Nicolas Plaister

• Since 2022, I have been completing self-employed bookkeeping work alongside my full-time job. I still complete regular work for VAT-registered clients back in the UK, and many of my annual tax return clients.
• Ensured accuracy in all accounting entries and records.
• Maintained and reconciled general ledger accounts.
• Provided assistance in preparing tax returns annually.
• Generated invoices for clients and tracked payments received from customers.
• Reconciled intercompany accounts on a regular basis.

• Since returning to Australia in October 2024, I have been working for the Emporium Hotel in Brisbane South Bank. This is the number 1 rated 5-star hotel in Queensland, requiring excellent professional standards, communication, teamwork, and ensuring every guest's interaction is unforgettable. I have been incredibly lucky to work my way to one of the most trusted members of the team and have taken care of some incredibly high-profile business executives for huge global companies, as well as many famous celebrities and Hollywood stars!

Before returning to Australia, I have been working in a telephony role for Nationwide Building Society's Collections and Recoveries department.

This was a very challenging, but rewarding role. As a senior negotiator, I was responsible for managing the finances and debts of the most vulnerable customers who were defaulting on personal loans, overdrafts, and mortgages. Due to the nature of the individuals I was responsible for, I had to further develop my existing strong telephony and customer service skills to ensure I was having productive conversations that were in society's interests, while also balancing the needs and vulnerabilities of the individual to ensure we weren’t causing any further detriment to their mental health while getting a debt management arrangement in place.

This was a very intense, but rewarding role requiring critical thinking, knowledge of finances, empathy, and strong communication skills. The individuals I dealt with could have a history of suicide attempts and be known to authorities, so the ability to adapt to any situation or change in a conversation was essential.

After losing my job due to COVID, I started working for Thames Water, the UK’s largest water provider.

I worked in their billing department, dealing with complaints and leak investigations. This was a very fast-paced telephony role, as Thames Water supplies over 15 million households in the UK. I was responsible for handling complaints, using effective questioning to identify if an investigation is needed into possible leaks or supply connections. This job required some difficult conversations, as I was responsible for ensuring that company money and engineer investigations weren’t wasted where not necessary.

During my time at Thames Water, due to my work quality and strong work ethic, I was promoted to a specialist. This role was a support role, supporting the agents on the phone with queries and taking over calls with difficult or abusive customers.

In 2019, I spent 12 months in Australia. During my time there, I traveled all over from Melbourne up the east coast to Daintree Rainforest, to the Great Ocean Road, and Perth. I picked up temporary café and bar jobs as I traveled, and I also completed fundraising work for the Red Cross. I always knew that after this year, I would like to return and work or live here one day.

In April 2016, I started my overseas work. I started as an Overseas Holiday Courier; my responsibilities included:

Cleaning and preparing accommodation to a 5-star resort standard.

- Managing bookings and assigning them to accommodations.

Working reception hours, dealing with check-ins/check-outs, and guest complaints, and ensuring they were resolved on-site to avoid compensation requests when guests return home.

- Basic repair and maintenance, gas changes, sealing showers, mending canopies, and broken decking planks.

After my first year, I was promoted to a team manager role, where I managed a small resort in Venice; my responsibilities included.

Managing the team of Holiday Couriers, ensuring their work was up to standard, and coaching/training where needed.

- Checking in on guests, collecting feedback on the resort and the Holiday Courier service.

- Managing the on-site budget and ensuring it was being used to best optimize the guest experience and accommodation standards.