How did you hear about SalientMG and why did you decide to join the firm?
I was fortunate enough to work with SalientMG’s Managing Director, Greg Bella, at a previous company. Greg reached out about SMG and the opportunity ticked a lot of boxes for me. In particular, I was excited to get the chance to work with growth-stage companies across a wide variety of industries, and really be exposed to different marketing strategies and product offerings. Plus, working with a successful, fully-remote team was intriguing.
Describe your role and what you’re most looking forward to/have most enjoyed to date in your position.
I lead Account Management. My role is basically to act as quarterback or stage manager – making sure that the SMG internal team and our clients are in sync on strategy, prioritization and resource allocation. Account Management is at its core client success, and nothing makes me happier than happy clients. When our team finishes a project and the client is thrilled and lets us know it- that’s my happy place.
What is your personal philosophy about the purpose and power of marketing?
I respect and admire authenticity in marketing. There is so much fluff out there and it’s so easy to sniff out. When a company comes to the table with their authentic voice articulating why their offering is valuable and differentiated, and that messaging is crystal clear, that’s a huge marketing win. I’m most loyal to companies that can utilize marketing in clever, fun, authentic ways.
What is the best piece of advice someone gave you and how has it impacted your personal and/or professional direction?
I think the best piece of professional advice was to not be afraid to ask questions. Everyone is afraid of looking like they’re not “in the know.” Invariably whenever I ask a question, someone will backchannel with me to say “thank god you asked that, I was wondering too.” Particularly in the tech space, acronyms with multiple meanings are always flying around, and different organizations apply different definitions to standard marketing terms. It’s so important to triple confirm that our team is speaking the same language as our clients and that we are all working towards the same goals. If we haven’t clearly defined those goals and the surrounding activities supporting them, we aren’t getting off on the right foot.
As a professional optimizer, what area do you see most often where growth-stage companies could address opportunities for improvement?
Clarity around team roles and duplication of efforts. So many organizations are so flat that the team is tripping over each other to evenly contribute to projects and it can create chaos. There is a time in a growing organization to acknowledge that not every team member can have input on everything. It boils down to trusting your team and deputizing your leads to own their piece of the pie and run with it.
SalientMG specializes in helping growth-stage technology companies. Real tech talk here–how would you describe your everyday technological prowess?
I would say I’m right in the middle – not an early adopter but not clueless. I’m fortunate to be a mom of a tween and teen (my girls are 12 and 14) so they teach me tricks and shortcuts every day.
What is one thing your colleagues don’t know about you (yet)?
I think people are always surprised to hear that I’m an introvert at heart. My role is very external and I’m a very positive and outgoing person during the work day, but I also find that level of mental/emotional activity exhausting and am absolutely thrilled when I can retreat and not engage with humans for a stretch of time. I need solitude to recharge.