In this month’s Orientation Marketing agency spotlight series, we speak to Account Director, Anne Lawson.

Each month, we speak to a member of the Orientation Marketing team to find out a little more about their roles at Orientation Marketing, as well as what makes them tick.

This month we speak to Anne Lawson.

TELL US A LITTLE BIT ABOUT YOUR ROLE AT ORIENTATION MARKETING?

I work as Account Director at Orientation Marketing. My clients include Schott Pharmaceutical Systems, Vectura, Benecol and Purolite Life Sciences. The projects for these clients vary from project managing media planning and buying campaigns, creative projects and anything in between.

WHAT DOES YOUR AVERAGE DAY LOOK LIKE?

A lot of the work is done via email, however, I also have regular calls and Teams meetings with my clients. I also work closely with our graphic designers, content writers etc., depending on the project we’re working on at any given time. I always head to the gym at lunchtime as I like keeping active and it gives me energy throughout the day. I like staying organised, using the various time management and project management tools we have in place (Asana, Toggl or My Hours, SharpSpring etc.).

WHAT IS YOUR FAVOURITE PART OF THE WORKING DAY?

I love the interaction with my clients, so my favourite part is for sure our regular meetings. At the moment they are of course all remote, using Microsoft Teams or other, however, hopefully in 2021, we can start meeting clients face to face again.

HOW DID YOU COME ABOUT WORKING IN MARKETING?

I have worked in sales and marketing teams since 2007, working for companies such as Thomson Reuters and Clarivate Analytics. As a student, I studied languages as well as business and marketing, and marketing has always been of interest to me. In this role, I am able to combine my account management skills as well as interest in marketing.

WHAT ARE THE TOUGHEST CHALLENGES YOU’VE HAD AT WORK?

Occasionally the workload can be quite high, and in particular this year we have been very busy, in an unprecedented period, having to work from home and try to do homeschooling for the children at the same time. Luckily the worst of the lockdown period seems to now be behind us and with vaccinations started here in the UK, 2021 looks to be heading to some kind of normality.

WHAT INSPIRES YOU?

I am inspired by delivering campaigns and media plans that not only work for our clients but make them excel in what they do. My aim is to delight our customers every day and provide them with work that ensures they get great results!

RECOMMEND A BOOK YOU RECENTLY READ.

I am reading currently a Winter Book by Tove Jansson. Tove Jansson is a Finnish author that many people know for the Moomin stories she wrote, however, her adult fiction and novels are great and I truly recommend these to anyone who likes Nordic literature!

RECOMMEND A TV SERIES/FILM YOU RECENTLY WATCHED.

I love British drama on the BBC and most recently I watched the latest series of the Crown. Absolutely brilliant drama! I also love cooking programs and we’re currently watching Master Chef Professionals which is coming to the semi-finals this week. I am not a great chef myself but I love good food and wine so this program is right up my street.

WHAT’S YOUR SECRET TALENT THAT NO ONE KNOWS ABOUT?

I am very strong and one of my hobbies is weightlifting. I can do 100kg deadlift and 85kg squats. I also used to be the arm wrestling champion at my high school back when I was still at school in Finland!

IF YOU HAD A YACHT, WHAT WOULD YOU NAME IT?

Lappi (which means Lapland in Finnish which is where I was born).

WHAT’S YOUR WEIRDEST HABIT?

I sometimes talk to myself when I work from home on my own.

WHAT THE BEST MARKETING TIP YOU CAN GIVE?

Think ahead and make plans well in advance but also ensure there is flexibility in those plans as unexpected situations can change everything (think 2020!)

CHRISTMAS PLANS?

We always celebrate Christmas in two ways: The Finnish way and the British Way. Christmas Eve is all about Finnish Christmas with Finnish Christmas food and Christmas Day is all about British Christmas traditions and food. We open presents on both days and speak to respective families on those days. Christmas tree is already up and we’re enjoying opening our Christmas calendars each morning before work/school.

Anne has over ten years of senior account management experience from previous employers including Thomson Reuters and Clarivate Analytics. Anne has BA and MA degrees from the University of Jyväskylä in Finland, including studies at Julius Maximilian University in Würzburg, Germany, as well as Higher National Diploma in Business and Finance from London Metropolitan University. In addition to English, Anne also speaks Finnish, German and Swedish.

For more, find Anne on Twitter and LinkedIn, and see her most recent blog posts here.