Those who are confident, self-starters thrive at Meltwater; where positive attitude, ambition, and achievements are recognized and rewarded. Many companies hire people with specialized skills, for narrow roles that offer inflexible career paths. In contrast, Meltwater hires people who have an entrepreneurial spark, and then encourages them to ignite it. The company strives to hire top talent and offers challenging opportunities early on so people reach their greatest potential.

This is obvious as you look around the company and see many who have grown their careers from entry level to executive. Out of the current executive team, half of the members are entirely Meltwater developed. For a company the size of Meltwater, this accelerated career path is much more of an exception than a standard. And as new people join the company, great care is taken to recruit people who will not only enhance the success of the business, but also blend well into this awesome culture of success.

Another remarkable investment by the company is its focus on international opportunities. Successful employees, who are inspired to work in other countries or in various areas of the company, are supported to do so. Meltwater invests in people to ensure they are engaged and their highest goals can be realized. According to the Towers Watson 2012 Talent Management and Rewards study, since the 2008 recession, a majority of US employers have laid off staff and cut back on investments in training and career development programs. Only until this year, have employers and employees been more optimistic about opportunities and advancement.

During the same period, Meltwater has experienced year-over-year growth, and has reinvested in its people. For instance, in 2012 alone, over 15% of employees have been promoted, and 8% have had the chance to relocate to other offices or move into new departments. Beyond career opportunities, Meltwater has strengthened its commitment to people development with mAcademy, our intercompany knowledge sharing and learning program.

In a company where personal growth is rewarded, it is great to see a centralized training team developing. If you take the time to attend webinars, utilize the self-serve trainings, and you are proactive with your development, you can be sure you will move forward in your career. Speaking with the mAcademy team recently, I learned that in 2013, they have even more exciting programs in the works like product certification programs and training curriculums on business acumen, management, and more. They are collaborating with all the departments to create well-rounded trainings programs for the whole organization.

So if you are looking for a career that will truly unlock your potential – Meltwater is the place for you!

If you saw the Olympics Opening Ceremony, chances are you also saw Meltwater´s very own Mariah Hamailainen. Out of the 205 women who were chosen to represent each country, Mariah was chosen to lead the Jamaican team with Usain Bolt!  Since this was a once in a lifetime opportunity, we asked what it was like to play a role in the opening and closing ceremonies of the London 2012 Olympic Games.

Mariah let us in on how it all came together, what her favorite part was, and even some behind the scenes action:

Coordination skills and Danny Boyle

The first auditions were in batches of 200 people, and our first test was on coordination skills. Because the ceremonies are much about mass movement and lots of people on the field of play, you need to be able to quickly identify where you are to be in relations to other people. The organizers had drawn lines on the floors and gave us coordinates, as: “all the odd numbers goes to C7” to see how quick we responded to instructions. We also had to do catwalk walking to music and dance in front of Danny Boyle (the director of Slumdog Millionaire), who was the creative director for the opening ceremony.

The auditions mainly focused on how you are as a person, and how you conduct yourself. There were no interviews, and no questions asked. I think they were searching for certain kind of people for certain roles, because all of the 205 girls who were chosen to represent the countries looked a little bit alike. I had my hair braided at the first audition so I looked really Scandinavian, and as they wanted to match the girls with the countries they least looked like they were coming from – I ended up with Jamaica.

Shoes, fake lashes, and how London became a little bit smaller

We spent a lot of weekends and evenings at rehearsals, though the rehearsing was mainly for the organizers as they were to coordinate 8000 people. As there was a lot of sitting around, I got to know quite a lot of the other girls very well.  Now it feels like London is a little bit smaller, as I have lots of new friends.

We didn’t receive anything for being a volunteer, and I believe that´s why it worked out so well: everyone wanted to give instead of take. But we did get to keep the costume we wore at the ceremony, the shoes and the fake lashes.

