May balances her daily working life with her responsibilities as a parent. At 25, May had her first child, Madison, and while this could have broken the business, she says it was actually a pivotal moment.
“When I had my first daughter it forced me to replace myself in the business, get the right procedures in place and have people able to make decisions without me – it was fantastic for the business.
“Juggling children and work, I love both things. You tend to find the balance which works for you, but you can certainly make it work, although it’s not without its challenges.”
May managed to have children and her career by working from home two days a week and then having her parents or a nanny look after her kids.
Part of what’s made MyBudget a well-known brand is the company’s TV ads. May became the face and voice of the business and resonated with every day Australians.
“We work on marketing strategies which keep educating Australians about what it is that MyBudget does. Often people don’t realise what we do and the difference it makes in the community.
“There’s nothing better than talking to a client and being able to entertain the difference MyBudget made in their lives. Often I’ll see an email from a client and it’ll make me miss the days when I was more hands on.”
Reflecting on her 14 years in business, May says winning the Telstra South Australian Business Women of the year award in 2007 was a highlight.
“It gave me a shock, but also a platform to launch from and opened new doors. Being appointed to the Bank of South Australia advisory board was also a really proud moment. I’m the youngest woman the bank’s ever had.”
May leaves the office each day around 6pm and generally tries to exercise each day.
“I try and exercise either in the mornings or after work, at the gym or on the treadmill. I have dinner with the kids and then once they’re in bed I do a bit more work.
“The children take up quite a bit of my time, but I love travelling and playing sport. I’ve always played basketball, although I’m not playing at the moment.”
Catching up with family and friends and indulging in nice dinners and wine is also on May’s agenda.
Looking forward May wants to continue MyBudget’s expansion.
“We open in Perth in January – there’s a lot of exciting things to come,” she says.
“We’re also investigating expanding overseas and extending services to clients to further help them. We’re looking into what our clients want from us at the moment; there’s a lot of planning going into 2014.”
When asked about if she has an exit strategy, she says there will come a time, but it’s not a high priority at the moment.
“I really love what I do and being part of making a difference and carving out this industry, but an exit is always at the back of my mind,” she says.
“It’s there, but I haven’t given it a lot of thought. I don’t know when it will be or how it will be, but I know it’s something I’ll have to think about.”
