25 Nov Your Questions Answered
This year, we’ve welcomed five full-time additions to our team, spanning public affairs, communications and operations, all while growing our global associate network too. As we head into 2022, we’re still growing as we continue to reinvent healthcare communications and advise ambitious clients to tell their story in the health, social care and life sciences sectors.
We are now actively recruiting for talented Account Managers, Account Directors and Associate Directors with a background in healthcare PR and communications to join our multi-award winning team. To give you a flavour of what it’s like to work at OVID, we asked Associate Director Rachel Gonzaga, and Senior Account Manager, Grace Holland, to answer some of the questions we often hear from candidates.
If you want to have an informal chat to see if OVID might be the right place for you, do get in touch at [email protected].
What makes OVID different from other healthcare agencies?
RG: Definitely our breadth of clients. I loved the feeling of working in the charity sector as well as the strategy and challenge that comes with pharma comms. Working for OVID means I get to do both!
I also think OVID’s truly integrated approach to campaigns is different – patient advocacy is embedded in everything we do and, while we all have our areas of expertise, everyone in the team works across both public affairs and communications. This means that even at Associate Director level, you’re always learning and developing, and our approach means we deliver impactful campaigns we’re really proud of.
GH: Even though I’m still at such an early stage in my career, the Senior Leadership Team (SLT) at OVID have given me full ownership of growing our communications offering to clients based on my specific interests and expertise. Over the past year, I’ve been leading the development of our investor communications work, building new relationships with KOLs in the sector and delivering workshops to young entrepreneurs about to embark on their investor journey. This is something I am really proud of and look forward to building further in 2022!
Something that has always stood out to me about OVID is that our work builds bridges between the worlds of pharmaceuticals, technology, patients and the health sector, which means you are given countless opportunities to build a large, diverse professional network of communications experts to learn from and share insights with throughout your career.
How will OVID help me with career development?
GH: My professional experience and network have grown significantly since joining OVID, which is great for my career. I have a growing bank of demonstrable experience of delivering impact for a range of clients, from biotech start-ups to patient groups and global pharma, with testimonials and even award wins to back this up!
We also have a very accessible and welcoming SLT, with a wealth of experience to learn from, so I’d always encourage scheduling a coffee (*note our MD is not a coffee drinker!) catch up outside of client work so you can ask questions and gain insight into areas you may have no or little experience of.
I’m from pharma – what are the main differences working in agency?
RG: The pace! The size of our company means we’re able to make decisions quickly and see clear results from our efforts every week. Being agency-side also gives you the chance to work across a wider scope than most pharma roles. In a typical day, you’ll be moving from dementia to mental health to cell and gene therapies, as well as from comms to public affairs and patient advocacy.
We’re known for our creative flair and our clients often task us with coming up with campaigns and ideas that are bold and completely different. That remit to be so creative is something you experience more agency-side.
The pandemic has showed me that I want to work flexibly – can OVID support this?
GH: As someone who lives 60 miles away from our office in Hammersmith, I can absolutely vouch for this! We’re currently operating under a hybrid model, with most of us in our snazzy new office 2-3 days a week, and with unlimited use of Murray, our office dog.
We have a brilliant operations team who make virtual working really simple – equipping us with everything we need from monitors to office furniture and even Just Eat vouchers when we can’t all be together for an in-person meal!
Will I be recognised for hard work?
RG: Absolutely. The culture at OVID is supportive and every member of the team wants each other to succeed – this means people get recognised and celebrated for doing a great job and doing it in the right way. Our “OVID Health Heroes” programme rewards, recognises and celebrates when individuals demonstrate our core values and behaviours – whether that’s supporting a colleague by going above and beyond to put their needs ahead of your own; or suggesting a creative idea that can fly. As a team, we love celebrating individual and group successes, whether that be for external client work or personal development.
What does communications look like at OVID?
GH: Our communications offering is hugely exciting, rewarding and fast paced. One day you might be working on corporate and brand communications projects, supporting clients to secure an increased share of voice for their brand amongst target audiences, and in the same week you could be supporting with investor comms and reputation management by developing compelling investor-facing corporate messaging and narratives, or managing a communications crisis.
If you enjoy developing press releases, liaising with journalists, and selling in stories, then we will always have opportunities for you!