Behind the scenes

Before the opening ceremony, we were all lined up in a tunnel, hair and make-up was checked, then checked again. The volunteers had an earpiece and were coordinated the whole time, so when it was our turn to enter the field, I was focused on doing what I was told, walking to the music and smiling. Towards the end, after we had done our circle around the stadium, Usain Bolt and I were to stop, turn around and watch the athletes from his team go onto the field. Then him and I were to walk up the hill to the tree, he was to give the flag to one of the other volunteers before going back to his team. That´s what was supposed to happen. This is what actually happened: we were walking, and we got to the point where Usain Bolt and I were to stop. Except Usain Bolt didn´t stop. I panicked a little bit, and he is quite big, so I couldn´t just gently tap at his shoulder – so I grabbed his arm and said: “Dude – stop!” He looked at me like: “who are you to tell me to stop.” Then he stopped

The closing ceremony

It was fabulous to see all these stars backstage like the Spice Girls, Tinie Tempah, Jessie J and so on – I realized they’re all really tiny in real life! Victoria Beckham is so skinny and small I was really amazed!  Downside was that no one showed up from the Jamaican Team – when they lined us up behind the stadium and everyone was paired with one athlete from their country, I realized no one came from Jamaica and just before we went on, the flag was given to me and the guy just said well you carry it! So I did (proudly as well!)

For London

Though not glamorous, it was a great experience to be part of the Olympics. I do not think they could have organized the Olympics without volunteers, and I wanted to make an effort for London.   I’m still in awe of the whole two weeks that my hometown got to stage the biggest event in human history – the atmosphere here has been fantastic!  It has been an absolutely amazing experience and even though it was a lot of time and energy spent, I’m really going to miss the people and the whole experience.

Birthplace: Tianjin, China

Joined Meltwater: 2009, Sales Consultant, Meltwater News, Shanghai, China

Current Role: Managing Director, Beijing

Who inspires you: Chris Regester, Area Director of Meltwater News, Asia

My three words to describe Meltwater: Ambitious, Personal development, Teamwork

Susan Zhai had interned at many big name organisations on her quest to determine the right career path for her, but was so impressed with the Meltwater job advertisement that she flew from Beijing to Shanghai just for the interview.

“That recruitment advertisement really spoke to me,” Susan explains, “it was clearly an international company, offering fast-track career options and a start in sales. It was above-board and progressive. I knew where I stood from the very beginning and the company has definitely lived up to its promises. I started as a Sales Consultant in the Shanghai office in April, 2009 and less than six months later in October I was promoted to Sales Manager.”

Susan’s enthusiasm for Meltwater is even more remarkable when you learn of the top ranking companies she had worked for, including Microsoft China, and the United Nations, in the New York headquarters.

“That’s true,” Zhai confirms. “I spent quite a bit of time working and interning in different sectors including IT, journalism, PR and government while I tried to figure out what direction was right for me. Overwhelmingly however the difference between many other places I worked and Meltwater — was Meltwater’s intrinsic sense of valuing and caring for people. It’s apparent in everything they do, from the culture they foster within the organisation to the way they build client relationships with our customers and partners. But on a personal level I was impressed from day one at the level of opportunities they offer young people in terms of career growth and personal skill building. It’s something that you can fully appreciate when you have experienced so many other companies who do not have such a caring and innovative approach.”

A caring environment

Susan goes on to discuss how that level of ‘care’ fostered within the organisation was instrumental in helping her face one of her own challenges.

“I don’t think it matters where you work,” Susan says, “you will always encounter some people whose attitudes or personalities don’t align with your own standards or ways of doing things. Sometimes this can be a negative thing, particularly if ‘attitude’ comes into play … but sometimes it’s just about people who don’t get along well — a fact of life. I faced such a challenge when I was promoted to Sales Manager in the Shanghai office, and in hindsight I realise that I spent a lot of time trying to work out how to overall avoid the problem, by placating the people in question —because I thought my role was to ensure smooth sailing. But I’m the first to admit that this approach just never worked.”

Susan turned her attention to the network of successful Meltwater Managers throughout the Asian region to ask for support. She was overwhelmed by the feedback and encouragement she received.

