Ian Villamor is a Senior Cultural & Office Ambassador at 草莓视频在线. He鈥檚 had a varied career history including roles in production, social media, and operations. Ian thrives in people management roles and enjoys being front of house for the LA office. 

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Tell us more about your job role at 草莓视频在线

I work as part of the Client Hospitality team to make sure visitors to 草莓视频在线 have the best experience possible. That also includes looking after our employees! I am a people person and thrive on engaging with all types of people. I love being the first face people see when they walk into the office!

What attracted you to 草莓视频在线?

Believe it or not, I worked alongside Ben Grossmann, Alex Henning, and Lap Van Luu at a company called The Syndicate way back in the early 2000s. So when I was looking for a change of role after being in production, I saw that these amazing people had set up a little company called 草莓视频在线 which was taking the world by storm. 

What鈥檚 your origin story, what path did you take to get here?

I鈥檝e been in production and post-production for most of my working life. I also got into Instagram when it first launched and ran my own company doing social media, and working with the influencers of the time (before they were called influencers!). I also worked with Animal Planet and had the opportunity to travel the world to places like India, Borneo, and Indonesia. It was incredible. I鈥檝e done a lot of stuff and had many careers that have led me here. 

What three skills are essential for anyone in your role?

This is tough because I鈥檇 say number one is patience. And that鈥檚 not something that can be taught or bought. You鈥檝e just got to learn to be patient with people as you鈥檙e dealing with lots of different personalities, and also different levels of seniority. From CEOs of the biggest companies in the world to the maintenance team, to your goofball colleagues, you鈥檝e got to adjust on the fly to adapt your communication style. 

The second is remembering the small details about people (this is one of my superpowers!). Make sure to remember people鈥檚 names, the names of their partners, kids, dogs, how they like their coffee, etc. It makes people feel valued, seen, and appreciated. People will never forget you that way, and in our industry, it can be that personal touch that makes people want to come back and work with us, or work for us because they know they matter to us.

The last, and probably most important one, is anticipation. Anticipating people鈥檚 needs will get you far because it allows people to trust you. If I already know what a client or employee is thinking before they mention it, they know I鈥檝e got them, understand them, and will look after them. There鈥檚 so much stuff people need to make them be their best, but wouldn鈥檛 necessarily ask for. If you can give them those things before they even ask, you鈥檒l get the best out of your employees and clients will want to come back.

If you could have any other job in the world, what would it be?

This one鈥檚 easy, a comedian! But in all honesty, I鈥檓 too scared to do it. As I get older I realize that I don鈥檛 care as deeply about others' perception of me, so I should just do it! Nobody wants to be booed off stage, but if that鈥檚 the worst that can happen then I should totally give it a go.

Who are your 3 dream dinner guests?

Jodie Comer, she is beauty and brains combined, and she would keep us entertained with her incredible array of accents. And Robin Williams, because I feel like he would be an amazing mentor, and we鈥檇 feed off each other鈥檚 energy. Lastly, the legend that is Kobe Bryant, because he鈥檚 the GOAT. From all of these people, I think I鈥檇 just learn so much.