Chad is a creator. Undoubtedly his ad campaigns, cultural contributions and endless stream of graphics have, in a way, shaped the company; however, this is not Chad’s greatest or most enduring work. Chad builds things, but more importantly, he builds people. Consciously or not, his exhaustive example of hard work, not uncommonly characterized by staying well after everyone has left the office, rubs off on his peers, along with his unrelenting tenacity for optimism. While crafting the face of England Logistics, many would appropriately agree that Chad is all it embodies.
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Chad began his career at England Logistics (EL) as a marketing assistant in October of 2010. By consistently demonstrating his value through remarkable products, innovative thinking, and tireless work ethic, Chad rose through the ranks and is now the Senior Marketing Manager. Chad will celebrate 12 years as a full-time employee this April.
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EL: Before we get into the formal questions, I’d love for you to give me some brief background about your experience at EL so far. Tell me more about how you came to be in this position.
Chad: I started here nine years ago. I started as an intern, and then as a marketing assistant. My first job was to scrub leads.
EL: I didn’t know that about you!
Chad: I scrubbed for our old CRM tool. I was originally brought on just for that! It was a 20 hours per week position. There was no marketing department per se.
EL: You’re ancient!
Chad: [Laughs] It’s true. There wasn’t really any awareness of what marketing could do at the time, it kind of just grew. People would approach us and be like, “Hey, could you help us with this PowerPoint?” I’d create visuals and stuff for those individuals. It became a part of my role. I started to take home projects and demonstrate what I could with my skills. So, I was able to pass off scrubbing and move on. But it was nine years later that I moved into the branding role and found out that was something that I really, really, really liked. And it was something I was able to utilize all my skills in design and analytics. In college I took a lot of classes with numbers and looking at why things are happening, and how you can course correct and change things.
EL: In the evolution of your role, would you ever anticipate that it would look something like it does now? or is this a surprise to you?
Chad: I hoped. That was one of the reasons why I joined this team. I wanted to get in at the ground level somewhere. [I wanted to be] where I could build my role and show my value. This was my first job out of college.
EL: I didn’t know that about you either.
Chad: I was really hoping to prove myself to a company. I saw job postings for creative directors and I knew that’s what I wanted to do eventually, but there was no way to get there unless you start at the ground level. What I wanted to do was start at the ground level, and prove my worth; prove the worth of marketing; prove the worth of design. I felt like this was a great opportunity to do that.
EL: Your role really has been an evolution. What you’ve done has shaped the marketing team. With that being said, is there any advice you would have given to a former self, especially considering what the marketing department is now?
Chad: Be patient. You can create your own worth; you can create your own path and your own value. Simplify what you can create. Be proactive in going above and beyond. Bring new ideas, and bring new perspectives and viewpoints. That’s what marketing is! And that’s what I’ve tried to do: introduce new events and new themes that have taken on a life of their own. Of course, that creates more work but that shows your value to a company. Straight out of college I know you want the world. You want to be a creative director, you want six figures. You feel like you are almost entitled to things, but you know what? It’s much sweeter when you work for it. It’s much sweeter when you get there on your own.
And that’s what I’ve tried to do: introduce new events and new themes that have taken on a life of their own.
EL: Awesome advice. Considering your nine years of work being involved in this role, what does this position mean to you with all that context?
Chad: It attaches a different level of value to my role because I was able to build it. A lot of things I do every day are things that I had no idea about two years ago, especially in the design part. I’m self-taught: I had a couple classes in college, but I definitely wouldn’t say they had a huge impact. I was actually really lucky, because I came in with something that differentiated me; I came in with my graphic design skills. I didn’t have anything else really apart from every other Marketing graduate. I can lay things out in a way that is visually appealing. I may not have had that experience like everyone else, like SEO experience, but I promised I could learn it. I am very fortunate that I was able to join a company that’s willing to listen, willing to give me a chance and willing to let me fall on my face a few times.
EL: And something needs to be said about your follow-through too, because you’re right; there are a lot of individuals that come, they claim they have something to differentiate themselves, but can’t live up to their word.
Chad: But then they don’t go anywhere! Like you have an ability to write with such a voice that nobody else can, and that is your differentiator. A lot of people just go to the marketing program and are like, “I just wanna do marketing.” Okay what can you do? Why are you different from the next person?
EL: You need to find your niche.
Chad: Right. Marketing is all about niche.
EL: I think that is sound career advice really for anything.
Chad: Jason actually said it one time too, “Create your value.” That’s the best career advice I can say.
EL: And he pointed to you as an example, right?
Chad: That’s how I was introduced. I was very lucky and that’s kind of stuck with me for all this time. And I was like, “You know I did actually.” That is advice I would give anybody in any career field. Create your value.
That is advice I would give anybody in any career field. Create your value.
EL: That’s awesome. Who has had the most impact on you here at EL? You’ve had the opportunity to interact with a host of individuals, right?
Chad: All types and shapes and sizes.
EL: And in a lot of different functions. I bet it’s hard.
Chad: No, it’s actually not. It’s definitely Wendy [Barclay]. She’s easily been the best boss I’ve had. Extremely kind and patient, which has been something I need, (we all do), especially in my career. I think, again going back to proving the value of marketing, you need to try things we haven’t done before and there has to be somebody that is very willing to do that. She was willing to tell me no, but it’s the approach and the way that she does it. I never felt bad or like I failed. It’s been nice to work with her.