“The level of care and trouble that these people went to in order to assist me was phenomenal. Not only did they email and call with suggestions and reassurance but my own Managing Director and Area Director arranged for me to go work at the Singapore office for a week just so I could experience a different environment and see firsthand what they were doing and how that office was being run. From that experience and all the words-of-wisdom I received from my colleagues I gained a new perspective and realised a simple but very effective lesson in management; avoiding a problem will never solve it.”

Fostering personal growth

Susan realised that by avoiding potential conflict or difficult situations, she was only in effect creating a bigger problem; one that could potentially affect the smooth operations of her office and business in the long-term.

“Facing up to the issue was the real answer,” Susan says. “And it was easy to do with the support I received. There are always issues to overcome when managing people, but they are easy to identify when you are surrounded by the kind of generous, caring and selfless people who had offered me advice and help; the people I work with at Meltwater. They taught me to remain solutions-orientated and be accepting of challenges. But I also learned the value in accepting different opinions, finding solutions and benefitting the greater good.

The right attitude

From learning valuable lessons Susan has moved from strength to strength within the company and was promoted to Managing Director of the Beijing office in April 2011.

“I received that promotion on the first day of April — April fool’s day,” Susan says with a laugh, “exactly two years after joining the company. That’s two promotions within two years. I think I am living proof that Meltwater live up to their promises of speed-tracked career options and international travel.”

“It’s funny,” Susan continues candidly, “I wasn’t sure about the company before I had joined; but the representatives at my interview were warm, upfront and open about any questions we had and, to me, that showed the organisation had integrity. In my time at Meltwater I can see that the company takes every opportunity to reflect on what and who is right for the organisation. This is a constant process of evolution, because people change all the time, but by and large I’ve noticed that the people with a positive outlook and perspective do very well at Meltwater; people who are smart and who want to be challenged, people who are ambitious — but not self-centred, are those who I see rapidly rising and being given amazing opportunities within the company all the time.

And amazing opportunities seem to include lots of exciting travel.

“Yes!” Susan says. “I really enjoy travelling, I think it’s part of my heritage as I was born in Tianjin, one of China’s busiest ports; so working for Meltwater with its opportunities for international travel is like a dream come true. For the 2010 Meltwater Kick-off we went to Las Vegas where we got to not onlytake part in educational workshops, hear from our CEO about our growth and future plans, but also have fun in this crazy-wonderful US city.  And, of course, it was a great opportunity to meet many Meltwater employees from all over the globe and chat, compare notes and discuss different ways of tackling problems and finding solutions for our clients. We are all working hard together in an organisation that honestly gives back to us in terms of fun opportunities, mentoring and the type of learning that shapes our careers. And that kind of caring culture is something to be very proud of.”

Sweden’s largest event, Almedalen Week, took place last week, and Meltwater was on the ground for the second year in a row. Employees from all of our product divisions in Sweden were present, including Joel Heister, Peter Buregård, Filip Schöön, Tove Iggström, Birte Steen, Christian Finstad, Sophie Hedestad, Elin Sahlsten and Henrik Örnstedt.

What is Almedalen Week?

The Almedalen Week is an annual event taking place in and around Almedalen, a park in the city of Visby on the Swedish island Gotland. With speeches, seminars and other political activities, it is considered an important forum in Swedish politics, and representatives from all the major political parties in Sweden take turns delivering speeches.

Over the years, the event has grown larger, with hordes of journalists, lobbyists, local and national politicians, representatives of non­governmental organizations and Swedish companies, all coming to Visby to meet, discuss politics and business, attend seminars and socialize. This year almost 2,000 activities were scheduled for the week and over 17.000 people attended the event.

Why were we there?

During the week, we met up with clients, agencies, bloggers and journalists, giving them a face behind the Meltwater products and a chance to meet people outside the office. Meltwater had a strong presence in social media during the week through our blog; Meltwater Sweden, twitter, and our Facebook page “Medieakuten i Almedalen” built with our new Facebook tab management tool; Meltwater Buzz Connect.

