Drugi jezik na kojem je dostupan ovaj članak: Bosnian
By: Ekrem Dupanović
Ivan Hrvoje Josipović is the Senior Account Executive at the ENTG Zagreb. Colleagues say he is their shooting star. Already in the internship interview, he left the impression of a real account person, so for the first time the agency opened a special position just for him – Account Intern. He progressed very quickly and as soon as he graduated from college, he was admitted full time in the ENTG, and from that moment, in the next two years, he progressed rapidly. Today, he successfully leads big clients like Microsoft and Shooster, but apart from being extremely quick to learn and doing his job professionally, Ivan is above all a great young person and colleague who shows an advanced and positive attitude towards every challenge he encounters. Ivan is the true definition of a young leader who will come a long way and become a role model and mentor to everyone he meets.
MEDIA MARKETING: When you came to the ENTG agency , back when you were an intern, they opened a whole new position just for you – Account Intern. What does it mean?
Ivan Hrvoje Josipović: That’s true. In 2015, the position of Account Intern was opened for me in the agency. In fact, I applied for another position open at the time – Community Manager. However, the ENTG team headed by Ida Pandur recognized in me the skills and predispositions for an account job.
The job interview was actually very interesting … I applied for the position of Community Manager, because I saw this position as good enough to enter the agency world. During the interview, the then Project Manager and Content Manager told me that I would be great in an Account job, but during the entire interview I was adamant in claiming that the position of the Community Manager was good enough for me as a starting position, because at that moment I was very motivated to become part of the team.
My persistence in the interview paid off, because Ida contacted me two days later with a proposal to open an Account Intern position for me. And that’s how it all started…
MEDIA MARKETING: Could you tell us more about the ENTG and the atmosphere in which you work?
Ivan Hrvoje Josipović: ENTG is an agency that employs primarily excellent people and experts from various tech, creative, strategic and marketing areas. We work with large local and global clients, and we push the boundaries every day in our work on projects in the domain of consulting, development and digital marketing.
Even in our most critical moments, even when deadlines are tightening, the atmosphere is always positive and results-oriented. When I say results I don’t necessarily mean the results for the clients (these are implied), but also the results and constant work on improving mutual cooperation and team spirit.
That’s why I think that the formula for the success of ENTG is the permanent great atmosphere, and the positive atmosphere is made possible by the people that make up our team. We are all representatives of different groups of responsible individuals who are focused on success and, most importantly, excellent team work in which everyone seriously understands their role in a wider picture of what we are continually doing – quality output.
Anyone interested more about us as an agency and as a team can get to know us better on our website: www.entg.co
MEDIA MARKETING: Today you successfully lead agency’s biggest clients. How do you deal with the “conflict” of representing the agency with the client, and representing the client in the agency?
Ivan Hrvoje Josipović: I believe these “conflicts” are very useful and challenging, because they force me to find a balance between what the client expects and what we, as a team, see as an ideal solution for the client.
I always try to focus communication on presenting the arguments and facts in the context of the issue, and this is always the recipe for an optimal solution – whether it’s a fight for a client and an idea within the agency, or a fight for our creative solutions in front of the client.
MEDIA MARKETING: You are appreciated highly by your agency colleagues and clients for your very advanced and positive attitude toward every challenge you face. How do you manage to remain positive at all times?
Ivan Hrvoje Josipović: Throughout my experience so far I always tried to draw the maximum from myself and the context of the situation I find myself in. In general, I have a positive attitude both privately and in business, because I think that a positive attitude and understanding is a recipe for good cooperation and communication with people.
Of course, this does not mean that I don’t have bad or at least less positive days, but with an optimistic attitude everything is much simpler in everyday situations.
MEDIA MARKETING: Do pitches sometimes throw you out of balance, or do you approach them with a positive attitude as well, with that ‘This isn’t so bad, we can win this’ attitude?
Ivan Hrvoje Josipović: The agency world in general, including the pitches, is always challenging. But here I must say that as a team, when approaching pitches, we make sure that all steps of the creative process are well organized and structured – from research and brainstorming to filtering ideas and strategically developing solutions.
In spite of factors such as short deadlines or briefs, with such an approach we minimize the stress level to a minimum and remain optimistic about the end result.
MEDIA MARKETING: Regardless of the competition, do you socialize with young colleagues from other agencies? Do you talk about your role in building the prosperous future of the communications industry? After all, it’s about your future as well.
Ivan Hrvoje Josipović: Yes, I hang out with colleagues from other agencies, because among them I have friends and former colleagues from the university. I believe that socializing with colleagues is an indispensable part of this job. We all participate and work in an industry that influences the perception and opinion of the wider community, so it is desirable that we absorb different knowledge or thinking from one another. Although we are competitors, this doesn’t mean that we can’t talk about good campaigns, examples from the profession and current trends.
MEDIA MARKETING: What should young leaders learn from their older colleagues and apply in their work?
Ivan Hrvoje Josipović: The environment in which I work, and the knowledge that I absorb from my older colleagues, I consider to be one of the main reasons for my own progress. It is generally known that experience affects the knowledge and skills of each of us.
Precisely because of that, I try to get as many tips as possible from my older colleagues for my own progress and challenges that I encounter – from optimizing ideas, managing projects and campaigns, avoiding potential mistakes and improving outputs, managing teams …
Experience, years of work and knowledge of the colleagues certainly play an important role, and progress and growth are always the fastest with good mentoring.
That is precisely why, based on the experiences I go through every day and the skills I acquire, I try to transfer as much as possible to the new colleagues who join us in the agency.
MEDIA MARKETING: What advice would you give to your peers? To join you in this industry, or to try and find a better job?
Ivan Hrvoje Josipović: We are all different and we have different interests. If someone is interested in marketing, working with people, the communications industry, then an agency job is a great start for their career because it brings with it the dynamic work environment and the daily absorption of new knowledge and skills. Of course, with all this effort results will come, and excellent campaigns, which are my personal motivation for further advancement.
MEDIA MARKETING: What are your personal and professional ambitions? Where do you see yourself in the future?
Ivan Hrvoje Josipović: In the future, I see myself more experienced than I am today both in work and in communication with people. Marketing, management of teams and results, and selfless transfer of knowledge, these are my mantras, and that’s what I intend to deal with until that moment when I’ll by lying on a beach, drinking cocktails and watching the sunset.
MEDIA MARKETING: Do you have free time, and how do you spend it?
Ivan Hrvoje Josipović: It’s no myth that the agency job means you will sometimes work for more than eight hours a day, but with good organization it doesn’t have to be the case. I always try to keep balance between business and private life, so I always ensure myself the time for traveling, hanging out with my girlfriend, friends and family, and some time for squash and pool as stress relief.