EMPLOYEE SPOTLIGHT: Laura Wiehl

John: Today we have Laura Wiehl, who is actually my assistant, for the employee spotlight. So Laura, why on earth would you want to come work directly with me every day? 

Laura: I wanted to get into the marketing world, and I think working directly under the COO was such a great opportunity for me, and I’m one of the only people who gets to work with you on a daily basis, so I think the opportunity to learn so much has really been great for me.

John: When you walked in, describe your first impression of Vyral. 

Laura: I walked in and I think three people were wearing sweatpants. I saw a foosball table, I saw that it was a really relaxed environment and I really liked that about this place. It really turned me to a great atmosphere, and knowing that it was going to be a great place to work at, not so stuffy and uptight.

John: You’ve only been here for about a month, right?

Laura: I think six weeks.

John: Why are you still here? Do you envision yourself here for a while? Where is your career headed? 

Laura: I do envision myself here for awhile. I am in school, so I love that I can have flexible time here and still go to school and graduate. I kind of wear a lot of different hats around here, so I’m excited to get into different parts of Vyral, start working with different aspects of billing, and things like that. I’m excited and I see myself here for a little while, to gain experience and a better career at this company.

John: What do you think you’ve learned here so far? 

Laura: I think I’ve learned a lot about communication, not just between employees and yourself, but also clients and how to communicate better with people in general. We have a lot of real estate agents, so time is very precious to them. I’ve learned how to communicate better through emails, making it quick and snappy but also making sure that we get the best feedback and the best results possible.

John: Cool. Have you had any breakthroughs in your mindset? Like you came in here thinking things were one way but it turns out they’re another way? 

Laura: I think I’ve learned about how marketing actually works on a different side. I learned about it in school, but it’s different to see the hands-on experience and how it actually works, as well as the different aspects of marketing, like seeing how great videos can be for somebody’s business. I think I’ve learned about different aspects of marketing besides just the generic services.

John: What makes us different than your last employer? 

Laura: Well, I’ve always worked in retail, so that’s a big difference. It’s nice to have flexible hours and things like that, but it’s also nice to have the freedom to get work done as I can. I make sure I get my work done, and when you work in a retail environment you have a lot of layers of bosses and things like that. You have your general manager and your district manager. There are just a lot of layers of people you have to report to, so it’s nice to be able to report to one person and to really figure out what the best results and the best ways to work for me are.

John: What can we do better as a company? 

Laura: I think as a company we do a really good job at communicating with our employees. I’ve never had a job where I know anything that I want to know about the business and things like that. If I have a questions, anybody will answer it, and they will answer honestly. I really like that about the company. I would say one thing that could be improved on is obviously pay, but I think there are more benefits to this job than pay, like the flexible hours. Those are more beneficial to me than like a bigger check.

John: What about the people here? What do you enjoy about working with the staff here at Vyral? 

Laura: I love the people here. I think it’s really great. We do a lot of outside activities. I’ve only been here six weeks and I feel like I’ve already gotten to know everyone in the office. It’s really fun to have little parties and a chill atmosphere so you can make friends and associates at the same time. 

John: What would you say your most memorable moment working at Vyral in the last six weeks has been? 

Laura: Some days are kind of crazy, and some are a bit more relaxed. I really like the team meetings. I think they’re fun and it’s really nice to get everyone together. We always have something good to say, it’s not just a boring old meeting.

John: A lot of people that are going to be watching this might be thinking about working at Vyral. What do you tell those people? 

Laura: I’d really recommend working at Vyral, especially as someone who’s in college and looking for experience. As I was looking for jobs, everyone wants that one to two years of marketing experience and no one wants to hire the newbie out of college with no experience. Vyral’s a really good place to get that experience, but also I can see myself growing my career here as well.

John: Great. Thanks, Laura. 

Laura: Thanks, John.