Fiona Wright

Said the following about Maxine Janali:

“Despite the huge challenges that her team faces every day, Maxine is one of the most “human” HR people that you could ever come across! She leads a team of nine, responsible for recruitment across the UK’s biggest TOC, and retains her humanity and compassion every day.

As manager of GTR’s internal recruitment team, in the 12 months to July 2017 she oversaw the recruitment or internal promotion of:

• 515 Customer Service and Revenue staff

• 368 Train Drivers

• 228 Engineering staff

• 217 HQ & Support Staff

GTR runs four very distinctive brands, and Maxine has ensured that she and her team understand the complexity of them all. She has overcome the hiring challenges which come from extended industrial action by remaining sensitive to all situations, and through her acute attention to detail.

Maxine has worked tirelessly to elevate the skills of her team, ensuring that their skills and behaviours are up to date, adding value to the business, and ultimately the commuting public.

She is incredibly passionate about the development of GTR staff, and has coached and supported individuals - both within her own functions and from other parts of the business - on the skills and behaviours needed to progress in their careers.

Her own personal development has been driven by what she can do to better-support her team. In 2015, she completed the Chartered Management Institute Diploma in Management and Leadership Level 5, along with her Level A&B assessor qualifications. Maxine also completed the ILM level 5 coaching certificate in order to better support the progression of her team and others within the business.

Some of the projects that Maxine has overseen in the last 12 months include:

• Southern’s OBS 100 project. Maxine lead the attraction campaign to quickly and efficiently strengthen Southern’s on-board customer service provision, with the hire of 100 new on-board supervisors within an 8-week timeframe. She managed the coordination between training, operations and recruitment teams to ensure that high calibre new starters were brought into the business quickly, and trained to do their jobs safely. This OBS team has minimised the impact of the 2017 RMT strikes, ensuring that GTR could run more services safely without the striking staff.

• Thameslink 2018 drivers plan. In order to deliver the target of 24 trains an hour through London’s core - which is at the heart of the GTR franchise - an extensive driver recruitment campaign was required. Maxine has tracked the progress of driver training and required depot staffing levels, leading this campaign by ensuring her team have had the most up-to-date information and changes. This has ensured that the drivers needed to deliver the first part of the 2018 Thameslink plan are in place, and well on their way in their training.

• Prince’s Trust. Maxine has been a key driver of the Prince’s Trust ‘Get into Railways’ work experience programme. The Prince’s Trust is a youth charity that helps disadvantaged young people, who have struggled to find consistent employment. Many of the young people helped by The Prince’s Trust are facing issues such as homelessness or mental health problems, or may have been in trouble with the Police. The ‘Get into Railways’ programme supports 18 to 25 year-olds across our wide geographical area. Maxine has worked tirelessly across the business to find opportunities to place graduates of the programme in. Her work with these departments has ensured that roles have been found for 82% of graduates so far, most recently offering 10 more young people a much a needed chance of success.

Adrian Thacker, Senior Head of National Partnerships at The Prince's Trust recently made this comment about the GTR programme:

"A few of us round the office are thinking of the outstanding partners we're working with… I'd just like to say a big thank you to your colleagues at GTR for all you're doing to support young talent into work. Especially given the pressures on the transport system in the current climate. It really is appreciated."“

Dawn Thorn

Said the following about Maxine Janali:

“Following the original nomination by Fiona, I can only echo the sentiments of this in my admiration of Maxine, her work ethics and willingness to support and deliver for her clients and team. Maxine has pro-actively lead the recruitment team providing inspiring leadership and practical support. She personally works with her team and client groups to fully understand their needs and then builds a solution to ensure she can meet those as near as possible often exceeding expectations by being innovative and using her professional expertise. She is a very personable and focussed individual for whom nothing is too challenging.“

Sophia Palm

Said the following about Maxine Janali:

“In my previous role as the Occupational Health Business Manager, in an extremely challenging industry, Maxine and I had to work in partnership to achieve what some may deem as unrealistic expectations. It was always a pleasure to work with Maxine. She is a very strong and passionate woman that believes in success and will be solution focused for not only her key stakeholders but her peers and most importantly herself. Maxine is a role model to all those around her and is a true aspiration - well done Maxine for being nominated for the RSA Recruiter/HR of the year – truly deserved.“

Michelle Clark

Said the following about Maxine Janali:

“Maxine works tirelessly in a challenging environment to provide an efficient and effective recruitment service. GTR is a big railway company, with lots of changes and therefore often Maxine has to lead her team to respond and adapt to changing needs, which can be tough at times. Maxine is always prepared to work with the business to deliver and to ensure we bring excellent quality candidates into the company. Maxine is an asset for the company.“

Mariana Cevallos

Said the following about Maxine Janali:

“It is my great pleasure to recommend Maxine Janali, she is an outstanding professional and made a positive impact on GTR.“