Charlie Dyer is the Head of People at Veloce, a leading racing, gaming and lifestyle media platform.

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1) To kick things off, could you tell us a little about your career background and current role?

I have a range of experience across the sales and sports industries, having started work straight off the back of travelling the world for six months in 2012, when I decided not to go to University and instead, joined a startup oil and gas recruitment business. At the age of 18 I was working 12 hours a day, cold calling oil rigs off-shore and collecting data. 

I worked in recruitment for 7 years across a range of industries from oil and gas to creatives in advertising and then into sports. After enjoying my time in recruitment I wanted to focus on the account management side of things and decided to go in house and work for a global sports club, where I headed up the hospitality team. 

I spent 2 years in-house and then decided it was time to enter the crazy world of Esports. I was given an opportunity to work at Veloce, a global market leader in professional sim racing and media management. I’ve been here for nearly 5 years, heading up the People Relations and HR across the Veloce Group (Veloce Esports, Veloce Racing and Quadrant) and growing the business from 10 people to 50.

2) What does a day in your life look like for you? Can you take us through a recent workday?

For me, I like to kickstart the day by being active and head to the gym before my working day starts. No working day is the same at Veloce as we always have such a range of projects happening at once.

I usually get to the office before everyone else starts to arrive and make myself a breakfast of champions with a very strong coffee. During the day I like to immerse myself into different team meetings, so I’m aware of what projects people are working on.

Towards the end of the week we have an open invite policy for any employee to head to the local pub for lunch and drinks, it creates a great culture and team bonding. Post work, for me I’m very much a morning person, so as soon as I finish all I need to get done for that day, I head home to make dinner and catch up on TV and sport. 

3) What does work-life balance mean to you and how do you work to achieve that goal?

Work-life balance is hugely important for Veloce. It’s something we’ve taken very seriously since the start, as we have numerous events on the weekend – it’s important our employees get the time back to rest and spend time with their families and friends. We have a really good system in place where we make it compulsory for employees to take time off straight after the event. 

4) In the past 12 months, have you started or stopped any routines or habits to change your life?

I’ve recently taken up the ‘marmite’ like task of spinning. It helps me be more energised to start my day and by the time I get in the office I’m ready to crack on. I prefer to get up and get out rather than have a lazy morning.

Since I have started spinning, I’ve definitely seen an increase in my productivity and motivation towards work. Being in the role I am, I need to be on top of all projects at once so this has helped hugely. 

5) Do you have any favourite books, podcasts or newsletters that you’d like to recommend?

 I’m not really a books person – when it comes to podcasts, I like to take my mind off work and listen to something sport related. The Good, The Bad, The Rugby is my favourite podcast at the moment. 

6) If you could read an interview about work-life balance by anyone, who would that be?

It’s got to be someone that is big in the game and has made their work into their life, for example Mark Zuckerberg, Dana White, Dwayne Johnson. I’m a huge believer in making sure you find a job that you love doing. We’ve grown the business with employees that love their field of work and it shows in the projects they work on.

7) Do you have any last thoughts on work, life or balance that you’d like to share with our readers?

 If I was to share one thought from this interview, it would be to make sure you find a job that makes you happy. It will benefit your work on a daily basis, your life and result in you progressing further than you would in a job that you didn’t enjoy.

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