Celebrating Christina Barnes | IWD
How long have you worked at Midwich?
I’ve worked at Midwich for 8 years. About 5 and a half of that has been spent in the events industry.
What is your go-to work-from-home outfit?
Business on the top and comfy on the bottom.
Did you always want to work in the events industry?
I always knew I wanted to work in marketing. I took media studies at GCSE and A-level and loved it. I started here as an assistant and worked my way up. I was interested in events but when I first started at Midwich, the position didn’t exist. As soon as the opportunity came up, I knew it was for me. Now, I’ve done near enough every role in the marketing team.
What is your favourite part about the events industry?
Meeting the customers and vendors face-to-face and building good relationships with them. Meeting them in person makes the client feel more human and you get to see more than just their job title, which can be quite intimidating. It’s also really rewarding to work on something from start to finish – from physically building an event to seeing customers walk through the door.
What is the most important skill that you need to have in your job role?
Being organised! Once you have an event day, it doesn’t move, and you have no option but to meet that deadline, so you have to be organised. Also, don’t be afraid to admit that you don’t know the answer to something. You should have the confidence to say, “I don’t know, but let me go and find out”.
What is something you’ve achieved that you’re proud of?
The progress I’ve made at Midwich from where I started to where I am now. This is my fourth job role within marketing, and I’ve experienced a lot of self-development. The diversity I’ve had from these different roles has helped me align myself to events but I’m still able to support the rest of the team with the knowledge I’ve gained throughout.
Why have you stayed at Midwich for so long?
I live down the road from Midwich, I’m good friends with a lot of the company and there’s always been an opportunity for me to progress in my role. I’ve found an industry that I really enjoy and Midwich is very unique. We’re one of the biggest companies in Diss and we’re one of the few that have an events team. Our marketing team as a whole is massive and we’re a great team.
What is your favourite thing about the AV industry?
The technology is amazing. From LED displays at Innovation House to the mind-boggling technical kit, I’m lucky that I get to see it all in action at events. When I’m out and about, I often find myself wondering what speaker or projector people are using. I love hearing our vendors get excited about their technology too!
What is your top productivity tip?
Move your phone away. My phone is always on silent, and when I work from home I don’t even have it in the same room as me.
What is one skill you’d like to improve on?
My Search Engine Optimisation (SEO) skills. I know what SEO is, but I’d like to know more about why we do it and how it benefits us.
