Five years and counting: Why I’ve stayed (and will continue to stay) at SHIFT

PR, advertising and the entire marketing industry are revolving doors when it comes to talent, especially when you consider how the workforce has changed in the last decade. Before, job hunters had to jump through a series of interviews to prove their worth to employers. Today, every company is wooing solid talent with perks and benefits.

Well, this October 7th marks five years since my arrival at SHIFT New York. That’s about 35 years in the agency world (joking…sort of), which is probably why many people asked about the reasons I’ve stayed.

After some critical thinking, it all comes down to one major factor: the people.

Leadership

Success is not easily achieved. It takes people who aren’t afraid to push back or challenge the norm. More importantly, it takes leaders who know the value each of their team members brings.

My managers, directors and senior executives at SHIFT have all inspired me to reach out of my comfort zone. That may seem like a no-duh statement, but the main differentiator is that SHIFT gave me a safe space to fail. Since my early days as an account coordinator to even now as an account manager, I have failed many times, but there’s no better way to learn than from your mistakes. This option to fail–along with a strong support system from both senior management and my ground team–allowed me to grow tremendously.

Network

You always hear people say, “Surround yourself with smart people.” That’s easy for me because I work with some of the best minds in the industry. We are a creative bunch who aren’t afraid to blurt out sky-high, pun-filled ideas. As a result, my team has won dozens of awards for our work with some of the most niche clients, from accounting software to advertising tech.

As part of the AVENIR GLOBAL Network, I’ve learned what it means to work not only as part of a team, but within a huge network of 750+ people spanning three countries and two continents. With our new sister agency, Padilla, on board, I’m excited to meet even more people.

This past summer, I had the opportunity to meet some of my colleagues from the Network. It was an incredible experience. We troubleshot issues to share proven methods and come up with new solutions. We all left the seminar with a clear understanding of how our contributions impacted the larger network, and most importantly, learned how we can inspire bold thinking for our local teams and clients.

I’ll be honest, the last five years has not been a walk in the park. These difficult time have shaped me into the person I am today. I hope I can become as inspirational as the people around me.

Not convinced? Here’s another glimpse of the culture and people that make this place worth staying for:

This past month, our B2B New York team went to Medieval Times! We came, we ate and we (didn’t quite) conquer. Side note: as much as we wanted the knight to be on our team, he is not a SHIFTer.

 

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Want to be a part of this team? Check out our careers page to find your place in this awesome network.

Stephanie Chan

Account Manager

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