Meet Our Member: Shelley McKinney
The meet our member series introduces some of our members at The View. This time we meet Shelley McKinney from Vatic International.
Can you tell us about your work, what you do, and how you came to be?
I’m the VP of Global Marketing at Vatic International, a digital marketing agency with a focus on expanding businesses into new markets. We are a startup with headquarters in the US, and we are currently building up the team here in Ireland.
My personal journey started in Zimbabwe, where I was born. I went to university in Boston and fell into marketing at a multinational advertising agency in New York. I worked in the Paris and Hong Kong offices before moving back to New York. Later, I moved to Amsterdam, and I have now been in Ireland for 7 years.
Having worked in multinationals for about a decade, I shifted to startups and, particularly, marketing for startups, with a focus on growing them from the ground up.
I prefer the startup world to the big corporate world. In a big company, you can feel like a small cog in a big wheel, like you are only a number; the value you drive is not tangible. Whereas, in a startup, things don't get done if you don't do them; you can feel the value you drive day to day. In a company like ours, everyone rolls up their sleeves and dips into all areas across the business.
What has your co-working experience been like?
I have worked in a lot of different startup-type locations, and The View is second to none. The setting, externally and internally, is just exceptional. Obviously, looking out onto the water and the boats is wonderful, but it is equally so inside; the people, the vibe, the culture — it genuinely makes you want to come in to work every day.
I haven’t had the sense of family and positive energy this place has in my previous co-working experiences.
What keeps you well?
My husband calls the hockey field my happy place. And it’s definitely true. But I like to think it's a mix of family, friends and teamwork, whether that is on the field or in the workplace.
What's the best career advice you've received?
"Surround yourself with the right people.” For me, that’s not just about getting the most qualified person for a certain role; it’s about that person having the right mindset, culture and energy. This all comes into play much more in a startup than it does in a corporate setting.
Positive energy, enthusiasm, attitude and excitement for what we are building is what keeps us showing up at Vatic. That’s what helps you work well: surrounding yourself with the right people.
What's your favourite book/series/film and why?
I like detective/cop shows, like Silent Witness, The Rookie and Castle. Movie-wise I love The Martian, with Matt Damon; it’s on my iPad so it’s what I watch if I’m travelling.
A book I go back to and refer to at different times is Atomic Habits, by James Clear. I like the concept of small incremental changes causing big changes; it makes it seem like important shifts can be made in a simple way. And it’s applicable in so many ways; say you are going for a run but don’t really feel like it, so you tell yourself you’ll only do two kilometres — and you’ll probably end up doing five
What does the future of work look like for you?
I think in the startup world the future is never certain. At Vatic International, we are still building from the ground upwards, still in the ‘get the foundation’ part of things. The future, for us, is hopefully building out the team here in Dublin, getting a stronger EU office presence and continuing the idea of surrounding ourselves with the right people.
In terms of hybrid working culture, I’d say it depends on who you are working for. For example, there are two senior leaders in our company with very different views on remote vs. in office work. One of them is driving the US office towards five days a week in the office, whereas the other one has been remote for the past decade and supports the same in his team.
