We caught up with Natalie Reddy, our Project Brewer…

So tell us a little about your journey at Robinsons?

I started here at Robinsons 16 years ago in the lab at our packaging centre. My brother let me know there was a job going. Aged 21, being told “all you’ve got to do was taste beer”, it sounded pretty appealing! I’d just finished my degree in Environmental Science and was considering what to do next. So, I joined the company as a Lab Technician for four years where I used to split my time between the packaging site and the brewhouse. I was far more passionate about brewing than packaging, so I focused my time and development on brewing, undertaking my brewing qualifications. After a few years, and when we commissioned our existing brewhouse in 2012, I moved permanently into the brewhouse team. I also took time off during that time to have my children, and once I returned I climbed to ladder becoming the first female shift brewer at Robinsons.

What was it like to take on that management role?

We had (and still do have) a good steady group of people who get on really well. I really enjoyed that role, which I did for about 18 months or 2 years before progressing again. It was taking everything I’d learned over the years to the next step. Being completely involved, from the recipes right through to tasting it at the end. When the decision was taken that we were going to be moving to Bredbury, my role developed into Project Brewer, meaning I’m part of the commissioning team for the new brewhouse. The pace at which everything is moving is so exciting – to see it evolving daily. And it’s going at such a speed now, it’s amazing.

After the commissioning the new packaging lines, I took on the role of managing our cask and keg team too. I think change management is difficult, but we’ve got a great team who all look out for each other and that makes the day go quicker. Over the next few months, we’ll be stitching the entire process together, to become one united team in the same place, for the first time in 185 years.

The experience I gained working as a Laboratory Technician has been very valuable in understanding how the brewing and packaging process works along with all the systems we use to get it right. Part of my role as Project Brewer is to be the beer guardian and make sure that as we make changes to the process this doesn’t impact on the consistency flavour and quality of the beer we brew.

Brewing is a science but also an art form that takes time, care and attention to get right this is quite a contrast to the dynamic fast-paced environment of our cask and keg lines where I can make decisions and influence outcomes on a day-to-day hour-by-hour basis. This has been an interesting change for me. It’s been good to be able to share my opinion of how we do things in the new brewhouse and influence the decisions we are making in terms of design and operation. 

In my role currently, I get to work with a lot more departments and I get to see the process from start to finish. We sample the beer from when it’s racked on day one and every day after, until the end of its shelf life.

As I keep developing with the business, my role is becoming more office based than it was originally. As a brewing technician, I was very hands-on in the brewhouse, now I’ve taken a step back from some of the more manual tasks, but I’m still very much involved.

What’s been the most challenging throughout your career so far?

I think managing change has been difficult. We’ve undergone change at real pace in recent years. Previously we’d operated the same way for decades, and we’ve got a lot of really loyal team members who have outstanding lengths of service and have always known things to be a certain way. As we progress and evolve we need to learn to adapt processes and I think that’s been a tricky thing to do at times. I think it’s about demonstrating and understanding that they are all positive changes, and it’s about finding a better and easier way to do things. It can be difficult sometimes to collectively move away from the ‘that’s the way it’s always been’ belief. And we’ve made that change, and that’s great. A large part of my role is to be that positive driver and to help in communicating and enabling the change amongst our teams. It’s natural for people to be concerned about change and their roles and wonder how that affects them, so it’s understanding and working with everyone as we transition. I think my understanding of other roles and my own growth within the company has been helpful with this too, as I know what other people do and parts they play within the business. They can ask for support, and I know the answers, I’ve done the roles.

It’s International Women’s Day this week. So it seems appropriate to ask you a few questions around that too.

You said you were the first female shift brewer, I suppose that is another demonstration of change at Robinsons?

Yeah, brewing has historically been and really it still is predominantly male. We are seeing them changes coming through slowly, and there is an increase in other genders working in brewing. When I first started here all the senior positions here were male, and that has changed, which is great. The next generation of Robinson, Oliver and William, are really driving and dedicated to change, and that’s a really positive step for the business.

What’s it like being a female manager in a heavily male environment?

I’ve got a good relationship with my teams. I currently line manager seven people within the cask and keg team. (The team responsible for putting the liquid in the barrels). I think because I’ve got the experience and I’ve progressed within the company I’ve gained trust – because I have the knowledge and understanding of the process. I can answer the questions the team may have and enjoy being able to share my knowledge with the team. I’ve only ever had a management role in a male environment, but I’ve always felt comfortable. I think the bottom line is that I have the knowledge to help my team and I’m respected because of that.

You mentioned earlier about being a mum. What was it like to take time off to have children in this business?

When I was pregnant, I found everyone looked after me so much. Nobody would let me lift anything or do strenuous tasks. I felt supported in the environment. But, I can tell you, the smells of the brewery when you have morning sickness is tough. Definitely an interesting part of being pregnant.

It was weird to come back actually. When I came back the first time, I was actually already pregnant again, so it was a little strange to be coming back just temporarily. Then of course, part of my job is tasting beer, and when you can’t drink it, the two don’t go together too well! When I returned properly I found it quite difficult. But actually, it was nice to be Nat again, and not just be mummy. It was nice to reconnect with adults and myself a little bit. I was almost out for two years, so it was nice to return to my trade. But, brewing hasn’t really changed. Brewing is hundreds and thousands of years old, the fundamentals don’t change. And the team were the same too.