TEN years ago Emma Browning set up her HR company. A few months ago she opened a new office in Cumbria. I grew up on the South Coast in a small place called Titchfield, a few miles from a beach, and was never out of the water as a youngster!

I started my career in recruitment working for Adecco, where I worked my way up, and eventually became a national account director, looking after the BT call centres, and decided to move into HR in 2000.

I joined a small business called Oxford Instruments, who supported me doing my HR degree, at Oxford Brookes Business School. I learned a great deal here. After five years at Oxford Instruments, I took a year out to go travelling with my partner Mike and during this year we got married in Bangkok. We had an amazing adventure and on my return to the UK in 2006 I became HR manager at Porsche Cars Great Britain Ltd.

During my time at Porsche, I completed my Masters degree in the Management of Innovation and Change, again at Oxford Brookes Business School. I loved working for Porsche Cars – and the company cars weren’t bad either!

I swapped my car keys for motorbike keys, as I left Porsche to join Harley-Davidson as HR director for Europe, Middle East and Africa.

I set up Meraki in Oxfordshire in 2014. I had gained some incredible experience in my previous roles and wanted to help small businesses become great places to work. I passionately believe that you don’t have a good business unless you have great people.

We now have five people in the team. We work with SMEs on a retained basis, who pay a fixed monthly fee for an agreed amount of HR time and support each month. In effect, we are their HR team on “speed dial”. We also work with businesses on an ad-hoc basis.

Last year we expanded and opened a northern division based in the Kendal Business Hub at South Lakeland House.

We are really keen to be involved in and to support the local business community. We are already working with a local IT supplier, a marketing consultant and a PR consultant and I am a member of a couple of local business networking groups and Cumbria Chamber of Commerce.

HR is about people and business. The key to my success has been my ability to listen and understand what makes a business tick and build long-term relationships with our clients – many of whom have worked with us for more than eight years!

I love being in the outdoors and fellwalking. I like to keep fit and exercise outdoors with Emma Grunnill, who is based at Staveley and go to yoga and pilates with Lake District Yoga, also at Staveley.