{"id":36737,"date":"2025-09-26T14:59:33","date_gmt":"2025-09-26T13:59:33","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/preprodjj.wpengine.com\/?p=36737"},"modified":"2025-09-26T15:20:00","modified_gmt":"2025-09-26T14:20:00","slug":"peak-seasoned-clara-buckingham-chief-people-officer","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.ecommercefulfilment.com\/resources\/scale-up\/peak-seasoned-clara-buckingham-chief-people-officer\/","title":{"rendered":"Peak Seasoned: Clara Buckingham, Chief People Officer"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Welcome to our first episode of Peak Seasoned, <\/em><\/strong>the series where we talk to leaders across J&J Global Fulfilment about how their teams contribute to a successful Peak period for both us and our clients.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

First up, we have Clara Buckingham, Chief People Officer at J&J, who discusses how we look after our people during Peak, how we ensure we have the right skills in the right places, and why the Peak period is a challenging yet hugely rewarding time for the business. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Plus, Clara shares her favourite Peak memory!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Peak Planning: Showtime for J&J<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

For Clara, Peak always comes with a \u201creal excitement and buzz in the air.\u201d She describes it as having a \u201cShowtime feel,\u201d when every part of the business is working in sync to prepare.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe start planning really early,\u201d Clara explains. \u201cThere\u2019s a full timetable of preparation: target setting, recruitment, and lots of meetings. Every single department has full focus on what we need to deliver a successful Peak.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Supporting Our People<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Clara has seen many Peaks during her six years at J&J. The People team plays a huge role in keeping spirits high and ensuring well-being throughout this intense period.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

From engagement initiatives like DJs, themed playlists, and costumes handing out chocolates, to survival packs filled with treats, there\u2019s always something to keep energy levels up. Each year also brings a new surprise for the team.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe know Peak is demanding. People are working hard and often long hours,\u201d Clara says. \u201cThat\u2019s why we\u2019re constantly checking in on performance, but also on welfare and wellbeing.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

A Favourite Peak Memory<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Asked for a standout Peak moment, Clara recalls a day when Chris Baker from LDC (J&J’s investment partner) joined the team in the packing area.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe had a DJ dropping tracks like Tammy Wynette and \u2018Purple Rain.\u2019 Chris started singing along, and before we knew it, the whole packing line was joining in. We were smashing out orders and singing together \u2014 it was a fantastic atmosphere.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Despite the early mornings and chilly warehouse temperatures, Clara highlights the sense of camaraderie: \u201cEverybody working shoulder to shoulder, from the CEO to the head office team \u2014 we\u2019re all in it together.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Scaling Up for Success<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Behind the scenes, Peak also means a huge increase in volume, which requires careful planning. The People team works hand in hand with Operations to forecast demand, plan rotas, and make sure the right skills and numbers are in place.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe use flexible labour models and bring in a huge number of temporary employees,\u201d Clara explains. \u201cWe\u2019re well-known employers in the areas we operate, so we\u2019re able to bring on experienced people who know how to deliver. That makes all the difference for our clients.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Challenging but Rewarding<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

For Clara, Peak is \u201cchallenging yet hugely rewarding.\u201d It\u2019s a time when the culture of J&J shines,  with teams pulling together, looking out for one another, and delivering outstanding service for clients during the busiest time of the year.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Want to join us for Peak?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

There\u2019s still time to secure a slot with J&J ahead of Peak 2025. Get in touch today<\/a> for a no-obligation consultation about how we can help your business grow.\u00a0<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Welcome to our first episode of Peak Seasoned, the series where we talk to leaders across J&J Global Fulfilment about how their teams contribute to a successful Peak period for both us and our clients. First up, we have Clara…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":9,"featured_media":36738,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"video","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_lmt_disableupdate":"yes","_lmt_disable":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[376],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-36737","post","type-post","status-publish","format-video","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-scale-up","post_format-post-format-video"],"acf":[],"modified_by":"James Dillon","featured_image_src":"https:\/\/www.ecommercefulfilment.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/Clara-peakseasoned-banner-600x400.jpg","featured_image_src_square":"https:\/\/www.ecommercefulfilment.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/Clara-peakseasoned-banner-600x600.jpg","author_info":{"display_name":"J&J Global Fulfilment","author_link":"https:\/\/www.ecommercefulfilment.com\/author\/james-and-james\/"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ecommercefulfilment.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/36737","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ecommercefulfilment.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ecommercefulfilment.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ecommercefulfilment.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/9"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ecommercefulfilment.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=36737"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.ecommercefulfilment.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/36737\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":39220,"href":"https:\/\/www.ecommercefulfilment.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/36737\/revisions\/39220"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ecommercefulfilment.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/36738"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ecommercefulfilment.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=36737"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ecommercefulfilment.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=36737"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ecommercefulfilment.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=36737"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}