Alice Peacock is a Problem Manager at Virgin Media O2, responsible for investigating major network outages and putting permanent fixes in place for millions of customers across mobile, fibre, TV and business services. She started her career at 16 flipping burgers at McDonald's on Streatham High Street. After nearly two decades away from the workplace to raise her family, she returned through O2's Career Returners Programme — and hasn't looked back. Eight years in, her colleagues assume she's always been part of the furniture.

Virgin Media O2 is one of the UK's largest and most recognisable connectivity brands, delivering mobile, broadband, TV and business services to millions of customers across the country.

Chapters

00:00 Introduction & format explainer

01:57 Meet Alice

03:37 First job: McDonald's at 16

05:56 What young people should know about starting work

06:50 Alice's career break and the M&S chapter

07:52 How to get back into the job market

09:14 The O2 Career Returners Programme

10:17 Transferable skills from a career break

11:08 "Mum, I earn more than you" — the moment that changed everything

12:05 Imposter syndrome in tech

14:32 Why feedback matters

16:09 17 years away — and back like she never left

17:00 Getting paid to eat food and drink Prosecco

17:52 Why Alice chose Virgin Media O2

19:41 What a Problem Manager actually does day-to-day

21:08 When McDonald's is your client

23:18 Why customer trust is everything

23:45 Alice's Duvet Flip moment

Episode Partners

This episode is part of My Duvet Flip's Choose Customer series, produced in partnership with Virgin Media O2.

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