Where We’ve Been

Over the past three years and nine months, I’ve had the pleasure of working at one of the smartest, quickest, most-fun agencies around – Spring Creek Group. I started my first day all that time ago as an Engagement Lead (entry level position at SCG at the time) after spending three years climbing the ranks at a PR agency (where I was told social wouldn’t be that big of a deal). It was a bit of a step back, but one I was willing to take to be part of what SCG already had going on.

Some time later, plus an office relocation from Westlake to Pioneer Square, I’d moved into a different role as the types and sizes of clients SCG started to take on evolved. We still had one of the best teams around and it was showing in our work every day.

Also around this time, I met the woman who would (as of August) become my wife – Camille (Carette) Schott. Regardless of what I have and what I do, I have her to thank for always being my inspiration and my cheerleader. She’s also had to be a one-person couple many times thanks to work and the constant relationship I have with my phone/computer. There’s actually a great quote in a George Lois book I just read:

I have to say, without Camille’s support and help, I wouldn’t be where I am today… and I definitely wouldn’t be where I’m about to be.

In 2011, right around my birthday, Spring Creek Group became part of Interpublic Group’s Mediabrands family of companies – something we were all really excited about. We’d grown incredibly quickly as an independent and scrappy agency, but we all knew there was more out there for us.

I can say right now that the experience of being acquired by a large holding company is definitely interesting – great and frustrating at times. Everyone at IPG, Mediabrands, and our partner agencies has been an absolute pleasure to work with. We’ve got some incredibly smart people at these companies putting out some seriously amazing work in social, digital, search, and mobile. That’s not just in the U.S. either, it’s all over the world.

Since being acquired, we’ve had the ability to spread our thoughts on social as a viable marketing channel far and wide with companies like Kia, HTC, IHOP, and more. We’ve been at the ignition point of industry-leading integration between traditional and digital advertising. We’re pushing further and further, everyday, toward new standards for measurement, activation, and customer interaction. It’s all incredibly exciting and I’m glad to say that I’ve had the chance to be a part of it.

Where We’re Going

A couple weeks ago was one of the toughest weeks of my professional career. You may have heard that Spring Creek Group, along with a number of our Mediabrands partner agencies, experienced a round of layoffs. No one likes layoffs – not the employers, not the employees that get laid off, and not the employees that are left behind. The changes made focus on the future as we look at the market and needs of our clients, but that doesn’t make things any easier.

I had to say goodbye to great coworkers, but even more than that – great friends. People I’ve worked with since starting at SCG. People that helped get SCG where it is today – one of the leading social marketing and strategy agencies in the world.

Along with that incredibly hard day, came some news concerning me and my role at Spring Creek Group… and that gets us to where we are today.

Soon, I’ll be relocating to London, England and taking the position of Head of Spring Creek Group, UK. I’m incredibly excited for this opportunity as, and this isn’t a big surprise to anyone who follows me on social, I love SCG and believe wholeheartedly in the leadership and direction of the company . Having the chance to take everything we’ve built here in the U.S. and expand that model and culture across the pond has been something I’ve long thought about.

The UK, much like the U.S., is moving along the maturation scale fairly quickly and the need for SCG’s unique skills and experience is definitely an opportunity for SCG and Mediabrands. I’ll be working within MAP (the Mediabrands Audience Platform) and with our partners at Ansible, Cadreon, and Reprise to continue what our group started out to do: improve insights and results for clients by helping brands find, buy and engage their most valuable audiences in real time.

We’re (both Camille and I) very excited for this opportunity and we thank IPG, Mediabrands, and Spring Creek Group. One of the hardest parts about making this move has been taking Camille away from a job at a company she truly loves – Blanton Turner. After a not-so-great experience at her last employer, Camille found an incredible company with a leadership team that truly cares about their employees. So, to the team at Blanton Turner – thank you and I’m sorry I’m stealing Camille away. If you want to open a BTUK, I’m sure she’d be down.

As you may (or may not) know, we both have relatives living the the UK and it’s been a goal of ours to move abroad for some time now. We’re looking forward to experiencing the expat life while still staying connected to our friends and family back home (thanks to the fact that I’m addicted to technology). I’m still trying to figure out ways I can watch Cougar Football while in Jolly Old, so you may get frantic calls from me trying to access your Xfinity account in order to watch Pac 12 Live.

Our friends are our family, as we don’t have very big families. We’re definitely going to be missing each one of our friends as we make this move, but we’ll have an extra room. Believe me when I say we’ve been dreading leaving you all here in the States as our lives just won’t be the same. Flights to London come on sale every once in a while 🙂

Over the next couple of months, I’ll be travelling back and forth to London setting up there and looking for housing. I’m sure you’ll all be annoyed by FB, Twitter, and Instagram posts.

More to come…