A Day in the Life of an Associate Director Digital Media Optimization at a Leading Pharma Company
A typical day involves a morning status meeting using a "scrum method" to identify top priorities and address blockers, followed by back-to-back meetings until the early afternoon; the remainder of the day offers more autonomy, allowing for independent work, breaks, and a flexible schedule reflecting the increased trust and responsibility associated with career progression.
Project Management, Teamwork, Communication, Problem-Solving, Leadership
Advizer Information
Name
Job Title
Company
Undergrad
Grad Programs
Majors
Industries
Job Functions
Traits
Amir Hemmat
Associate Director, Digital Media Optimization
Top-3 US Pharma Company
Yeshiva University, 2014
N/A
Marketing
Healthcare, Medical & Wellness
Business Strategy
None Applicable
Video Highlights
1. Associate Director, Digital Media Optimization roles involve daily morning status meetings using a Scrum-like approach to prioritize tasks and address blockers.
2. The work is project-based with many back-to-back meetings, but the Associate Director also has autonomy to manage their time after midday.
3. Career progression leads to increased autonomy and self-management, which contrasts with the micromanagement often experienced at the beginning of one's career
Transcript
What does a day in the life of an associate director of digital media optimization look like?
It really depends, but every day we have a morning status meeting with my internal team. We discuss the top five things we need to do and achieve today or this week.
As one of the four leads on the team, we go around the room, similar to a Scrum method. Everyone gives a status of what they're working on and describes any blockers they have. After that, we're off to the races, sometimes with back-to-back meetings.
I'm in Pacific time, and most of my colleagues are in central time. So, even though my day starts a bit early, and I have meetings until a certain time, my day ends around 1:00, 1:30, or 2:00 PM. It's not intense at all; it's just being on calls and trying to move forward and solve problems on different projects.
Around one or two o'clock, I can take a breath. I can answer emails, call people I need to, or honestly, take a break. I might go for a walk, walk my dog, eat something, or work out.
The rest of the day is whatever I want to make of it. I have work tasks, like making PowerPoint slides or responding to emails, but it's very autonomous. This autonomy is something I'll remember for people watching. When you're starting your career, you might feel like people are watching your back, and I certainly felt that, with micromanagement.
However, as you progress in your career, you'll get more autonomy. This comes with trust and building relationships with your boss. Anyway, that's basically my day in a nutshell.