What is your name and current role in GoodCall?
My name is Kate Masson, and I am the Chief Executive Officer of GoodCall
Where are you specifically from?
I haven’t travelled very far – I was born 16 miles north of Dundee, in a small fishing town called Arbroath, and I still live there now.
Do you have higher qualifications and if yes, what is your degree and where did you study?
I studied my undergrad in Anatomical and Physiological Studies at Dundee University, and then went on to study my post graduate in Drug and Alcohol Studies at Glasgow University.
Before joining GoodCall, what other jobs have you held?
I have worked, possibly illegally, from the age of 12. My first job was in a local solicitor’s office as the mail girl making sure the letters were ready for the postman to collect each night. I actually loved it – I found ‘franking’ the letters very relaxing!
In university, I did lots of retail and hospitality jobs, but from the age of 14 I started volunteering (as a Rainbow Leader) and that’s how I came into the charity sector, and I’ve just never left. In 2008, I started volunteering and working for a substance use service based in Tayside, and by the time I left there is 2021 I was the Innovation and Development Manager. I’ve dipped my toe into statutory service roles, but I can’t see myself being anywhere but in the third sector now; it’s a pretty magical place.
Why did you decide to apply and join GoodCall?
I sat as a trustee on a charity local to my hometown, and one of my fellow trustees approached me about this post. He knew that I had been looking around for opportunities to grow. When he text me about it, I had just been offered an interview at the NHS and so initially I said no. But within 48 hours I had reached out to one of the GoodCall Directors to arrange an informal chat. Thanks Dan 😊
What do you love the most about what you do?
In my previous organisation, we did remarkable things, but reached a small number of people. What I love about GoodCall, is that we work right across the breadth of the UK charity sector and help the organisations to do what they do, and sometimes amplify what they do! This means that the partnerships that we have with our charities creates huge waves of change right across our local and national communities. That is a great feeling.
What do you value the most?
Kindness. At the point of kindness, the person being kind feels reassured and grounded in themselves, and the person receiving it feels comforted, secure, and loved. An act of kindness regularly encourages that person to repeat the behaviour, and so the effect begins to ripple out. This contributes to a more confident and positive community.
What are you most looking forward to in GoodCall’s future?
I’m really excited to see all the new organisations come on board, and I love watching the ones we already have on board grow and adapt to meet the needs of their communities of interest. GoodCall exists to help the sector thrive, and I love watching it happen!
What’s your favourite thing to do during your free time?
I am very lucky to have my family close by, so love to spend time with my husband, daughter, and wider family. I also love to cook – I’m probably a bit of a feeder!! – so my very favourite thing to do is to have everyone round to share a home cooked meal, laugh with each other, and watch all the kids tear up my house!
How do you feel about being a part of UK’s only social enterprise that supplies mobile technology to third sector?
I love it. Like the vast majority of the charity sector, my last organisations went into the pandemic completely unprepared to deliver services digitally. This was through no fault of their own; the spend on digital and the devices needed always felt like a luxury over face-to-face services. The pandemic saw a seismic shift in the charity sector, embracing and seeing the positive impact of delivering services digitally. GoodCall will be part of the maintenance of that movement; ensuring that charities continue to be able to engage and support some of the most vulnerable members of our communities through digital.
Out of our 3 social outcomes, which is the most important to you?
Increasing employability for individuals furthest from the job market. At the start of 2022 we were supported by the board to take a focus on enabling and recruiting women furthest from the job market into employment with GoodCall. In our recruitment processes we think about how we reach women who struggle to find employment that works around childcare, and other caring responsibilities. We have also implemented Flexible working policies and hybrid models of working that eb and flow to support women in to meaningful, well-paid employment with us.
Additionally, we want to help encourage women into the tech industry where they are hugely underrepresented. To support this, we have recently partnered with Dundee City Council to support 2 young people from a local secondary school to complete their work experience with us; I can’t wait to have these young people in our team and I hope it inspires them to think about employment opportunities in the third and tech sectors.
