B&T had the honour of travelling to GroupM’s lush North Sydney offices to chat with Tatiana Patrón and Missie Saroyan, who had travelled all the way from the US to see how we do things down under.
Patrón is an associate client investment lead in Wavemaker’s New York office, while Saroyan serves as a programmatic director in the agency’s Los Angeles office — both work on Paramount Pictures account.
However, while they were certainly spending lots of time at the Wavemaker office in Sydney, the pair were not here to work. Instead, it was a trip focused on building connections, learning and exchanging ideas and getting to know some of Australia’s friendlier fauna.
The trip was part of Wavemaker’s mission to positively provoke growth for its clients and its people and the Provocative Pioneers cultural program is designed to enhance collaboration, inspiration and connection between Wavemaker’s offices around the world – ultimately elevating global client knowledge.
Here’s (almost) everything they learned in Australia.
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In return, Peter Andrew, a group director in Wacemaker’s Sydney office, will be making the trip back over the Pacific and visiting the LA offices. Saroyan has promised him hotdogs and baseball — as well as all manner of professional learning and development, of course.
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There’ll be lots of information for Andrew to expound to his American colleagues, too. From the correct meaning of thong to which way the water flows when you flush the toilet in the southern hemisphere. He’ll also be able to tell them about all the great work Wavemaker has done over here to become B&T‘s Media Agency of the Year!
Wavemaker ANZ CEO Peter Vogel said that the program was an “exceptional opportunity” that very few agencies can offer.
“What makes this program unique is the way we are bringing the client along for the journey, magnifying the lessons for all involved. It’s an exceptional opportunity that we can offer. We should never underestimate the positive impact of knowledge sharing when it comes to building skills and unlocking connections for the benefit of our clients and our people.”
“We are thrilled Wavemaker has chosen Paramount for this iteration of their Pioneers Program,” added Paramount Pictures marketing director Erin O’Neill.
“It has been an invaluable opportunity for Paramount Pictures Australia to connect with Wavemaker’s talented team from LA and New York. Through this partnership, we have gained fresh insights and perspectives and helped continue to strengthen our global projects. We are grateful for Wavemaker’s commitment to nurturing their talent and fostering global collaboration.”
