Richard Miller has recently been brought in by Cumbria of Commerce as a Business Engagement & Policy Manager. Relocating from Manchester to Carlisle, he is now settling into Cumbrian life, and as a keen cyclist is looking forward to being able to get out into the Lake District National Park at the weekends.

"My journey to this role has not been your typical path by any stretch of the imagination. After finishing 6th Form at Bolton School, I found myself studying Law at Leeds Metropolitan University. I quickly became aware that a higher educational setting wasn’t the right path for me and I needed something where I would interact with business.

With no clear plan in mind, I decided whatever I was going to do should probably be London based, as I had the idea of throwing myself in at the deep end.

The next three years were spent working for one of London’s largest and most well-respected property agents, Dexter’s. Covering both residential sales & lettings, I thrived in the sales environment and learned invaluable skills, alongside making a number of lifelong friends in the process. Many people say it is the sort of role that you fall into when you don’t really know where you want to go, and I would say that is true, but the opportunities are huge.

The bulk of my career however, has been spent working in financial services recruitment, having been convinced by one of my best friends, who was already successful in the sector, that I should ‘get involved’. I wasn’t sure at first, but after some consideration I found myself in a series of tough, and at times surreal interviews with Aston Carter (part of The Allegis Group), who are one of the leading agencies, not only in London, but across the globe.

Recruitment is by far the most high-pressured industry I have been involved in, but it did open doors, and built on my sales skills. I was fortunate enough to be able to go and work in Hong Kong where I was recruiting senior level risk, compliance, financial crime and fraud professionals into the banking market.

Returning from Hong Kong, I continued to work for recruitment firms back in Manchester, before ultimately deciding that it wasn’t what I really wanted to do long term. I had always been interested in politics, and so I started to write to MPs after the 2019 election to see if I could get a flavour of what it would be like working within one of their offices. I worked for Edward Timpson MP for nearly two years prior to my current role, and the experience was invaluable.

I believe my varied background sets me up well for this position within the Chamber, and I aim to be accessible to businesses across Cumbria, to discuss your issues and ultimately drive forward positive policy changes that will benefit local businesses. As we move through the pandemic, I am excited to get out once again and meet with people face to face to get a firm understanding of how Cumbria Chamber of Commerce can support with future business growth.

My aim for 2022 is to see businesses rebound from any negative impacts of the pandemic, and ensure I am doing all I can to represent you and your employees, to ensure that the future of Cumbrian business is as bright. I am always happy to hear from people, and I am sure I will get to know many of you over the coming months."