Haley Doel is the Field Marketing Manager, ANZ at Soprano Design, a provider of mobile messaging technology for mobile network carriers.

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1) To kick things off, could you tell us a little about your career background and current role?

I’m a B2B marketer and have worked primarily for technology companies for more than 15 years. I started out in technology because I had friends who worked in corporate jobs and I could see all the perks and career progression they were getting. I made the move from being a garment fit-model for a clothing manufacturer to being an account manager at Australia’s largest Apple distributor –and I’ve not looked back!

When seeking new roles I always looked for ways to fill my knowledge gaps and learn new skills, with a career path that included working for vendors, distributors, resellers in the B2B space as well as loyalty and incentive programs and digital agencies.

I’ve just recently joined Soprano Design as their Field Marketing Manager for ANZ region, with a focus on partnering closely with our ANZ sales team on demand generation activities related to our direct efforts and our efforts with our major telecommunications partners.

2) What does a day in the life look like for you? Can you take us through a recent workday?

I’m usually woken by one of our cats around 5.30am and scroll through personal emails and messages from bed. I get up, feed the cats and do some quick chores like hanging out washing, and have breakfast.

I’ll do a walk of the garden and if I have time, and it needs it, I’ll give it a quick water. I’m currently working from home, so all my meetings are online. This particular day I spent half an hour responding to emails before a meeting with a media company to discuss potential PR activity.

Then a call with one of our carrier’s in NZ to talk about an upcoming incentive campaign. I’m new in my role, so I have a video call with our VP of marketing in the US, Matt, almost daily. It’s an important time to check-in, find out what others in our team are working on, what I can leverage in ANZ and just general training and feedback.

At lunch time I went for a quick walk around the block just to stretch my legs and clear my head.

The afternoon was a weekly call with our sales team to align on sales and marketing activity, a call with one of our contractors who is helping to prep some sales training collateral, a surprise birthday call for a staff member, then a call with our digital team in Barcelona.

This was probably a slightly busier day for meetings and I felt quite exhausted by the end of the day. I’m studying my MBA at the moment so I usually try to tackle some of this after work and on the weekends, but tonight I instead have a bath and my partner takes over the dinner duties.

3) Does your current role allow for flexible or remote working? If so, how does that fit into your life and routine?

Starting a new role in a pandemic has been a little strange. Since we are all still working from home, I’ve not yet met any of my colleagues’ face to face.

The team has been so welcoming, and we have lots of video calls, so plenty of engagement, but I am looking forward to being able to grab a coffee or lunch and be a bit more social.

Soprano have always been flexible before Covid, with some staff working remotely on a permanent basis and a global team that connects online all the time anyway.

4) What does work-life balance mean to you and how do you work to achieve that goal?

For me work-life balance is making time for what personal things are important alongside my intrinsic responsibilities, whilst making sure stress levels are kept in check.

It’s not easy though, there is a lot to balance and there’s definitely been times I’ve not managed this well and my health and wellness has been impacted. I just try to find a rhythm and carve out certain times of the day to do things, but also give myself permission to flex and reshuffle things when required.

To stay relaxed I try to go for a walk or a run in the middle of the day, or take short yoga or meditation breaks. My weekends I like to go for bike rides and spend time with my partner and his two boys.

The people you surround yourself with also make a big impact. Friends, family and colleagues who are uplifting and supportive. We each have a responsibility to take care of our own health but also to have empathy and support others.

It was really important to me when looking for my last role that I worked for a great leader and a passionate, motivated and professional team – and I think I’ve definitely found that with Soprano.

5) In the past 12 months, have you started or stopped any routines or habits to change your life?

When I was between jobs, I took up a lot of new things, including starting my MBA, doing creative projects, drawing and craft. But one of the most exciting new things I’ve taken up is bee keeping. I built two beehives and I’m excited for the bees to arrive in November.

6) Do you have any favourite books, podcasts or newsletters that you’d like to recommend?

I like to listen to podcasts when I go for walks, or when driving. Some favourites are LeadX, Seth Godin’s Akimbo and Product Marketing Insider. I also read a lot of industry articles, LinkedIn articles and text books as part of my MBA – it’s all very serious career related content right now!

7) Are there any products, gadgets or apps that you can’t live without?

I use a lot of marketing apps in my role, but in terms of mobile apps my most used it’s definitely Spotify to listen to music and podcasts and Google maps – I’m not sure how I got anywhere before Google maps!

8) If you could read an interview about work-life balance by anyone, who would that be?

As a Kiwi I would have to say, Jacinda Ardern. It’s tough to balance your life in any normal role, let alone running the country, and with a young family.

9) Do you have any last thoughts on work, life or balance that you’d like to share with our readers?

Take the time you need for yourself to be as stress-free, relaxed and happy as you can – and take care of one another!

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