Throughout the week, our tools Meltwater Buzz and Meltwater News were used by Dagens Media, Expressen and Gotlands Tidningar to analyze the online media and social media buzz around the event, topics discussed,  the politicians, and the political parties:

SD hånas i sociala medier, Lite snack om (MP) i Almedalen, Genomslag för Reinfeldt, Skolan hett buzzord i Almedalen, Wikileaks präglade Almedalen, Stort buzz kring Annie Lööf, Stort intresse för färjeuppror, Politikernas hemliga liv i Almedalen

One of our clients; Kristy Officer, Head of Marketing at Ausfilm, shares her experience with Meltwater News.

“We´ve been using Meltwater News for a few years and for us as an organization which places a lot of importance on international sources of communication, we need to tap into not only Australian content but also international news sources. So for us it is invaluable having Meltwater News as a service that can cut down the information that is coming through, and provide us with the detailed information that covers our industry”.

“Social media is playing such a more important evolving role in our ongoing marketing initiatives, so we are really excited about the potential that Meltwater Buzz can bring to us, to assist us in further detailing and taking our listening in the online space into another level, it should be fantastic”.

“It is also fantastic to have a couple of account manager that I am dealing with quite closely at Meltwater, that have already, in for example Buzz, come out and done two tutorial sessions at the office with our staff, to walk them through the benefits of Meltwater Buzz and take us through practical examples of how we would use it daily in our office”.

Name: Inga Bösecke

Birthplace: Magdeburg, Germany

Joined Meltwater: 2005, Sales Consultant, Berlin, Germany

Current Role: Human Resources Business Partner, Europe

Who inspires you: Christian Finstad, Area Director Client Relations

My three words to describe Meltwater: Teamwork, Trust, Ambition

When Inga joined Meltwater, her instinct that this was the place she would fulfill her career objectives was spot-on.

She explains, “Before joining Meltwater I think I had typical career goals in mind, progress quickly, take on responsibility and work in a fun environment — all the usual things; but on top of those the most important goal for me was to find a role where I would learn something new every day. I didn’t want to be repeating the same tasks over and over,” Inga says resolutely. “I can say that I have achieved that goal at Meltwater because, from the very beginning, every day was a new challenge, so in effect I get to fulfill my goals afresh every day.”

“From the moment I saw the Meltwater role advertised I could tell that this was a company that valued offering real career opportunities to people. The ad was different, fresh, non-corporate, determined — yet also humble, it was a company that seemed to care more about people and the strength of their ambitions than a list of qualifications on a resume,” Inga says. “At the interview my instinct was confirmed. Meltwater presented itself as an enthusiastic, energetic company. The people were vibrant and passionate about the industry and the company’s heritage. I simply couldn’t wait to start,” she says.

And start she did. Inga Bösecke joined Meltwater News in 2005, at the stage in the company’s history where they had just begun to branch out into Europe.

“This was an exciting time for the company and for me,” Inga says. “I was promoted to Sales Manager of the Berlin office in less than a year. But only 10 months after that, I was given a new challenge — I was promoted to Managing Director of an entirely new region, Zurich, Switzerland.”

Grow

Bösecke thinks back to the move to Switzerland and remembers being excited and, admittedly, also quite nervous.

“When I originally joined Meltwater we were recruited to open the brand new offices in Germany,” Inga says. “We were entering a virgin market, at a time that very few organisations had even heard of online media monitoring. It was an exciting challenge, but back then I was part of a bigger team. When I moved to Switzerland, I moved there as the leader. That presents a whole new set of challenges on top of breaking into a new market.”

Inga goes on to talk about opening the new Zurich office, from scratch, and how her skills developed during this time.

“I needed to step out of my comfort zone, literally,” Bösecke says. “I had only been with the company for two years when they entrusted me with this managerial role.  The move to Switzerland was a move away from what I knew, but the support I received from the Management team, all the way up to the Executive level was inspirational. During the entire process I never felt alone and I’m proud of the results we achieved.”

