Members attending this month’s Annual General Meeting will have noticed NHIA’s new recruit, Karen Eastop, working away with Sara Merckel to record the event and assisting with the forum, member dinner and the following day’s mentoring workshop.
Based in Wallan, Victoria, Karen’s role covers office and administration management, bookkeeping and assisting with member communication activities.
Karen comes to NHIA from the logistics sector, with a skillset that is directly transferable to the behind the scenes operation of NHIA.
“I’m excited to have joined NHIA and it was great to meet some of the members in Shepparton earlier in August.
“It’s been a whirlwind start to my time at NHIA, getting up to speed with the systems and procedures and learning about a new industry. What’s already clear to me is the commitment and passion for the industry and the desire of everyone I’ve met to drive the sector forward.
“Hopefully over the next few months I’ll have more opportunity to get out and about with Sara and meet more of our members in person,” says Karen.
Outside of work Karen describes herself as ‘very outdoorsy’, but only when it’s over 25 degrees, so don’t expect to see her on farm before 6am to learn more about AI for a few more months!
A passionate AFL and NRL (plus State of Origin) fan, Karen will have more time to focus on work next month than she was perhaps anticipating, with both her beloved Hawks and Parramatta Eels missing out on finals this time round.
Karen works Monday to Thursday and can be contacted on 0418 501 422 or [email protected].