In a recent article for the Scotsman, our Chief Culture Officer, Colin Brown, explored the range of careers available in today’s funeral sector.
As one of the oldest professional services, being people-centred is a key driver for anyone working in a funeral director business whether that is client-serving or operationally focused. Here’s an overview of some of the careers represented in William Purves across our 27 branches in Scotland and North East England.
Funeral director
A funeral director’s role is to care and support. They must care for families and show empathy to their personal circumstances, gauging the emotions that they are experiencing and, most importantly, listen to their wishes. Providing support means guiding them through the funeral arranging process and making sure their needs are met.
As Colin explains, supporting and interacting with clients who are facing a difficult time requires “a great deal of interpersonal skills and emotional intelligence”. Colin adds that this is reflected in recruitment strategy, which is “based on their interpersonal skills rather than education/qualifications.”
With personal qualities the most important consideration in recruitment, no prior experience or qualifications are required to be a funeral director. In-house training is provided. However, we encourage all funeral directors to work towards a Diploma in Funeral Directing (DipFD) from the National Association of Funeral Directors (NAFD) to better equip them for such an important role.
Operational professionals
Successful delivery of exceptional funeral care is achieved by a company wide effort. Colin says “There are several roles available such as funeral director, funeral arranger, operative/driver, embalmer, and administrator. Also monumental mason, marketing, finance, HR or IT.”
Generational span
We embrace the generational span across the business, employing people of all different ages, which also means a breadth and range of experience.
In recent years, interest in our sector has seen the greatest growth from a younger generation, with five staff currently between the ages of 18 and 25, and eight under 30. Indeed, another nineteen staff joined the business when they were part of the 18-25 bracket.
Alongside this, many of our staff have built up decades of experience while working at William Purves. Over the last decade, several employees have reached the 30 years milestone.
If you are keen to learn more about a career in the funeral sector, why not contact us with your queries.
For any current vacancies, keep an eye on our Facebook page or Indeed.