{"id":4769,"date":"2020-03-05T03:35:34","date_gmt":"2020-03-04T16:35:34","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wordpress-328533-4778250.cloudwaysapps.com\/?p=4769"},"modified":"2019-12-09T13:40:44","modified_gmt":"2019-12-09T02:40:44","slug":"balancing-the-grind-with-alison-tilling-chief-strategy-officer-at-vmlyr-au-nz","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/balancethegrind.co\/interviews\/balancing-the-grind-with-alison-tilling-chief-strategy-officer-at-vmlyr-au-nz\/","title":{"rendered":"Balancing the Grind With Alison Tilling, Chief Strategy Officer at VMLY&R AU-NZ"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Alison Tilling is the Chief Strategy Officer at global marketing agency, VMLY&R AU-NZ, where she leads a team of strategists.<\/p>\n

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Subscribe to Balance the Grind\u2019s newsletter<\/a>\u00a0so you never miss one of our conversations about work, life & balance.<\/em><\/p>\n

1) To kick things off, could you tell us a little about your career background and current role?<\/h2>\n

I\u2019m currently CSO for VMLY&R (say that three times fast) across Australia and NZ. I\u2019ve been in this role for just over a year, and it means I\u2019m fortunate enough to lead a brilliant team of strategists of different backgrounds, perspectives and specialisms.<\/p>\n

Before that, I spent ten incredible years at BMF, and before that, if I can stretch my mind back, I worked at TBWA\\LONDON, client-side at Apple Europe and at Wieden+ Kennedy London. While there are always challenges, I love what I do, so that helps.<\/p>\n

2) What does a day in the life look like for you? Can you take us through a recent workday?<\/h2>\n

Every day really is different. I travel quite a bit, so that gives the day a really different shape. The unpredictability can be tricky, and I am lucky in having an incredibly supportive partner and family.<\/p>\n

Sometimes it\u2019s lonely, if I\u2019m honest, but how privileged I am to spend time in different parts of the country and region, with different teams.<\/p>\n

I often start the day pretty early, either with a wake-up call from our three-year old, a shorter-than-it-should-be run, or a global conference call (where I have to hide my coffee and pyjamas from the video conference).<\/p>\n

Coffee features heavily. There are usually a lot of meetings. Meetings have a bad name but I like them if they are about working together rather than just talking. I also like kitchen chats so I often just make lots of cups of tea and make progress on things that way.<\/p>\n

There is time catching up with teams around the region, time spent with clients, and really importantly time spent with people, talking about and using the brands we work on, to get some better understanding that way.<\/p>\n

3) Does your current role allow for flexible or remote working? If so, how does that fit into your life and routine?<\/h2>\n

It doesn\u2019t only allow for it, the role demands it.<\/p>\n

The ideal is making life and work, work and life fit together, rather than making one thing fit another. That\u2019s not to say that it always works out perfectly. It\u2019s less about routine than navigating the peaks and troughs and really making the most of every nook and cranny of extra energy you can find for both life and work.<\/p>\n

4) Do you have any tips, tricks or shortcuts to help you manage your workload and schedule?<\/h2>\n

Absolutely \u2013 but these are all tips I need to learn better too!<\/p>\n

Learn how and when to say no. Say it kindly, say it selectively, mean it and stick to it. This is hard though \u2013 see below. Learn how and when to say yes. Sometimes you do need to just have a go and hope it works out.<\/p>\n

This doesn\u2019t sound like a tip to manage a schedule but I kinda think it is: say thank you.<\/p>\n

Say it however works best \u2013 in a card, with a call, in person, with a tea or some flowers, in email if you must. However you do it, recognising others always makes the workload feel less of a load, in one way or another \u2013 whether right now or down the track.<\/p>\n

5) What do you think are some of the best habits you\u2019ve developed over the years to help you strive for success and balance?<\/h2>\n

I\u2019m not sure I always do strive for success and balance. I mostly just strive to get through the week intact, and that in itself is not a good habit.<\/p>\n

There is a lot of discussion in marketing at the moment about the importance of long-term brand building, which I am a huge proponent of for the work we do, but probably need to create longer-term conditions in my own life.<\/p>\n

Anyway, I wouldn\u2019t say I have many good habits. I have a lot of \u2018shoulds\u2019 in my life, things that I would love to improve on. Here are some:<\/p>\n