International Women's Day 2024: Meet Luci, Emma, and Tess
As we gear up for International Women's Day on the 8th of March, it's time to put the spotlight on the incredible women who make Airship soar! From brainstorming wild ideas to keeping things running smoothly behind the scenes, our female team members bring their A-game every single day.
Today we’ll be shouting about Luci, Emma and Tess.
Luci - Head of Sales
Emma - Technical Success Executive
Tess - Business Development Manager
Please give us a small bio about what you do at Airship & Toggle:
L - My role is to manage and guide our sales team to reach our company targets and continue to strategise better ways of getting there. This includes helping drive our approach to targeting new businesses, retaining existing customers, attending networking events, supporting marketing activations, and maintaining & building strong relationships with our partners.
E - I work with the customer success team to onboard accounts, working on their integrations and data uploads. As well as providing exports of data, tracking data health KPIs and troubleshooting issues.
T - I focus on new business for Airship & Toggle to help operators drive footfall and pre-paid revenue.
How did you come to be in your current role with Airship & Toggle?:
L - I've been with the business for 4 years this summer and it's been a whirlwind of fun whilst also tackling the challenges the hospitality sector has faced in that time. I joined as a Business Development Manager slap bang at the height of the pandemic. After my first year with the business, I was promoted to National Sales Manager and started to build the sales team, expanding my experience in people management where I spearheaded a recruitment drive to find like-minded sales people. A year on I was promoted to Head of Sales where my responsibilities and involvement in senior decision-making grew.
E - I was hired as part of the Kickstart Scheme in 2021 and was initially a Sales Administrator. I worked for six months supporting the sales team with contracts and research - I also worked with the finance team. I then moved to customer success and began providing support on integration setups and onboarding. I have now been part of the technical success team for two years, and have learnt SQL (a type of programming language!)
T - I started with Airship over a year and a half ago as my first job role in sales. With the amazing training and guidance from the team, I have gone from an executive role to a managerial role. I've been able to bring on some amazing brands to Airship & Toggle and learnt all about hospitality tech and the great people within the sector.
What has been your proudest moment during your time at Airship & Toggle?
L - A personal achievement for me was when we launched Toggle Champions - We presented a live demo of the feature at an event and I led this demonstration and introduction to the platform. I also hosted the evening event which was a great success for brand awareness and resulted in some operators taking up Toggle. This whole experience challenged my public speaking skills and inspired me to continue to put myself in new situations to test my ability and break out of my comfort zone.
E - I recently assisted with onboarding our largest customer to date, and the amount of data we uploaded was 5x more than our next biggest customer. This was a huge project and was a massive challenge for all involved and encouraged us to develop new processes. I have felt inspired by this as it made me realise how capable I am and I now feel able to take on the next big challenge!
T - I'm currently creating an FAQ sheet for internal use to have one place with all types of questions regarding both platforms. It has been challenging as there are so many layers to it but has been rewarding as I've learnt a lot along the way.
In your opinion, what are some of the unique strengths or perspectives that women bring to the workplace?
L - Women can bring everything a man can bring, but in a workplace having compassion, enthusiasm, and emotional intelligence is so important. This is a vital recipe of characteristics for acting effectively and quickly with your initiative. Having women in a business, especially in senior positions, can provide great role models for other women coming through a business.
T - We bring each other up, motivate and inspire each other.
Why do you think diversity in the workplace is so important?
L - Diversity is so important as it brings new, fresh, and varied ideas and perspectives. If everyone was the same the world would be a very boring place to be.
E - Everyone has a different background and life experience, and we all bring different skills, mindsets and knowledge to the workplace.
T - It is so important as it is simply reflecting how the world is with its different diversities within it.
How do you prioritise self-care and well-being while managing your professional responsibilities?
L - A well-balanced lifestyle is very important to me. My career, health, fitness and my social life are all of equal merit so finding that balance can sometimes be challenging but I'm quick to recognise if one is neglected and do my best to change it.
E - I prioritise self-care by always taking a lunch break, talking to my manager when something is causing me stress or anxiety, and leaning on my team for support. But mostly, having a sense of humour and a good laugh with the team every day!
T - I'm an advocate for work/ life balance, whether that is spending time with your loved ones or exercising, it helps me prioritise self-care and well-being.
If you could have dinner with three inspirational women, dead or alive, who would they be and why?
L - Aretha Franklin, J.K. Rowling, and Beyoncé.
E - Queen Elizabeth II, Taylor Swift and my Grandma.
T - Princess Diana, Meryl Streep, Beyoncé.
What does International Women's Day mean to you?
L - Every day should celebrate everything that women put up with in society. So IWD to me is just a day to symbolise how great we are and a reminder for all women who sometimes forget it!
E - It's a day to celebrate all the achievements women have had, your own and those of others, big or small. As well as to tell the women in your life that you love them and are proud of them.
T - Celebration of women.
Super Stat - Our Commercial team are 4/5 women!
