Faye Smith Speaker | Enterprise & PHSCE & Careers & Assemblies and Celebrations Events & Well-being & Teacher CPD & Exams & Media

Faye Smith

Activating students and staff alike to market themselves and fulfil their potential

Multi award- winning trainer Faye Smith is proud to be born and bred in Yorkshire. A vocational student in Sheffield’s most academic school, she endured school on the back of being excellent at art and English (for which she got As) and talking (a lot- for which she got sent to the Head!). Science, music and tennis all defeated her, so she fell into a degree in human geography. No-one told her, her perfect career was marketing, so she was working ten years before she realised it!

Since starting her career on the Debenhams graduate management programme, she has notched up no less than 15 jobs in four distinctly different careers in the public, private and voluntary sectors: retail management, training, business services and sales and marketing. Along the way she’s gained vital qualifications like bra fitter, job club leader, business counsellor and image consultant. She’s also been headhunted and promoted a few times, made redundant, taken severance, had a career break, volunteered a lot and brought up her children alone for fifteen years.

Faye has interviewed hundreds of people in her time, particularly while heading Europe’s first retail academy at Meadowhall, recruiting for the shopping centre’s opening- so she can justifiably claim to be something of an expert in what employers and universities are looking for in school leavers. She’s loved taking this message into Sheffield schools for nearly twenty years now, training over a thousand young people each year in confidence, image, employability and marketing themselves. Ten years ago she launched her own freelance marketing and training consultancy, “Keep your Fork”.

When she isn’t helping students develop more confidence, start successful businesses or learn how to market themselves to the world, she helps charities, start ups and growing businesses find and keep customers and funders.

Her particular brand of fun, interactive training and business has been featured on national TV, newspapers, magazines and radio.

Watch Faye here.

Testimonials from Teachers

"Faye is both an inspiration and a breath of fresh air. Her dynamic approach makes the pupils sit up and take notice. She challenges them to overcome their inhibitions and examine 'self' in a way that they would not necessarily do for teachers with whom they are familiar. She has spoken at Birkdale for the past ten years and every time she brings something new and interesting to her presentation. I would recommend her without hesitation."

– Helen Parsons, Head of Sixth Form, Birkdale School

"Faye, Just wanted to email to say thank you again for yesterday. You were so inspiring and I think you touched a lot of people in the room with your stories and personal experience. The students were so engaged and we hope to reinforce your message as they move up into Year 11… I look forward to working with you again and booking you again for Saint Pius!"

– Katie Baldwin, Higher Education Engagement Assistant Saint Pius X Catholic High School

“This seminar more than met my expectations and I enjoyed all of it, I found it very interesting and informative. Faye was amazing and a very skilled presenter. I’m going to take everything I learned today into account when going to interviews. This was the best talk I’ve heard that’s why I gave it 13 out of 10”.

– Student, Birkdale Independent School Sheffield