“The Zurich office grew from strength to strength,” Inga says. “We had some challenges recruiting the right amount of team members to begin with, so I remember feeling a little deflated. However even that soon turned out for the best as the new team members we had hired flourished quickly and soon became the mentors for the next wave of recruits. Zurich from day one achieved sales goals, or over-performed, so I think I will always remember my time there and the amazing team we built in Switzerland, and how much we all learned together.”

Teach

And from being eager to learn something new every day, it seems now Inga is the one doing the teaching. After her success as the Managing Director of the Zurich office, Inga was relocated back to Berlin before being promoted again, this time to Area Director DACH Meltwater News — responsible for a territory that encompassed the whole of Germany, Austria and Switzerland, and all less than three years after joining the company. In 2010 Inga accepted a new position, as the Meltwater Group HR Manager of Europe.

In her new role Inga is working as a business partner focusing on supporting business units to help them become even more successful. She works closely with the regional directors in Central Europe, UK and Middle East & Africa, and is also the point of contact for the Managing Directors and all the new Trainees.

“My favourite part of my new role is the constant interaction with our employees, at all levels. From our executive teams all the way through to new consultants and first time managers; sharing experiences with them, providing guidance and support and watching each individual grow within the company really makes me proud.”

“I am also getting the opportunity of implementing plans that will help our staff with growth in another area,” Inga says. “Our new global Meltwater Family Leave Program acknowledges that the Meltwater Group wants to offer our staff a long term family-friendly and supportive environment. It’s a great initiative that recognises it’s a rapidly growing and evolving company.”

Inga continues, “Speaking of evolving, I’m also very proud of how Meltwater has managed to hold on to its unique company culture despite its rapid growth. Lesser companies would have lost that intimacy; that feeling of teamwork from the micro level — within each office, all the way through to the global level. We have grown from a one-product company to the Meltwater Group, offering a variety of Software as a Service solutions, and reaching a turnover of over US$100 million. And yet the organisation still sees individual achievement as a reason for global celebration.”

“When I think back to my goals I have to smile, because truly I have come full circle — from a desire to learn now I am the one helping others learn the same way,” Inga explains. “I’m really quite fortunate to have found a company that nurtures those who want to keep building skills. Meltwater provides an environment of growth and potential … and for that I am very grateful.”

To introduce Connect to the market, Meltwater Buzz offices across the world (Berlin, Singapore, Sydney, Helsinki, and Copenhagen) invited clients to their offices to learn about the product and get first hand experience with the new module.

The events were a great success. Not only did they allow us to showcase our new product to our clients, it allowed our clients to discuss and share experiences with the use of social media, Facebook in particular, as a company.

“The Connect module is an important strategic addition to our Social Media Solution Suite. Now clients have two entry points with either monitoring or social publishing,” said Ric Pratte, Director at Meltwater Group. “Our sales team is vital in helping clients see the potential in utilizing social media and now it’s fantastic for the team to be able to share new solutions and opportunities with prospects. Could there be a more exciting time to be part of the social media industry?”

If you are curious about Meltwater Buzz Connect, you can read our press release, Meltwater Buzz Blog, or our Corporate Blog.

Name: Jorunn Ekestad

Birthplace: Flekkefjord, Norway

Joined Meltwater: October 2003, Bergen Office

Current job title: Managing Director, Meltwater News, Bergen

Who inspires you: Kaveh Rostampor, Executive Director, Client Relations

My three words to describe Meltwater: Dynamic, ambitious, and together

Entering the world of work

When Jorunn sat down to decide what career she wanted to pursue after finishing her education, the lure of a sales role was drawing her in. All she needed was the right company to teach her the ropes.

“I knew that I wanted to learn sales, and when I spotted a position in this young company, with a newly opened office in Bergen, I was curious about both the position and the company. I didn’t know anything about the business before I attended the interview, but after the interview process, I knew that Meltwater was the company I wanted to work for.

The sales opportunities and the possibilities to travel that the business was offering, and the people that I met during the interview process, made this an opportunity I just had to take.”

Spreading her wings

When Jorunn was asked to give an example of a great opportunity that she had been offered during her time with Meltwater, it didn’t take her long to answer.

