How long have you been at Stratton Craig and what is your role?
I have been at Stratton Craig for just over three years. I’m Reporting Lead, which means I am responsible for keeping our reporting proposition in line with evolving regulations and best practice trends. As I’ve been writing annual and sustainability reports since 2012, I’m the go-to person for answering questions from our writers on how to approach different aspects of them.
On a typical day, what do you spend your time doing?
I’m almost always in the midst of several reports, whether that is reviewing paginations, preparing interview questions or writing copy. I’m also likely to be involved in setting up future projects, new business and marketing activity.
On a not-so-typical day, what other tasks might you find yourself doing?
When I get time free from client work, I take the chance to engage with what’s going on in the market – reading reports and reviewing relevant upcoming regulations. Alongside this, it’s always a nice change to use my own voice and write insights to demonstrate our knowledge to clients and prospects. I also enjoy finding new ways to use Taylor Swift memes to update the team on the latest reporting developments.
What can make your day challenging? How do you approach these situations?
Trying to remember the minutiae of several reports at once can be tricky. And juggling lots of different projects can make it hard to focus when it comes to writing. But the variety of agency life keeps me on my toes and helps me to stay inspired.
What do you enjoy most about your role? What gives you the biggest feeling of satisfaction?
I enjoy learning the ins and outs of lots of different companies, especially their sustainability efforts. I get to interview many brilliant people, from global CEOs to people with really interesting and specific expertise. I find writing a report is like doing lots of small puzzles that make up a bigger puzzle, mostly in a good way.
What is an aspect of your role that people might not know about or misunderstand?
I think there is a misconception that corporate reporting and longer-form copy projects are boring, which I obviously disagree with. Reports don’t have to be dull, or at least large parts of them don’t. There’s always a good story to tell, and that’s what I love to tease out through client interviews and project research.
For you, what’s the best part about working at Stratton Craig?
We like what we do, and we like to have fun with it as much as possible. We get to work with interesting clients, and we have a supportive culture where everyone has each other’s backs.
Tell us about yourself outside of work, what are your passions and interests?
I spend most of my time with my two small children. When they are finally asleep or occasionally somewhere else, I enjoy a busman’s holiday of writing short stories and reading. I love music and go to as many gigs as I can. I also run, fitting in a couple of half marathons each year.
What does a typical weekend look like for you?
Taking my children to the playground and for ice cream. Building Duplo towers to the ceiling. Fitting a run in somewhere. Trying to find pizza and a nice beer garden if given the chance.
