I genuinely don’t know where the last seven months have gone since joining Unique IQ in November 2023. Having worked at Sanctuary, one of the largest housing associations in the UK, for over ten years, leaving was a very big deal for me as I genuinely loved my team and what we were doing. To say I was in my comfort zone was an understatement, and that comfort was the main driver for my leaving, as I wanted and needed a new challenge.
Enter Unique IQ.
Although the two organisations are polar opposites when it comes to physical size and product (I worked in the new-build sector), their values are heavily aligned. Both are committed to delivering the best possible service to their customers in an open and honest way while keeping innovation and quality at the heart of their operations. My new team at Unique IQ welcomed me with open arms, which really helped the transition.
Before I knew it, it felt like I was part of the furniture, although it did feel quite strange for a while being a newbie and asking what, at times, felt like silly questions. Our CEO, David Lynes, routinely told me that I couldn’t annoy him with my questions, which I did take as a personal challenge; irritatingly, he is continuing to be right, which is only driving my question game forward.
The first two months focused on product knowledge (we have a lot of products within our system) and evaluating sales and marketing performance so that I could understand Unique IQ’s past to build a realistic yet challenging marketing future. It was fun to immerse myself back in B2B marketing and learn about our customer buying journey, understanding the drivers and pain points and how important it is to Unique IQ to create lasting relationships with our customers.
Christmas came and went in a blur. The new year brought a transitional time, which enabled me to get involved with helping to create our sales strategy, pipeline management, and new business qualification. All of these activities played a pivotal role in my product understanding.
From a marketing perspective, we have had quite a bit of fun with campaigns and have exhibited at four care shows. It had been a while since I worked a stand, so whilst my head was positively buzzing, the same could not be said about my feet. We are currently quietly working on quite a few things in the background, which we are really starting to get quite excited about – in true cliffhanger style, you will have to keep your eyes peeled.
Other than the obvious learning that takes place when you join a new organisation, the main thing that I have learned is to embrace the unsure feeling that every person gets when they start a new role. Ask the question, get stuck in with your new team to build those personal relationships, and accept that whilst you are currently not the fountain of all knowledge for your new company, it can and will come.
Looking forward to the rest of 2024, I am genuinely excited to keep working hard at Unique IQ; many great projects are coming up. However, the highlight is definitely the team. A collection of unique and diverse individuals all united by doing the best for our customers and our love of food; are you even a good team if food is not the top discussion point? (What have you eaten, what are you going to eat, what must you eat, you get the picture).
P.S. I wouldn’t be in marketing if I didn’t have a CTA, so to keep up to date with our latest goings on please follow our LinkedIn and Facebook channels:
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