“By far the coolest thing I have done in Meltwater is to take the opportunity to go and live in Hong Kong for 12 months. I had never been to Asia before, let alone lived abroad. I still have a hard time trying to explain to people the culture shock and all the amazing experiences I had while I was there. It really was a fantastic opportunity for me.”

However, as Jorunn learnt, new opportunities often come with challenges.

“Luckily, I got a lot of support from Meltwater, especially from my previous manager Hanna Örtquist, who really encouraged me and pushed me to keep going.  This was an opportunity that I can’t imagine being offered anywhere other than Meltwater, and I am so grateful that the company gave me the chance to do it.”

It is this kind of support that Jorunn has experienced throughout her career with Meltwater, and there is one individual that really stands out as an inspiration to her.

“I have been lucky to work with some truly impressive people at Meltwater, but the person that inspired me the most is Kaveh Rostampor (Executive Director, Client Relations). From the minute I started working with Kaveh, I have had great admiration and respect for him. Kaveh is an enthusiastic person, who has challenged me in every aspect, both professionally and also personally. He is the person at Meltwater that has pushed me outside my comfort zone the most, and I have landed on my feet every time. I have also seen how he has developed himself during these years that I have known him, which is really inspiring, and drives me to continuously want to further develop and push myself. It is individuals like Kaveh that contribute to a proactive and motivated environment at Meltwater.”

“It is also a competitive environment at Meltwater, but it is an environment of people who want to succeed – both individually and as a team. We want to strive to give the best service to our clients and, in my opinion; dealing with clients is the best part of my job, sales wise. To have a really good conversation with a client where you get their time and input, which enables you to create a great account for them – that is the best feeling!”

Looking back

Jorunn is able to look back on her time with Meltwater with affection, and having grown with the business, she’s proud of the culture and the team.

“Based on my personal experience, and the other personal stories that I have witnessed, I can comfortably say to any new recruit that Meltwater is a great place to start your career after graduation. Meltwater gives you a safe and supportive environment in which to grow and develop in the areas you need to, but there is also room for mistakes. This, in addition to the opportunities on offer, makes Meltwater a great place for your first job. In fact, I have recommended Meltwater as an employer to many of my friends, and also friends of friends!”

Having climbed the ranks within Meltwater, Jorunn takes great pleasure in being the one to help others achieve the same success. “I see Meltwater as the perfect place to work for those who are ambitious, have a desire to succeed and are teachable. As a manager, I would have to say that the absolute favourite part of my job is seeing my team develop, and get closer to reaching their potential.”

Jorunn is clearly proud of Meltwater. So much so, that it’s hard for her to pinpoint just one thing about the business that stands out.

“There are so many things that make me proud to work at Meltwater! How far we have come since the start, that we are a Norwegian company, Meltwater Entrepreneurial School of Technology, how we value people and their potential, how we work with people and invest time in them to help them succeed… I could go on and on!”

Meltwater has offered Jorunn so much support over the years, she wants to invest her time and skills back into the business.

“In five years time, I still see myself working for Meltwater. I’d like to continue in my management role – working with people, on the floor, helping them to succeed by fulfilling their strengths!

I have been given opportunities at Meltwater that I would not have been given anywhere else. I have learned how to do business in Asia, I am now fluent in English, and have had so many experiences! In addition I have developed a lot, both personally and professionally. I am aware of my strengths and weaknesses, and know what I need to be able to succeed. All this is thanks to Meltwater.”

I was wrong. Getting Things Done, is part tools and techniques, part psychology. The idea behind the book is that you need to move tasks out of your mind by recording them externally, so the mind is free from the job of remembering the tasks that need to be completed. Then you can concentrate on performing the tasks, instead of remembering what you have to do.

Get it off your mind!

The fact is, that at least a portion of your brain is really kind of stupid – in an interesting way. If it had any innate intelligence, it would remind you of the things you needed to do, only when you could do something about them. Between the time you woke up today and now, did you think of anything you needed to do that you still haven´t done? Have you had that thought more than once? David Allen claims that it´s a waste of time and energy to keep thinking about something that you do not make any progress on.

