An Afternoon with Ms. Zoe Timms

Ms. Zoe Timms is our Development Director at AISG. In November, the Beacon staff had the opportunity to meet with her and learn about her role at our school. She is lively and enthusiastic, and meeting with her was fascinating.

Originally from the Gold Coast of Australia, Mrs. Timms, who has degrees in communication and secondary education, has spent the majority of her career teaching English, Film, Television and New Media. Although she has traveled around Asia, this is her first international job, and AISG was a fitting next step in her path. Her great adaptability and flexibility is what brought her to our campus, serving as Development Director. The position is new to her, but as she says of herself, “I’m a massive believer in throwing yourself into something new,” and that’s just what she’s done since coming to China in July. Although she’s still easing into the job and the transition, she has left teaching behind for good, and is really enjoying her new role.

Ms. Timms realises that many people don’t know exactly what the Development Office does, so she took some time to enlighten us. She describes her office as “a huge . . . umbrella of different things: it can be anything from marketing, communication and branding to alumni and serving as Community Liaison.” In Development, there are no “normal” days, because a day’s work can go in so many different directions. But it’s her job to connect the school to the community, and those connections rely heavily on relationships. Her “role at the school is helping AISG to tell its best story and allowing other people to find their place in it. That means working out how to celebrate all the amazing things AISG does.”

You can read the complete interview with Ms Timms in the Beacon print edition, coming to you at the end of January.