EL: She distributes her feedback with care, that’s one hundred percent for certain. How does the 2020 theme ‘Future in Focus’ match your own passions?
Chad: Continually working on my craft, working on how we bring the brand into the future; how we further define the elements of the brand, the audiences we target, and the tools we use. It’s all about bringing more focus to those [elements of the brand]. Everything just seems so blurry in the future. We work to define our target audiences and we work to define our processes, and so continually trying to focus on those things and bring clarity to [our purpose] is something we are always striving for in marketing. I think that this can be applied to the company. Our processes are our customers, our customer needs, and our customer wants. Bringing [those processes into] clarity so we can better address their goals, their expectations and their needs/demands.
EL: It can be difficult to maintain those processes, and yet give focus to the brand. The brand needs to evolve; it needs to keep growing.
Chad: I would definitely spring off that and say that there is an element of evolution. It’s about evolving the brand, and really evolving the company as a whole. We want to be better off next year than we were this year. We may never be fully there, but it’s about bringing [that growth] into focus.
It’s about evolving the brand, and really evolving the company as a whole. We want to be better off next year than we were this year.
EL: Great point. That focus is our responsibility.
Chad: I think the key is definition. Bringing clarity to, in terms of marketing, the future.
EL: That’s excellent. Do you have a favorite coaching moment?
Chad: So as a creative person, you always have trouble with feedback. People that create things, artists and designers, they’re passionate about what they create. You’re passionate about the product that you put out there, and if not, I don’t think you are as good as you can be. I think it’s important that you put your heart, soul and passion into what you do. I think you need to step back and say, “Okay, how do I make this into something I can sign off and put my name on?” Because I do put so much behind everything I do, or try to, it’s sometimes tough to hear feedback, especially if it’s negative. Sometimes you’ll be presenting in a room full of people and you are proud of [your product], and then you can just hear a pin drop. Stuff like that it can be tough on the psyche, and especially on somebody new. Starting out, again, you feel like you know everything about everything. So when you actually run across [negative feedback], it’s a bit humbling. In the past I might have not taken [feedback] as well as I should, so continual coaching is coaching that you need. They are your clients and they know better, so you meet them half way. You go to help. We’re in the business of customer service, and they’re our customers, so you need to find a way that makes you happy and comfortable, but also makes them happy and drives the business forward. You’ve got to find that middle ground and not take it personally, but also not separate yourself and become cold and emotionless to the product. That’s been a coaching thing that Wendy’s taught me.
EL: It takes a lot of maturity to find the compromise and empathize.
Chad: And that’s why I mentioned self-awareness. Handling feedback has always been a problem, and I think it always will be in the creative field. I think you will run across that, so just again, handling feedback, and self-awareness in how you approach what you do next.
EL: Okay, now let’s hit some of these big ones. First, what’s your favorite lunch spot?
Chad: Mo Bettahs, but any place can go from simply good to great with a trip to Starbucks afterwards.
EL: Really, MoBettahs?
Chad: This is when I’m spoiling myself.
EL: MoBettahs is spoiling yourself?
Chad: This is when I have had a great day, a great week, and I say, “I’m gonna treat myself.”
EL: You deserve a few greasy spoonfuls.
Chad: Otherwise I get myself like a cheap taco or something at Del Taco.
EL: You and me.
Chad: I’ll down like, 87 tacos and feel horrible about myself for the rest of the day.
EL: That’s where we harmonize. Do you have a favorite EL event?
Chad: Dodgeball. I’ve never been on the winning team, and usually get knocked out in embarrassing fashion early on, but I have yet to faceplant or be smashed in the back of the head by a teammate, so I call my EL dodgeball career thus far a success.
EL: That sounds hauntingly familiar. What do you do for fun outside of work?
Chad: First and foremost, spending time with my family and spending time with Dominic. I love spending time with him.
EL: I can verify that you talk about Dominic all the time.
Chad: I just love hanging out with him. Taking him to a little park, just hanging out. But otherwise, in the summer I love hiking and staying outdoors. Since the beginning of the year, I’ve been really working on the basement. I’ve put a lot of time into it; it’s a different change of pace from what I usually do at work, so it’s nice to do something like that. I have a little workspace area in my garage, so I’ve done some woodworking, but I’d love to do that more often.
EL: You certainly look the part, with the beard and traditional plaid. Do you have a favorite memory at EL?
Chad: Finally getting the new website launched because so much went into designing, building and actually executing on it, and because I knew how big it would be going forward for marketing and the company as a whole.
EL: Last question here. You’ve been in a position in your career where you do this constantly, but if you had a number one piece of advice to those that are entering the marketing field for the first time or just starting career, especially at England Logistics, what do you say to those individuals?
Chad: Create your value. Find your niche. And work hard. Hard work gets you so far, and not just in your career, but also in the eyes of others. When people see you working hard, they are going take notice. And when you reach milestones and get promoted and do exceptional things, its so much more fulfilling when there’s so much hard work you put into it.
Create your value. Find your niche. And work hard.
EL: It’s absolutely gratifying.
Chad: Yea. It’s gratifying.
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Interested in working with Chad and the rest of our amazing team? Visit the careers page for current opportunities at England Logistics!