Meet My Colleague #Episode9

The latest installment, with Alan Tyrrell. A thoughtful response as you would expect. An MD and leader in the Strategic Communications side of the business.

#Team #Leadership #Communications #Strategy #ClientFocus #AT #Colleague

What is your role in Teneo Ireland?

Well, I could rattle off my job description but what I really do is help people solve complex problems or think about things from a different perspective.?That requires research, analysis, probing, or wargaming scenarios. It’s part art, part science.?Sometimes the task is internally focused and working with the various teams in Teneo Ireland on areas like learning, culture, product development, operations and so on.?But mostly it is client work and helping them in areas like strategy, design, purpose, ESG, corporate positioning, issues management, and more.??

What did you do before joining Teneo?

Depending on how far back you go, I’ve driven trucks and forklifts, raised walls and ceilings, sold chilled & frozen foods, and then learned the ropes in communication with some of Ireland’s best firms before going in-house in financial services.?

Who was the best boss/manager you ever worked for and why?

That’s a tough one and sometimes it is quicker to recall the ones who were terrible.?On the best ones though, I don’t think there is one stand-out person.?And in consultancy, the people you work for are your clients.?But a few people have really influenced me and guided me in my career. The best of them are the ones who’ve collaborated with me as a true partner and not just a service provider or employee. They’ve all been open to questions and challenges but also generous with their time and insights.?

Who is the businessperson you most admire?

Without doubt, my dad.?Like many of his generation and background, he left school to start work part-time when he was about 11 or 12; was going full tilt by 14; and was learning a trade and earning more than his own father by the time he was 17. His work ethic, openness to learn new things, his inventiveness and innovation, are things I hope I’ve learned.?His resilience too in running a business and employing a bunch of people in Ireland during the bad old 1980’s and early 1990’s taught me important lessons about putting one foot in front of the other and ploughing on through…it’s not always easy, but the alternative is much, much worse.

What was the best bit of work-related advice you ever received?

Always extend the hand of friendship.

What is your proudest work achievement to date?

For me, it’s not so much about pride and more about things that make me say, ‘yeah, that was well worth it’.?Work recently with a client to raise awareness of domestic abuse is certainly a stand-out. And other work too, more commercial in focus but nonetheless important, is where our intervention has actually saved companies from collapse or has helped them to grow significantly to beat their market dynamics.?And there’s no better feeling than having a client or colleague ring you up and tell you that you saved their bacon or really cracked an inscrutable problem for them.

What, in your view,?makes a great company?

A pro-employee culture.?Every business on the planet will swear that they are customer centric. But at the end of the day, it’s the employees who make that promise come true. The truly great companies understand this and make sure that employees know they are valued, trusted, empowered, but also mutually accountable for how the workday goes for themselves, their colleagues, and their customers.

What trends are you following and why?

Aside from economic headwinds, the biggest trend to follow now is where we’re going and how we’re going on the hybrid workplace.?COVID has been an awful tragedy for so many people and will be for some time. But it has created a fundamental shift in the expectations of workers and society at large as to how and where people trade their time and skills for career and money.?It’s always good to learn from the past, but the future is where your market is, so looking at where things might be in 3 to 4 years’ time is always a key trend and the workplace trend is a crucial one to watch.

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What advice would you give your younger self?

Extend the hand of friendship more!