Leadership in lockdown: What I learned starting a new job from home
By Georgie Holt, UK MD+
I’d been told on many occasions that Acast’s culture was one of the best you could hope to find anywhere. Alongside a personal obsession with podcasting, it had become a company I’d aspired to join for quite some time.
The first time I had a one-to-one experience of that culture, however, was as I waited for my second interview at the London office. Before I knew it, a dog named Sparky — one of Acast’s ‘pod pets’ — had jumped up onto the sofa and decided to snuggle in my lap, which I can safely say was the best interview prep I could have asked for.
Acast is the world’s biggest podcast company, and continues to make waves in an industry that is being taken seriously by listeners and brands alike, so I was over the moon when I was told the team had chosen me to lead the UK+ business. Perhaps I owe Sparky a treat or two next time I see him.
After accepting the job, and when the time finally came to meet my new team, I effectively ‘heard’ the culture before I saw it — perhaps fitting for a podcast company. As I came up in the lift to the fifth floor I began to hear cheering, and as the doors opened I was greeted by the smiling faces of my soon-to-be new colleagues.
This was still a few weeks before I officially took up my position, and was followed by drinks and Acast’s infamous ‘ask me anything’ initiation involving some very interesting questions and answers. Suffice to say at least one of my answers was “Dolly Parton”.
As company introductions go, it was one of warmest, most open, hilarious and genuine ones I’ve ever had. It was without doubt one of life’s most decision-affirming experiences. I left thinking what a special team Acast was, and I already couldn’t wait to come back and get started for real.
Little did I know, this would be the only time I’d see the team in person despite now being a month into the new job. Within two weeks of that initiation, the COVID-19 storm was beginning to hit and Acast had moved quickly to get all staff globally working from home.
I still have to do a mental double-take when I think that my dream job has so far mostly been done from my sofa in loungewear. But I’m beginning to process what it means to start a new role and to lead a market during a global lockdown.
Leadership is an ever-evolving learning experience, and the lessons of this whirlwind past month are meaningful ones. Here are six I’d like to share with you.
1. First impressions still count
It’s never been truer that first impressions can leave a long and lasting indent. I’ve not only carried that warm glow of my first introduction to Acast with me, but the energy and enthusiasm has been infectious — and those feelings and the momentum built before lockdown will stay with me for months.
The beautiful words of Maya Angelou ring true: “People will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.”
2. From the public to the personal
In the blink of an eye, leadership has gone from the public to the intensely personal platform of a Google Hangout or Zoom call. That’s a truly gorgeous and rewarding experience as a leader, so don’t waste this opportunity to connect with your people.
I’ve had one-on-one video calls with the entire UK+ team and global colleagues, and each one has been insightful and authentic. It’s taught me so much more about our team and our culture — in a way I don’t think could or would have happened as easily in the real world, with the inevitable distractions of the workplace.
3. Culture can thrive in a digital world
I’ve seen Acast’s great company culture transcend the real world, becoming even more visible and powerful in a digital one. Technology like Slack has given us the tools to create a virtual workplace — but it truly takes a village, and everyone at every level, to make it happen.
Acast’s Slack is a total joy. It’s the closest thing we have to the office right now and it comes pretty damn close. I think the only thing missing is the complaints about tea bags left in the sink.
Every act of the show that we call “work” plays out here, from the sharing of information and ideas to celebrating success, collective problem solving, playful banter, deep support, and true friendship. It’s all there, across every channel, every post and every GIF.
As a leader you must make time for and create the space for this digital community in your working day. Invest in it. Prioritise it. Show up. Be there. Just like you would in the real world.
More than ever I can truly see that culture comes from everyone and from everywhere. It simply can’t come from one person, a committee, or a set of values written on a wall — it comes from every individual at every level. It’s like magic. Electricity. You can’t catch it or touch it but you know it’s there, even when you’re not. It sparkles, crackles and buzzes around you, and as a leader you must believe in it and keep the power on.
4. It’s everybody’s first time
You have to embrace the ‘first time for everything’ feelings again. This is all new. Everything. Not just the job. Not just the people. It’s the entire way we’re working. Leading. Pitching. Meeting. Socialising. Learn to love it quickly.
How often in life, especially the older we get, are we given this opportunity to feel something ‘new’ again? And how powerful that feeling is in the context of the current situation.
While we may all be experiencing this together, nobody’s experience is the same. This is an essential reminder of a critical leadership lesson often overlooked — and sometimes even avoided — when it comes to making big decisions.
5. Take time for personal growth
You have to get used to working with yourself. For starters, you’ll come to understand what you’re like for others to work with.
Don’t squander this opportunity for introspection and personal growth. Get good at asking for feedback from your team and from yourself. Take the time to give yourself an appraisal — you’ll get to know more now about who you are and what you’re capable of than ever before.
Self doubt shows up in unexpected ways and places, so accept you can’t do what you normally would and move on.
6. Embrace the distance
A little distance and asking the right questions is the perfect formula to plan and prioritise. Make the most of it and the good decision-making that will come from it.
And, whenever we finally get back to normality, keep doing this.
I feel so grateful to be working right now and, given what friends and industry colleagues are experiencing, I will never take work for granted again. I’ll never groan when my alarm goes off.
This has been an opportunity to fall even more in love with what I do — to reassess and reaffirm what work means, what culture means, and what leadership is or needs to be.
Most of all I believe we need to be human. Be kind. Be hopeful. Be positive. Be better.
Be there.
