Lee are awesome female boss role models in a male-dominated world.?

• General Sir Gordon Messenger is an incredibly human and humorous leader.??
• My folks - the Very Rev Dr David Ison - integrity, integrity, integrity. And the Rev Hilary Ison, one of the first women ordained in the Church of England with such amazing emotional intelligence.??

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What is one skill or talent you wish you had??

I wish I could fluently speak another language.?

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Describe yourself in 3 words.?

Driven. Kind. Fun.?

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You can find out more about our team by visiting our About Us page on our website: https://www.quirksolutions.co.uk/about-us/??