Meet the Team

Name: Huw Williams

Job Role: TSA - Farm Support

Length of service: 2 years, 8 months

What attracted you to Muddy Boots: Stories from friends that worked here and the environment that I was in at the time made it seem like a great place to work. It was an ideal way to get myself into an avenue of work I've always been interested in. I was successful on my second attempt! 

Tell us a bit about you and your work history?: I've been married for eight years and have two wonderful children Rory (4 1/2 and River 15mths) who take up most of my spare time. I love the outdoors, walking with our dog (Poppy) and biking with friends. I love Sci-fi films, Lego and I'm a big video game fan. I've spent a lot of time in various customer facing roles in retail and had a few driving jobs that have allowed me to see a lot of the country. 

What does a typical working day look like?: Once the kids are awake, dressed and ready for nursery/school it's a short commute to the office and then time for a coffee, to get the day going properly (maybe even stopping for a bacon Roll if time allows...). Once everything is set up, I spend most of the time in the ticket queue to look deeper into the background systems than is possible on the first line support and raise any bugs or go back for extra details or suggest fixes.

The day can vary wildly; from setting up map files to importing products for use in the system, raising/testing bugs to setting up customer communications on releases or maintenance (most users will have seen my face and my dog through there!). Lunch is time for a break and maybe a walk with colleagues - one of several advantages of working in such a great location. After lunch is more of the same! Sprinkle a helping of meetings throughout the day and it's fairly non-stop on Support! 

Interesting fact about you?: When I was younger I wanted to be a radio DJ. The highlight of this was having my own rock show on a Community Radio, called SOAP Radio in Hereford. It aired for a week and I had the opportunity to join in on various shows and see the inner workings of the way it was produced.

Ideal dinner party guest?: I love a good dinner party, whether it's a BBQ with family or cheese and wine night with friends. I'm more than happy to spend my time cooking/prepping it all, but washing up is a chore I could live without. So, an ideal guest would be someone to help wash up after. Failing that? Ryan Reynolds. I'm a big fan. 

Favourite food?: Pinning down a favourite food has always been a hard job for me. A good camembert is often top (especially if topped with garlic or chorizo), steak, roast potatoes and I love Mexican food too.

What makes you passionate about food / farming?: I grew up in a heavy farming area and summers were mostly spent on one of the local farms - helping with bailing, potatoes or sheep sheering - whatever I was needed for. That was the foundation for an interest in the industry and it's great to be able to help out in some way through my role here.

Any skills or talents that people don’t know about?: Not many people know that I was very into drama in college and took part in many plays whilst there. My favourite was a singing role in Les Miserables!

What advice do you wish you’d been given early in your career?: Don't worry if you are not sure what path you want to take. I spent a lot of time thinking "I should know what I want to do by now, surely?" But, until you've moved about, seen what life has to offer, there is no way to tell if you are going to be happy in a career. So don't feel bad if you are not where you feel you should be right now!

Finish this sentence: on Sunday mornings you usually find me……Out for a ride on the local bike trails in the Forest of Dean. I took up riding again to improve my fitness a few years back and along with some friends, it's become a regular weekly fixture in any weather. After all, if you're not coming back covered in mud, is there any poof you even went? 

What’s one item you can’t leave your house or apartment without?: My Apple watch. It's become a bit of an obsession to close those daily rings and, with links to friends who also own one, it gives me the extra push to achieve those goals.

Describe yourself in three words: Happy, Helpful, Caring

What publications do you regularly read or what book are you reading now?: I'm a big Terry Pratchett fan and have been re-reading his Long Earth series co-authored with Stephen Baxter. I've also been
reading The latest Philip Pullman novel in The Book of Dust trilogy - The Secret Commonwealth.