A day in the life of... A senior marketing and PR manager

Matt Duggan explains the aspects of his day-to-day work and gives an insight into life as a senior marketing and PR manager at global law firm Baker & McKenzie LLP.

My alarm goes off at five am – a human alarm in the form of my one-year old son calling out for a feed – so it isn’t a simple matter of hitting the ‘snooze’ button and going back to sleep. It is an early start to the day, but making sure I have enough quality time with my family forces me to be well organised, a discipline I work hard to bring to my professional life.

Thanks to the modern marvel of the Blackberry, my working day commences on my 40-minute train journey into London. I familiarise myself with my diary and plan the day ahead. I also deal with any e-mails I received overnight from colleagues in our global network, or London colleagues who have worked unsociable hours. I make a point of responding to such messages quickly – I receive several-hundred e-mails each day and it’s important that people in the firm know they can rely on me for a timely and positive response.

I also use this time to monitor media coverage of the firm to evaluate how our profile-raising strategy is faring and to identify any press opportunities or potentially contentious issues I need to address.

By the time I collect the largest cup of coffee I can find and arrive at the office just before nine am, I already have a good idea of what the day ahead will bring, but I don’t count on it.

Given my role in managing a range of external and internal communications activities and projects, I meet regularly with senior management, including our marketing and business development director, managing partner and marketing partner, to brief them on how the implementation of our strategies
is progressing.

My main challenge each day is focusing on the strategic marketing and public-relations (PR) objectives of the firm, while keeping on top of the day-to-day issues that inevitably crop up in a busy marketing and PR team. I also have to make sure that I have time available to speak with people in my team to deal with emerging issues – things are often urgent, particularly in a press office, or can arise with very little notice from any direction.

My management style is interactive, so I regularly meet with my team, either individually or as a group. A typical meeting would include a discussion of work in progress so that I can get an idea of their workload and how I might help with particular issues. I also think it’s important to communicate openly and often with the team, so will share as much information as is relevant, either in person or via e-mail.

I liaise with a range of people throughout the firm each day, including our business development, events, human resources and knowledge-management teams. Additionally, I touch base with global marketing colleagues to keep up to date with macro issues affecting the firm. Finally, and most critically to ensure I am engaged with the business, I spend plenty of time talking to our lawyers to ensure I have a good grasp of upcoming projects, deals, events and issues.

Often, my working day will end by attending a networking event, professional or social, which invariably requires me to represent the firm. Baker & McKenzie has, and works hard at developing, excellent working relationships with clients and external contacts, so as well as being a good way to finish the day, it is a very worthwhile investment of time.

Matt Duggan is senior marketing and PR manager at global firm Baker & McKenzie LLP. He can be contacted at matt.duggan@bakernet.com