The big problem is that your mind has no sense of past or future. That means as soon as you tell yourself you need to do something, and store it in your short-term memory, there´s a part of you that thinks you should be doing that something all the time. Everything you tell yourself you ought to do, the mind thinks you should be doing right now.

The HOW

If you do not write a task down and save it in a place your brain knows you will review regularly (like a to-do list), your mind will keep thinking about it. So to clear your mind, the first step is to write down everything you have to do. Once you have everything off your mind and written down, on paper or electronically, you have to decide, “What’s the next action?” Once this is decided, the action must be completed or tracked in a trusted system.

David Allen introduces three frameworks in the context of deciding actions:

• The four-criteria model for choosing actions in the moment
• The threefold model for evaluating daily work
• The six-level model for reviewing your own work

Other techniques you will learn are:

• The “Do it, delegate it, drop it” rule
• Reassess goals and stay focused in changing situations
• To overcome feelings of confusion, anxiety, and being overwhelmed
• Feel fine about what you are not doing

The WHY

While parts of the book are framework and models, some of it is common sense. But not all common sense is commonly practiced, like asking the question “why?” – “Why am I having my next meeting?” “Why am I doing this?” To know the purpose of what you are doing is sometimes forgotten, simply because we get so caught up in our routines and way of doing things, and forget to touch base with our goals and intentions. Besides, we all love to win. And if we´re not totally clear about the purpose of what we´re doing, we have no chance of winning.

Even if the book might not work as a framework for you to follow from front to back, you will definitely pick up a trick or two. Tricks are for the not-so-smart, not-so-conscious part of us. The smart part of us sets up things for us to do that the not-so-smart part responds to almost automatically. Have you ever had something that you had to bring with you the next morning? Where did you put it the night before? Did you put it in front of the door? On your keys, so you would be sure to take it with you?

Congratulations – this is actually a sophisticated piece of self-management technology you´ve installed for yourself. The smart part of you the night before knows that the not-so-smart part of you first thing in the morning might barely be conscious.

David Allen calls this trick Put It in Front of the Door. And in this book, the door is the door of your mind, not the house. But it´s the same idea. If you could capture everything you had to do, and find a way to trigger the action when it had to be done, you´d feel a lot calmer and have a clearer head. It´s not rocket science, just a good trick. The book teaches you different ways to accomplish this.

So would I recommend you read this book? The common characteristics of the most successful people I have worked with are that they have known exactly what to do, and when to do it. Whether they had a 10-minute break between two meetings, or if they were on hold for a phone conference, they would make the most out of their time, and thus be able to accomplish much more, calmly and with a sense of control. I think they´d read this book.

Name: SiSi Chen

Birthplace: Wuhan, China

Joined Meltwater: 2009, Sales Consultant, Meltwater News, Sydney, Australia

Current Role: Business Analyst, Meltwater New Ventures, San Francisco, US

Who inspires you: David Hickey, Area Director for Meltwater News, Australia and New Zealand

My three words to describe Meltwater: Daring, Inspirational, Perseverance

“Who was to know that a volcano would get in our way!” SiSi laughs as she explains. “We left Australia around the same time that the Icelandic volcanic eruptions disrupted air travel for the entire European region. We landed in Hong Kong without the ability to continue our journey on to London. We were literally stranded. It was a bit crazy, but it turned into the most amazing experience ever.”

Hosted by the Meltwater Hong Kong team the Australian contingent spent a non-stop day and night exploring Hong Kong before returning back to Sydney.

“Hong Kong is an amazing city,” SiSi says. “But for me the sights, tastes and sounds of this hub to Asia weren’t the best part of this trip … the real highlight was meeting the guys from the Hong Kong office. It was like meeting old friends – best friends, for the very first time. It’s always stayed in my mind as one of those times when an unexpected event has turned into the most fortunate mishap ever.”

Twist in the tale

And it seems that unexpected events are all a great part of SiSi’s story. With a career already being written in the finance sector SiSi had a sudden change of heart in 2008, which coincided with a longing to travel.

