I’m strange.
Seems like an odd thing to declare, but it’s true. With recent data citing four years as the average length of service at a company, my 10-year anniversary at Edelman certainly makes for strange reading.
I joined Edelman 10 years ago on Monday 28 July 2014. It seems like it was yesterday - I remember what I was wearing and how I lost my way from the elevator to my assigned desk and had to ask for directions - my sense of direction has not improved since then, much to my husband’s frustration.
A decade is a long time. I’ve married (the most handsome and lovely man I’ve ever met), got and trained a dog (Percy-Manolo, our one-of-a-kind Welsh Terrier who has us wrapped around his little paw), have been made an uncle (to my two nephews, Reginald and Ralph), travelled to endless destinations (Uzbekistan is a must if you are into adventure), read piles of spectacular books (don’t ask me my favourite – it’s too hard to decide), met the most incredible people and continued to enjoy life with those I know and love.
I often get asked by candidates during interviews why I have stayed so long and to be completely honest I never really gave it any deep thought beyond that I continue to progress in my career, feel happy and professionally fulfilled but this milestone got me thinking and as such, I wanted to take a moment to share my top three reasons:
The people. To borrow a phrase from Her Late Majesty Queen Elizabeth II: “I often draw strength from meeting ordinary people doing extraordinary things.” This is a perfect reflection of my colleagues at Edelman. Whilst team members change, one thing remains constant - the feeling of being incredibly privileged to work with, learn from and be supported by the best. Edelman is a big company but it’s the individual relationships across specialisms and geographies that make it the powerhouse that it is. There’s nothing more rewarding than seeing a team member progress through their career - those are the ‘a-ha’ moments that light up even the most challenging of days.
The clients. I’ve had some of my most memorable career moments with clients and client relations is and always has been my favourite part of the job - whether it’s sharing a new idea that will unlock value for their business or having a heated (healthy) debate around strategy, this is what keeps me excited and engaged. I’m not known for being a ‘yes man’ (even when I started as an Account Executive - what must have the clients thought of me…) but I’ve been lucky to work with many really inspiring clients who love this quality and I’ve learnt a lot from them all.
The opportunities. When I first joined Edelman, I kept hearing the same line: “Edelman is such an entrepreneurial place” and to totally honest I had no idea what anyone was talking about. It only took a few weeks to work out and now it’s a line I find myself using. An easier way to articulate can be that if you want something, go for it. Simple as that. This is a mantra I have lived by - from working in New York to meeting colleagues and clients in person or Madrid to practise my Spanish or enrolling on professional development trainings like a mini-MBA these are just a tiny number of the opportunities I’ve taken.
These three things might seem a little obvious - but the magic lies in the length of time and consistency. When experienced together over a 10-year period, that’s when the fireworks happen.
It would be amiss of me not to mention how I’ve been able to combine passion with career. For the past eight years I’ve been able to support the wonderful Chris Lynch and Paola Barbarino at Alzheimer's Disease International in a pro bono capacity. Alzheimer’s for me is personal, having grandparents who lived with it. I love that I work for a company that allows me to dedicate time to this important cause and look forward to continuing my collaboration with the team at ADI.
So, to use another quote from Her Late Majesty, “as I look to the future, I have no doubt at all that the one certainty is change”, and I cannot wait. Here’s to the next 10 years at Edelman as the one constant around which many changes will no doubt happen.
Shaun Beedle is a Director at Edelman UK, Health Sector.