Page 27 - Fiji Traveller Issue 3

says the attention to detail and the sense of respect it instilled, the globe for one-day meetings. “It was really surreal. I was on a
has stood her in good stead. plane almost every week, just going to visit the different brands
“[In Fiji] you listen to understand before you interact, and so that I worked for.”
that's my approach with every role that I have. I'll go in and listen It took Bland eight months to decide to take up the role working
and learn and research, and then I will get to a point where I will on the Apple account. At first, she was worried she wouldn’t
talk, and I will tell you exactly what I see. And these are things be able to handle the complexities of working across so many
based off data, not my own opinion, but based off data. I think I different markets, languages and currencies. “I [thought] no, it's
learned those principles here.” going to be too much, I can’t do it. It's my goal, but it's going to
Careers in accounting run in her family, but Bland says she be super big and it's going to be really hard.
was not keen on the corporate sphere at all, at first building a “[But] I was basically at a certain point; I found myself solving
music career. the same type of problems over and over again. So it was a bit
“I said, I'm going to go to America. I'm going to get a record of a repetitive cycle and I wanted something more challenging.
deal. I'm going to record an album and I’m going to go on tour. With Apple, just how iconic it is and being able to architect data
And so she did. However, she was mid-set during a and reporting frameworks for them…this is going to be a really
performance at the famed Viper Room in LA when she realised challenging problem to solve, [and] I wanted to solve it.”
the crowd was singing along with her. She remembers thinking, The rapid and ongoing changes in the digital space add further
“This is crazy. And then I said ‘Okay, I'm done.’ And that was my complexity. Bland gives the example of Elon Musk’s purchase
last show. I said, ‘Alright, time to get a real job.’” of Twitter, which saw some people resume tweeting, and others
That real job initially involved answering phones and restocking move away from the platform. It means advertisers need to
office supplies as an entry-level marketing coordinator. However understand how that audience and their potential engagement
her boss quickly spotted her potential, introducing her to data have shifted.
reporting and analytics. “There is an endless number of questions to answer, and this
Two and a half years later, he told her she needed to look for is what keeps me engaged. It's a new question every day. And
another job. “I was like, are you firing me?” Bland recalls. He said you don't get into the cycle of becoming bored.”
‘No, I've just taught you all that I can and you’re now an analyst, Bland is keen to have more of the type of conversations she
so you need to get an analyst job to make an analyst’s salary.’” had with Suva school girls on International Women’s Day.
“It's things like what we just did here where we're just teaching
A love for solving problems the next generation of people that are coming into this space,
While she had an interest in “maths, accounting and balancing that is what's actually engaging me now. I can still solve problems
things” at school, she also liked creative writing. Bland says what and give back at the same time, and ensure the people that are
she does now “is bringing all of that together, that creativity to coming into this discipline or into this specialty, are given the
analyse numbers and turning it into insights and storytelling, I right sort of information to set them up for success. So the more
guess I was doing it through music and now through data. It just I can do with this, I think the happier I'll be.”
feels like it was a natural progression.” She is a member of a group dubbed ‘Women of the metaverse’.
Her next role was with a lead generation agency, where she “Essentially, it’s a group of women who have found success in
analysed data and shared insights into how it might be used. their careers in Los Angeles; I think I’m the only one from the data
She was promoted after three months, and was able to build tech side and the others are like Oscar wining and nominated
a small team, before moving on to another agency where she producers, and [my friend] brought us together to help people
worked on ABC, Disney and other large accounts. that want to do the same things as us. It is using this group of
“That's where I really got into building architecture; how can women with their powers combined to help other people pave
I make all of these pieces of data speak to me in a …concise their own path.
way?” “I tend to find calm in giving back. I’m definitely my mother’s
Roles working on the Playstation, Adidas and Sony accounts daughter.”
followed. For the school girls who left her session excitedly chattering
“That was really cool,” she recalls. Despite her success, Bland about what they had heard, she did just that, gifting her stories
is not jaded, and she can still remember the feeling of being paid and experience and advice in a way that inspired them to think
to travel in first class, stay in the fanciest of hotels, and fly across about life after graduation.

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