Colleen Macejkovic

Why this persona fits the audience

Manchester-based career coach who creates sample video resumes and short pitch clips for clients in her coaching practice. She batches a few versions each week, mixing slide summaries, voice recording, and simple edits to show clients how different introductions can look in a job search.

• Age: 45
• Location: Manchester, England, UK
• Occupation: Career coach / resume writer
• Income: GBP 52,000
• Education: BA in English
• Company size: Self-employed (Sole Trader)
• Years in role: 12

“I've seen too many people get hired for the wrong job because they sold a version of themselves that didn't actually exist.”

Colleen Macejkovic is a forty-five-year-old career strategist based in Manchester, operating a sole-trader consultancy specializing in the transition from static CVs to dynamic video narratives. With a BA in English Literature and over a decade of experience in recruitment and HR, she pivoted to independent coaching twelve years ago, driven by a belief that traditional application methods were failing candidates. Her business model relies on high-touch service, where she personally crafts bespoke video resumes and pitch decks for her clientele. This process is labor-intensive; she currently spends roughly fifteen hours a week just producing these assets, manually layering slide presentations, recording voiceovers on entry-level hardware, and performing frame-by-frame edits in consumer-grade software. Financially, she earns approximately £52,000 annually, a figure she considers stable but insufficient for rapid expansion. She reinvests profits strictly into necessary equipment upgrades, such as a better microphone and lighting kit, but remains hesitant to subscribe to expensive enterprise suites that promise automation she doesn't fully trust. Her recent decision-making has centered on optimizing her 'batching' schedule to increase output without sacrificing the personalization her clients demand. She is acutely aware of the time cost involved in manual editing and often laments the lack of streamlined, affordable tools that bridge the gap between professional polish and solo-operator reality. Despite her skepticism toward flashy AI solutions, she is deeply engaged in the technology, constantly testing new interfaces to see if they can genuinely solve her bottleneck. She views her work not merely as writing or editing, but as a form of advocacy, helping individuals present their truest selves to potential employers in a crowded, noisy marketplace.

Background & daily life

A day in their life

Monday begins with coffee and a scan of global job market trends before she hits her desk at 9:00 AM. She spends the first hour responding to urgent client queries about interview preparation. By 10:30 AM, she shifts into creation mode, recording three distinct video pitches for a client re-entering the workforce after a six-month gap. She pauses frequently to check lighting and audio levels, frustrated by the background noise from a neighbor's renovation. Lunch is a quick sandwich eaten while reviewing a draft script for a LinkedIn article. Afternoon hours are dedicated to editing the morning's footage, tweaking text-to-speech avatars, and formatting slide transitions. At 4:30 PM, she closes her laptop, goes for a brisk walk to clear her head, and returns home to tend to her plants. Evenings are reserved for reading or a call with her sister, avoiding any work-related screens.

Lifestyle

Colleen lives in a renovated Victorian terrace in Didsbury, sharing the top floor with two graphic designers to keep costs manageable while maintaining a quiet home office. Her routine is rigid: she wakes at 5:30 AM for a forty-minute walk along the River Irwell before checking emails. She prioritizes whole foods and walks daily, viewing them as non-negotiable mental maintenance. Financially, she lives within her means, saving aggressively for a future sabbatical. Socially, she prefers deep one-on-one conversations over large parties, often hosting small dinner gatherings where the focus remains on meaningful exchange rather than networking. She is an avid reader of non-fiction and maintains a physical garden on her balcony, which she tends to every evening.

Work life

Her workday is structured around 'batching' sessions; she dedicates Tuesday and Thursday mornings exclusively to creating video assets. The process involves scripting, recording voiceovers on a basic USB microphone, and assembling slides in PowerPoint before importing them into editing software. She works alone but collaborates remotely with a part-time VA for administrative tasks. The pressure comes from tight client deadlines and the need to constantly update her own portfolio to demonstrate competence. She spends significant time troubleshooting audio syncing issues and ensuring her visual style remains consistent across dozens of different client personalities. Recent decisions have focused on streamlining her workflow to reduce the hours spent on manual editing.

Relationships

Colleen is close to her sister in Leeds, whom she calls every Sunday, though they rarely discuss business details. Her primary support network consists of three female colleagues in the UK HR sector, with whom she shares resources and venting space. She is not married and has no children, allowing her flexibility but occasionally leaving her feeling disconnected from family milestones. Her influence stems from her reputation for honesty; clients trust her because she refuses to oversell their abilities, a trait that sometimes frustrates aggressive job seekers but builds long-term loyalty.

How they decide

She is highly research-heavy and cautious. Colleen rarely adopts a new tool immediately upon release; instead, she waits for third-party reviews, reads forum discussions, and tests free trials extensively against her specific workflow. She values peer recommendations from trusted colleagues over marketing copy. If a tool promises efficiency but lacks transparency in its data usage or requires a steep learning curve, she will likely reject it regardless of the features offered. Her spending is deliberate, requiring a clear calculation of return on investment before committing funds.

How they sound

Her speech is measured and articulate, reflecting her English degree background. She avoids jargon unless explaining it clearly, preferring plain British English over Americanized corporate buzzwords. There is a rhythmic cadence to her sentences, often pausing to ensure precision. She uses phrases like 'let's be practical' or 'the numbers don't lie.' She never sounds rushed, even when discussing tight deadlines, and maintains a tone that is encouraging yet firm. She avoids exaggeration and is quick to qualify statements with 'in my experience' or 'generally speaking.'