What Makes Working at Your Company Unique?

Do you have your dream job, at your dream company? I am sure a lot of you don’t, but maybe you are working towards it. So, if you were to tell me almost 3 years ago that I would have my dream job now, I might have laughed at you. Actually I know for a fact I would have laughed at you. I had a big job in NYC, was living the best media life – being wined and dined, ran a big team, invested a lot of money in the marketplace, but it was a scary job. I worked really hard to make sure nothing fell through the cracks or disappointed my team, my boss, my clients, my colleagues or myself. I was thriving on the fear of falling down. I busted my a@@ for 20+ years to “make it” and at that time, I did think I had made it and was super proud of myself. But… was it my dream job? Sure, I was making money, I had a beautiful apartment in Jersey City and I went to any concert, game, restaurant I wanted. But was I happy? Turns out, I wasn’t really. Don’t get me wrong, I was and am very proud of all my accomplishments and campaigns that I worked on, but if I am being honest, I can see now how unhappy I was. Stress can do a number on one’s life.

Fast forward to 2020 with a pandemic. Like many of my colleagues, I lost my job. I ended up moving to Florida with zero ideas of what was next. It was certainly the break I didn’t know I needed. When I made the decision that Florida was a permanent move for me, I focused. I met Andi and Dzuy over a zoom call one afternoon and just had a feeling this was what I was looking for – an opportunity to create something. We met for lunch the following week. I started work the week after my 48th birthday.

In less than 3 years we have built out the Paid Media division of Big Sea called Cordelia Labs. Cordelia means “heart,” and we put just that into everything we do. We want to be the last media and SEO agency you ever work with, so we’ll work as hard to earn your trust as we do to earn your results

What Makes Cordelia Labs Unique?

First and foremost, we pride ourselves on creating a truly unique and exceptional working environment. Our company has a work from anywhere policy. Does that make us unique, no. But it gives you flexibility to live and work whenever you want. We also have unlimited time off. Does that make us unique? No. But again, it gives you the flexibility to be where you need to be. Lastly, we have core values. Does that make us unique? This does. Why? Because everyone from the CEO on down knows what is expected of them and their colleagues. One of my personal favorites is “Open and Honest, Always”. Those who know me, know I am a pretty straightforward person (I know, shocker) but being able to comfortably communicate if I think something is AWESOME or NOT is my responsibility. Our team prides ourselves on education, learning and growing. How can you grow if you are not being honest with your team? This also holds true for our clients. Being honest with a client is refreshing. Providing relevant feedback on goals and strategies isn’t always easy, but to have a great client agency relationship it’s necessary. I love this article written by Big Sea’s Kristen Quinley, Why Client Engagement is like Dating. She nails when she says, and when we follow through on our promises, and trust each other, we (and client) do feel fulfilled.

How Do We Do It? 

Considering we are a small agency, we do have some recommendations to make your agency unique and where people do want to work.

1. Be Innovative: We foster a culture of innovation and creativity, encouraging our employees to think and bring fresh ideas to the table. We believe that everyone has the potential to make a significant impact, and we provide the resources and support needed to turn ideas into reality.

2. Be Collaborative: Collaboration is at the heart of our company and should be yours as well. We believe that the best results are achieved when individuals work together, leveraging their diverse skills and perspectives. Our teams have open communication channels (Slack, email, Zoom, Bonusly) and a strong sense of camaraderie. We have bi-weekly All Staff Meeting where our CEO speaks openly about our success (and mishaps). It’s also where we congratulate each others’ successes and showcase any great work. We subscribe also to an app called Bonusly that integrates with Slack in order to congratulate and thank people on the fly. Check it out as it’s a nice way to see what is happening around the agency in between these All Staff Meetings.

3. Think about Personal Growth Opportunities: At Cordelia Labs and Big Sea, we prioritize the personal and professional growth of our employees. We offer various training and development programs, mentorship opportunities, and continuous learning initiatives to help our team members thrive and reach their full potential. We believe in investing in our employees’ growth and development, as it benefits both the individual and the company as a whole. To incentivize our teams, we give them an education stipend to use on seminars, classes, etc to help advance their knowledge

4. Have a Work-Life Balance: We understand the importance of maintaining a healthy work-life balance. We strive to create a flexible work environment that allows our employees to excel in their professional lives while also having time for their personal interests and responsibilities. We believe that a balanced lifestyle leads to happier and more motivated employees.

While these are pretty common sense, we all know some agencies and companies lack the basic skill set for common sense rules. Many people talk about culture being the true reason people work at a company. Culture is hard to navigate and it most definitely ebbs and flows.

We Can Always Be Partners.

Already at your dream job? We love to hear it! We truly believe in a supportive and inspiring environment, companies can empower their employees to thrive and achieve their goals.

We’re a team that works hard together to get things done and we want to find companies that do the same. We test, we experiment, but at the end of the day, we respect each other and the work we do. Let’s be partners and create a healthy & happy work culture. Doesn’t hurt that we can create some great digital marketing campaigns too! 😉