Founder and CEO of ARTÉMIA Communications Barbara Wichmann labored internationally as a advisor earlier than founding ARTÉMIA as a girls’s enterprise enterprise (WBE) in 1995. In each capacities, she developed and executed strategic communications and advertising in addition to VIP partnership growth campaigns for purchasers on a number of continents.
As well as, Wichmann serves on the board of a number of organizations and lectures commonly on sustainability and associated points. When she’s not operating her firm, she dedicates time to Girls Impacting Public Coverage Training Institute in addition to Girls Enterprise Enterprise Nationwide Council (WBENC) and WBEC-Pacific.
Drawing inspiration from her childhood within the Netherlands, Wichmann, embraces a global strategy that’s deeply ingrained in her values. Dwelling in a rustic recognized for its dedication to ecological practices, innovation-driven mindset, and multicultural society, the founder’s core rules of sustainability and variety had been formed. Her world perspective fuels her imaginative and prescient for ARTÉMIA and drives the corporate’s unwavering dedication to making a sustainable and inclusive future.
We caught up with Wichmann to get her tackle the way forward for the communications business.
What guide, podcast or different media do you suggest to different comms execs?
I could also be somewhat biased as a result of I personally know Dr. Patricia Anderson, nevertheless, I’d nonetheless suggest her guide “You Know Much less Than You Don’t Know” if I didn’t. It’s a nice learn for these looking for to grow to be simpler leaders. Dr. P, as she is understood, is an professional in genuine transformational management and her guide does a superb job of breaking down the variations between change and transformation, and tips on how to lead in a approach that drives the latter.
What’s your favourite instrument you employ commonly for work?
We’ve got all the time been early adopters of recent expertise; nevertheless, it wasn’t till the COVID-19 pandemic that we started actually leveraging Zoom. Earlier than, I spent fairly a little bit of time flying internationally to fulfill with purchasers face-to-face or dialing right into a convention name. When all the pieces shut down, including Zoom to the combination was important to proceed our operations. It’s nonetheless part of our day-to-day life as a result of it modified the best way our staff keep linked with one another in addition to our purchasers and companions in a approach I couldn’t have imagined.
We might have relied on convention calls, however I felt it was actually essential to have face time with the crew, whether or not it was for a five-minute contact base or a full work session. Along with making us really feel much less remoted, it additionally made us extra environment friendly; it was simpler to ship a Zoom hyperlink to a number of folks for a brief briefing than it was to arrange a convention and display sharing made it simpler to remain on the identical web page.
Our purchasers had additionally moved to Zoom or Groups, and we had been capable of “meet” folks we’d solely often called voices for years. I believed that was actually thrilling! I used to be capable of get to know purchasers on a deeper degree because it was a extra casual one-on-one surroundings that offered all of us with perception into one another’s worlds.
Plus, the transfer to a digital house made it attainable for me to attend extra conferences and occasions than I might earlier than whereas decreasing our carbon footprint. That’s a giant deal to me, as sustainability has all the time been a core a part of our work. Though in-person occasions have resumed and I’m touring extra once more, Zoom has continued to maintain it to a minimal.
Furthermore, I’ve discovered Zoom to be an ideal equalizer. Everybody’s window is identical measurement, whether or not it’s a consumer, an intern, a senior author or me. I believe it made it much less intimidating for newer teammates which allowed us to attach on a extra private degree. It has unified us.
What excites you most about the way forward for communications?
Within the final 25+ years within the business, I’ve seen a whole lot of developments come and go. Nonetheless, the rise of expertise, together with social media, has completely redefined buyer expectations each within the B2B and B2C house. Firms are anticipated to talk out and take a concrete place relating to social and environmental points. They have to be capable of show they stay the values they declare. Many firms are discovering it troublesome to speak with their goal audiences utilizing the methods they’ve relied on previously.
We’re experiencing a interval the place belief, authenticity and open dialogue are paramount. Individuals need to join with actual tales and experiences now greater than ever; they should really feel seen and heard. At our core, we’re storytellers and messengers who’re able to serving to companies meet these wants. Firms are realizing how beneficial communication actually is and that creates a whole lot of thrilling alternatives for us.
What communications problem retains you up at night time?
I spend a whole lot of time occupied with how we are able to push the boundaries of communication to make sure that no viewers is ever actually out of attain. It’s one thing that I care about deeply – DEIA has been one in all our core values for the reason that company’s infancy. I imagine there may be immense energy in connecting with those that have been marginalized and ignored – we uncover new concepts, problem present norms, construct stronger relationships, and foster innovation that advantages not solely these people however society as a complete.
Participating with hard-to-reach audiences means breaking down boundaries and guaranteeing that everybody, no matter their background or circumstances, has entry to data, assets and alternatives. It’s about making a degree enjoying area and offering avenues for achievement and development; it’s about constructing a society the place everybody’s voice issues, the place nobody is left behind, and the place we are able to all transfer ahead collectively.
What’s the largest problem you’ve overcome in your profession?
In our early days, we had been a product launch firm that primarily labored with tech startups. Our company started to increase rapidly in tandem with what would ultimately be dubbed the “dot com bubble.”
In fact, it burst as bubbles are likely to do and the telephones began ringing. Founders wanted to shut their accounts with us as a result of their funding was drying up. Consequently, we accelerated our diversification into different business segments.
Fortunately, we survived, and the expertise made the company extra resilient. It confirmed me the good thing about being much less specialised and I started to construct a extra “generalist” company backed by a crew of specialists. This offered a chance to increase the providers we supplied in addition to the kinds of purchasers we served. Whereas we nonetheless like to work with startups in the present day, we additionally started aiding world firms.
The company was as sturdy as ever going into 2020. We had simply moved into an attractive new workplace house and I used to be trying ahead to the work we’d do there, however then the world went into full lockdown mode. When the pandemic considerably impacted non-essential companies, it felt just like the dot com demise another time — besides this time, it wasn’t restricted to startups. I bear in mind trying round our workplace and occupied with how empty it felt. All that was there was new furnishings and the load of uncertainty hanging within the air.
Whereas issues slowed down, the industries deemed “important” had an elevated want for our assist. We embraced the pliability that got here with the “new regular” to grow to be extra agile, which allowed us to construct and preserve stronger relationships with our purchasers. I’m grateful that we had been capable of proceed doing significant work and in the end come out on the opposite aspect. These two challenges had been each main crises and extremely beneficial studying experiences.
What’s the greatest recommendation you’ve ever gotten?
Certainly one of my vastly profitable friends who’s a thought chief within the logistics business instructed me as soon as, “You’ll be able to’t take issues personally.” It was a reminder that purchasers function with their very own set of issues that is probably not aligned with advisable approaches or greatest practices.
Isis Simpson-Mersha is a convention producer/ reporter for Ragan. Observe her on LinkedIn.
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