Jane Austin is Director of HR for Wave. Jane spent the first half of her career in various HR & internal communications roles in Rover, Land Rover, BMW. She also spent time as Assistant Personnel Director at Coventry University and leading the HR activity in Remploy Automotive. After 9 years in Northumbrian Water Ltd, Jane was part of the leadership team that set up NWG Business, a Water Retailer that began when the water market de-regulated in April 2017, and then formed a joint venture which became Wave. Jane has a particular interest in organisational wellbeing, psychology and employee engagement.
Despite start-up budgets, Jane established a leading wellbeing offering for employees in Wave via a creative approach to the procurement of support services. Jane is regularly asked to speak on mental health and wellbeing at webinars, workshops and conferences and is passionate about helping SMEs to achieve a great wellbeing package without large budgets. Jane has contributed to the Bloomsbury published book by Professor Julie Hodges ‘Organization Development’ and has led her team to achieve 7 National awards in 2021 as well as being personally recognised as Inspiring Professional of the Year. Jane is now leading the Wave Social and Sustainability Promise, maximising the benefits of volunteering to enhance employee engagement.