William Bradley III
My First 90 Days
As the title of the article suggests I’ve been here a little over three months now. Spoiler alert, it’s been a great ride so far. So let’s jump right in.
One of the first rewarding moments was finding out exactly how thoughtful and intentional the RW experience is. There are processes in onboarding, within my team, HR, and more that exist to ensure that I am happy and heard in my position. My first days were set up with virtual coffees where I met with team members, people I’d be working alongside, leadership, and just all around getting a vibe for the culture at RW. One of my first meetings with my manager was about managing workloads to make sure that I was not burned out. Since that meeting, I’ve had regular check-ins to gauge where I am as my workload has also grown. I come from a long work experience both in-house and agency-side where I was on-boarded by being handed the keys to the car and told “good luck!” RW has been much more considerate. I was shocked and happy to learn that everyone communicates and abides by rules around work-life balance. Scheduling slacks and emails, communicating your bandwidth, and even honestly tracking hours. There are a number of healthy ways Rosewood has established boundaries that make me feel valued as a person and employee.
The next rewarding experience has been working with ego-less people who appreciate exactly how hard you are working. I am continually getting centered in conversations about the work I do alongside my amazing team. They make it easy to return the praise as well. Even in moments where the days are getting long, I have gotten offers to help lift from every angle to be sure I am not drowning under the projects. I think the mark of a good team is that the work comes before the job titles, and that is how my projects have felt in these first 90 days. Suggestions can come from anywhere. Considering different points of view and interpretations makes the work much stronger. I believe in helping where I can. I’m not going to be an effective designer, and we know that, but if I can make the designer’s job easier by providing clear direction and feedback, then I am cognizant of that. In turn, they are open to feedback and follow briefs so that we are aligned when presenting to clients or internal reviews. I know synergy gives a lot of marketers the ick, so I’m sorry… but there is absolutely a synergy within the teams at RW.
Even in moments where the days are getting long, I have gotten offers to help lift from every angle to be sure I am not drowning under the projects.
The most challenging experience of my first 90 days at RW has been finding my voice and space in a room full of experts. This is a very internal and personal struggle. For most of my career, I have had to be my own support system, soundboard, and champion. Entering a space where everyone has not only a functioning but a thriving knowledge of social media can be intimidating. I went from wowing people with community management tactics to having to dig much deeper for insights and activations that align with RW’s overall vision. This can sound daunting but I truly believe that iron sharpens iron. As I am forced to stay on top of my research, strategy, and knowledge, it only makes me a better Strategist. I am much more intentional with my time on social media. I also have to note that I have received nothing but support from the top down to be myself and voice my opinions and add to the room. Imposter syndrome is something I’ve been open about experiencing and battling. But it is reassuring to be validated by the company's leadership and recognized for your efforts.
Only 90 days have passed, and I am still working through the challenge. The rewarding experiences have outweighed the challenges. I am excited to be a part of the Rosewood machine and believe in what we’re building together. Hopefully, this will help prospective co-workers gain more insight into the company, and I look forward to competing against y’all in Slack trivia soon!