Last spring, I was supposed to be pursuing graduate studies in the UK, but I returned to Taiwan due to the global COVID-19 pandemic. In October, I was given chance to participate in a digital transformation forum, and iKala's COO Keynes was one of the speakers. I didn't mean to search jobs on that event, but after Keynes's sharing, I was deeply impressed. It was at that time that I made a bold decision to submit my resume to Keynes in person. After several rounds of interviews, I became a member of KOL Radar's Account Management team.
Based on my digital knowledge and the learning from my master's degree, I know that "AI-driven influencer marketing solution" is on the trend. Moreover, being a Facebook, YouTube and Google partner, iKala demonstrates a strong technical capability and provides a solid total solution. I have always had a passion for "data-driven marketing", so when I heard that KOL Radar can build up precise and outstanding performance influencer marketing with data, I felt very excited.
Education to Employment
Many people consider the gap between education and employment a big problem for fresh graduates, but to me, I understand that what I learn at school and what I do at work will never be the same. With that being said, whenever I find something corresponding to what I learn at school in the workplace, I would feel a sense of accomplishment. For example, we practiced finding insights through data as our homework at school, and this is quite similar to writing closing reports for customers. Therefore, every time I write a closing report, I will be more convinced of what I learned in the past.
When I first entered iKala as a contractor, I was still a graduate school student who had to work during the day and study at night. Nevertheless, due to iKala's culture of "Freedom and Responsibility", I can have greater flexibility to face such a tight schedule.
I used to be an obedient person who followed all rules blindly, but after studying in the UK, I found that we are living in an ever-changing world that no one can tell us what to do next, so we must learn to be independent and take ownership of our life. This is what I learn from the experience of studying in the UK, and what makes me fit in iKala's culture.
Another thing I like about iKala is that everyone is not satisfied with the status quo and continues to strive for the better. Plus, the OKR system allows me to keep moving forward and sticking to the company's goal. Besides professional training, people here search for additional online courses on their own or sign up for language courses off work. It is not too much to say that everyone here can "work hard, play hard".
An Opportunity to Fulfil My True Potential
After some time in the account management team, I found that at the end of the campaign, a question often asked by our enterprise customers was "Do you have any suggestions for our future campaign?" I soon realized that I enjoyed the process of providing professional advice. My manager also see my potential and encouraged me to transfer internally to the sales team.
An account manager should be a good communicator. Externally and internally, one must be able to clearly deliver the details of work, and master time management; as for a salesperson, besides communicational skills, a thorough understanding of the company's products and services is of importance. Not just KOL Radar, but the landscape of the pan-iKala Group. Although it takes more effort to get acquainted with different products and services, as long as we can bring more value to our customers, I think it is worth it.
If I could turn back the clock to October 2020, I would make the same decision to drop off my resume in person. I am really thankful for this beautiful encounter in life, and I look forward to exploring more possibilities here.
Join the Account Management team: https://ikala.ai/job/kol-radar-deputy-account-manager-en/