Chris
McCleave

Who I help

Large corporates. SME’s. Medium sized companies. Professional services. Construction & Property.

How I help

HR Advice & Support. Immigration support.

“I love problem-solving and being able to help clients reach a solution.”

Chris McCleave is a Senior HR Consultant based in our Belfast office. With a background in supporting immigration policy for organisations, he is passionate about helping clients overcome challenges and navigate the ever-changing and complex HR landscape.

Chris works across the whole HR remit which means that his days are rarely the same. One day he might be on-site with a client acting on their behalf as their HR manager, supporting with HR policies, and benefits schemes or relaying information from overseas HQ. While another might involve supporting a client with a complex immigration request. No matter what the day brings he ensures that he’s always available to support clients to the best of his ability. Ensuring flexibility in his days to allow him to be available when needed.

Building strong client relationships is key

“Trust is the number one priority when working with clients. That trust needs to work both ways. I want clients to be able to trust me with all the information necessary so we can work together to reach a solution. If a client doesn’t trust us, then they might leave out crucial information because they don’t believe we’ll be able to help. The flip side of that is that they need to trust that we are the right people to reach the right outcome and work alongside them.

How do we achieve this? By getting to know the client. Getting to know the people that contribute to the business’s success and the business itself. By acting with integrity and working to agreed timescales. We have to show that we’re the best people- it’s not enough just to say it. It’s so satisfying for me to be able to show them that and then have clients ask for my opinion and want to hear my view of something. This shows that they value me as an advisor.”

Taking time to find the right solution

“I firmly believe that there’s not only one solution to a problem. I love problem-solving and being able to help clients reach a solution they’re happy with gives me great satisfaction. However, I won’t just give them one option when there is multiple. We are working together to reach the best result so I must present them with all the options, and we work together to reach that. Clients appreciate the time taken to reach the best solution rather than just the first one because that might not be the best option for them.”

Sharing knowledge with colleagues

“I am a people person and one of my favourite parts of my role is getting to know our incredible clients and my AAB group colleagues. As an HR consultant, I support the junior members of the team. Being able to share my knowledge and experience both good and bad with them is amazing. I get to help them with their career goals and guide them. That’s been invaluable for my personal development and growth.

Having colleagues across the UK and Island of Ireland has also allowed me to gain more knowledge and learn from people at all levels of the business, sharing thoughts and opinions. That diversity of thought is valuable and worth its weight in gold.”

Saying no for the right reasons

“Working in HR requires an element of being both disruptive and assertive. I’m someone that gets given a goal and I won’t stop until we reach it. Given the sometimes-sensitive nature of our work ensuring that we give clients not just what they want to hear but the whole picture is so important there’s a lot of employment law behind any HR decision so I will always interpret that and then let the client know what that means for them.

I’ll never just say no for the sake of it and I will only say no when it’s necessary. It’s never just a no with me. I’ll always say no, because… but here’s what we can do instead. I’ll work with them to reach an outcome that ensures they are legally compliant and acting in the best interests of their organisation.”