Kelly Lawrenson

Meet Kelly Lawrenson, Client Relationship Manager at the Møller Institute. Kelly has been with us since 2013, and has seen the evolution of the Institute, so we asked her a few questions.

What is your previous job experience?

“Before the Møller Institute, I worked as a Conference Administrator at Downing College and an Event Manager at Queens’ College.

After being referred by a former Møller Institute employee, I soon started my role here. I’ve technically been at the Møller Institute for coming up to 11 years, I say technically because I did actually leave just after the pandemic, but soon realised that it just wasn’t the same. I came back to the Institute around two years ago because of multiple reasons, one of them being the collaborative aspect of the business, everyone works towards the same goal with like minded intentions, supporting those around them – it’s one team”.

What would you say motivates you?

“I would say that my biggest motivator is the feedback I get from clients – it’s great to hear that the work you’re doing is making an impact and satisfying clients.

As well as their feedback, I have absolutely loved the relationships you build with clients, some of which I have had for the duration of working here – 11 years! So I would say that motivates me the most – wanting to get an event or meeting right for the client”.

What do you enjoy about your job the most, and why?

“The reason I enjoy working at the Møller Institute the most is because of the people I work with – both the conferencing team and the wider teams that we relay our clients’ wants and needs to, in order to make the meeting or event a success. When you work somewhere full time and spend as much time with co-workers as we do, it makes the role so much better when you have nice people to work with”.

What would you say your proudest accomplishment is in both your personal and professional life?

“At work, my biggest accomplishment is the relationship I have with the wider teams, which has grown throughout my time working here. Forming these relationships allows for an equal footing and amazing collaborations, making my job so much easier – I see myself as the in-between person providing my clients’ desires to the wider team in order to materialise them in the best way. It’s very much an equal exchange in the sense that I give them what they need and they give me back what i needed for my client.

In my private life however, my biggest achievement would be opening and running the Dinky Deli last year alongside my husband and our children”.

Do you have any hobbies outside of work?

“NO, I have two kids and run a deli meanwhile working…

In all seriousness, I really love hospitality and the food industry, so I enjoy trying new cafe and restaurants in the Cambridgeshire food scene and supporting local businesses.

I also enjoy travelling and going on family adventures, last year we travelled to France, Switzerland and Italy in our car for two weeks and I thoroughly enjoyed trying new local foods there too! For the Easter half term, we went to the Belgium Center Parcs as a family, so, I definitely did a lot of food trying there too”!

Have you found that working at the Møller Institute has changed since you first joined?

“It has definitely changed. I worked over the pandemic so we saw a big change in everything we did. There were major adaptations to the new norms and the way we worked but these have definitely been for the best for everyone.

Hospitality as a whole changed after the pandemic, and the Møller Institute with it – seeing multiple people come and go over the years, from all levels of the business, but as always we have stayed a strong team.

Hybrid working is a major change in working that was introduced to not only the business, but majorly adapted globally as a norm, which as a mother of two, I benefit from a lot and appreciate.

Management has also changed since I have been here, but having Suzanne Purser as a manager, is amazing – she trusts that we all work very well together as a team and can achieve whatever is required of us which creates such a motivating atmosphere”.