A Day In The Life

Leigh Hine

Posted 01 February 2016

New York Program

September 2003 Intake

What do you do?
I lead the talent acquisition programme for the Football and Outdoor divisions adidas Group for our global HQ in Herzogenaurach, Germany. Set in 346 acres and previously a US air force base in WW2, over 4,000 people from 80 countries call the 'World of Sports' home. I help make sure we attract the best possible candidates from both sport and non-sport backgrounds for our roles across Footwear, Apparel, Future (Innovation), Digital, Brand Communications, Product Management & Marketing & Sports Marketing.

How did you get into this line of business?
I finished university in 2002 and had no idea about what I wanted to do. Getting a 'proper job' scared the hell out of me so I went to register with a recruitment agency at home Essex and ended up getting a job there. After 3 months, I knew I wanted to do something different so applied (with no real expectations) for Mountbatten. After several phone
interviews, I got a placement at an IT recruitment company in New York and started in the September 2003 intake. After having a ball in NYC, I came back to London and started recruiting in sport. 10 years later, I have worked for two specialist recruitment agencies, on the London 2012 Olympic Games & Paralympic Games and now find myself living in wonderful Nuremberg in my dream job for adidas.

Let's talk about a typical day. What time do you get up?
Like many of us, emails start as soon as I wake up so those are checked & replied to in bed and followed by a 20-minute drive to the World of Sports campus just outside Nuremberg. We have a brilliant gym here on campus so I'm usually in there for about 7:30 for an hour. Then shower, grab breakfast from our canteen and then head to my desk / meeting or interview.

Where do you have your lunch?
We have amazing facilities on site here (including beach volleyball & tennis courts!) but the canteen is something else! Last year it served 462,000 guests and has around 1800 people through it a day. The quality is amazing, subsidised by the company and offers pasta, wok, authentic, salad and other specials per day. On top there's fruit, smoothies, the odd chocolate bar and of course the essential... a coffee cafe.

What time does your working day end?
The best thing about adidas is that you're left to get on with it. There are no set hours (aside from the 39 hour week) but I generally leave the office around 6:30 and most evenings wrap calls or emails up at home.

Do you travel for work often?
Being the global HQ, most people come here to see us so very little.

For friends who have never been to Nuremberg, what would you suggest they see and do?
German beer is amazing and Oktoberfest takes place in Munich which is an hour on the train. Nuremberg has loads to do. The world-famous Christmas Markets have just closed but they run for December, there are more High Street brands here than most other cities so the shopping is great and more 'bierkellers' than you can shake a stick at. For the more culturally minded, Zeppelin Field is where the Nazi Party used to hold their rallies and that's now a visitor centre and the stadium is home to 2nd division Nuremberg FC. The castle in the city is well worth a walk around and the views from the top are amazing on a clear day. Other things include the Nuremberg Trials Courthouse, a visit to the Nuremberg Ice Tigers ice hockey team and the tunel tour under the city. I would also suggest a trip to the adidas Outlet Store!