“I have found the confidence within myself to speak up and lead debates in boardrooms with 10 senior executives – often all male – and be listened to. Overcoming that fear was important to me and something that I’ve found is harder to do as woman, but it is possible.”
Q: Tell us about your job and the clients you work for?
A: The job and client base is very broad. How involved I am in accounts – asset managers, private banks, hedge funds – depends on the client. Some accounts I am a senior adviser, and on others I roll my sleeves up and work on content creation like thought-leadership reports, videos, messaging and top tier media.
I really enjoy working with my clients and the team. If I didn’t have either, I’d be broken-hearted! In the time I’ve spent here, I’ve built strong relationships with both. With clients, I’ve really got to understand them on a company and personal level. We’re friends and I know exactly how they want work delivered.
Q: What has surprised you about working at Peregrine?
A: This was my first job after leaving university and I’ve been here six years, so it’s hard to compare or remember what it was like when I joined! It’s been a long journey, but an exciting one. There are really interesting clients that make my day fly by. The career progression here has been great. The fact that I was able to become an Associate Director in five years is something that may not be available in other, larger agencies. So, talent recognition has been a big factor in me staying here.
Q: What have you learned about yourself while working here?
A: I have learned that it is important to be a team player. And actually, making my job not just about the client but also about supporting and working with the team to find solutions to problems. It’s about agreeing on those solutions together.
Also, I’ve learned that anything is possible. I have found the confidence within myself to speak up and lead debates in boardrooms with 10 senior executives – often all male – and be listened to. Overcoming that fear was important to me and something that I’ve found is harder to do as woman, but it is possible. Years ago, I was shy about speaking up.
Finally, we do so many different tasks and skills here: when I joined it was primarily a media relations agency, and the fact that I was able to learn the other aspects of forward-thinking marketing communications has been great.
Q: What is the best part of your job?
A: The best part of my job is delivering results that make my team and the client proud, jointly. I find it very rewarding to have a happy client, which also reflects positively on the team. That’s what I find rewarding: good results and work that makes me proud, but always with a happy team as well.
Q: How would you describe the culture at Peregrine?
A: I feel like there is a flat structure whereby everyone has a say in the company and it’s not just senior staff members. Everyone is listened to and their view counts, whether they are an AE or a Director. We get access to senior members of the team and their knowledge, regular advice from people with decades of experience, which I don’t think you would get in a larger agency.
Q: What are the activities that happen each year that you enjoy the most?
A: The Christmas party. That’s where you see the real fun side of everyone. It’s amazing to share the spirit of Christmas with the team, because we are a close-knit team.
Q: How do you think marketing is changing in the financial services sector?
A: It’s becoming broader, more open-minded. Financial services is more open to less traditional marketing channels and they are finally understanding the value of using new digital tools to promote their brands. When I joined six years ago, mentioning Facebook or Twitter to a prospective client would have caused their hair to stand up – and you would have been dismissed within seconds. Whereas now, the sector is becoming more exciting because there are more opportunities to do more exciting things.
Q: Can you tell us a challenging project you worked on and how you surmounted it?
A: I worked on a challenging video project for a client with participants all over the world, with a rapidly changing script and multiple partners involved in editing it. There was a very short window to deliver the final product, which would be streamed in offices around the world.