“It’s true. My role prior to joining Meltwater was not uninteresting; it was just uninspiring,” SiSi says. “I was working for an assets management firm, as a project manager, when I decided that I wanted to experience working and travelling abroad. When I saw the Meltwater recruitment advert it piqued my curiosity. Four weeks later I left San Francisco and landed in Sydney.”

In Sydney SiSi concentrated on settling into the Australian way-of-life and learning as much as she could about the media monitoring industry, building client relationships and further developing her strong communications skills. Within 12 months her hard work had paid off and she was promoted to Sales Manager. But before 2010 was through she had been promoted again, this time to Managing Director of the Sydney office; a role which would ultimately offer SiSi an unexpected lesson.

“I think many Meltwater Managing Directors would agree, that the shift from Sales Manager to Managing Director presents you with a pretty big jump in terms of learning,” SiSi explains. “And that leap becomes even more difficult if, for whatever reason, you wonder if you are actually ready for the role.”

“In the first couple of weeks as the Managing Director, my greatest challenge didn’t come from dealing with transitioning from peer to manager, or learning how to recruit successfully, or even from working out how to leave my own personal footprint on the Sydney office – no, the greatest challenge I faced in this time was an internal one,” SiSi says candidly. “Self-doubt that I was, at that time, prepared for the role led to a loss of confidence that no amount of support externally, from my amazing managers and co-workers, was able to shake. Because even though I knew that I had been recommended for the role, that people had placed their faith in me, I’m not sure that I had initially placed any faith in myself.”

Writing her own story

“I have to admit now, that when I look back at those first few weeks, I think much of my lack of confidence was compounded by a case of big shoes to fill syndrome,” SiSi says with a knowing smile. “Sydney had been the number one office, worldwide for around 14 months and I genuinely admired the previous leaders of the team, who were, and still are, ‘living legends’ in my mind and a constant source of inspiration. So I guess it’s no real surprise that faced with that history, a history I now had to continue writing myself, I froze and wondered if I’d simply ever be good enough.”

But good enough she was. SiSi worked hard reflecting on the role, and her management skills, before eventually coming to an important conclusion.

“This was a really valuable lesson for me,” SiSi says. “It is important to feel supported by your colleagues, which is very uplifting and encouraging, but just as important is your ability to back yourself. Hindsight is a wondrous thing,” SiSi continues, “once I had taken a step back and had seen that one of my biggest concerns was really of my own doing the barriers suddenly seemed less like obstacles and much more like surmountable challenges.”

SiSi goes on to talk about the importance of trusting in your own abilities and managing expectations.

“Before beginning my subsequent role as the Managing Director of the Meltwater Philadelphia office, I returned home for a visit with my family in California,” SiSi says. “I’d been away for less than two years, yet so many family and friends, whom I caught up with, commented on how much I had changed and ‘matured’; each and every one of them attributing this transformation to travelling and my time away. But I see it a little differently,” SiSi continues; “although I am sure the independence that traveling affords you has contributed to my growth it wasn’t, in my mind, the key factor. To me it was Meltwater.

This is a company that offers you real challenges both professionally and personally. Challenges that force you to look at yourself, from all different angles. Challenges which encourage you to question your perspective and allow you to become your very own benchmark. When you begin to understand how that enables you to develop professionally you really begin to understand how a company that has a culture of caring for you personally is a company that will help you unlock your potential. Both the potential you think you have, and the strengths you never knew you had.”

The next chapter

So what’s on the agenda next for SiSi? She is now a Business Analyst in Meltwater’s New Ventures, the team responsible for corporate development strategy and execution.

“I think the Meltwater kick-off, the best mishap ever, taught me that it’s okay to have plans, to have goals and to have ambitions, but it’s also important to allow yourself to be prepared to go with the flow, look out for opportunities and see where they may take you. So, when I think of my future my experiences are a great fit for my new team – in New Ventures we are constantly on the look out for new market opportunities. I am the only person on the team that brings direct Meltwater sales experience to the group; I’m the only one who has been on the front lines. This bridges the gap between the majority of the company — our sales people — and the corporate development team.”