Great People: Introducing Tom Kingham

Meet Tom. Great Stater and certified Great Person.

He joined the team last Summer and hit the ground running, swiftly taking on the Royal Navy as his main client. It's a good thing we asked him to answer these questions, not only because it gives him a great platform to show off his expertise and promote his side-hustle cider business, but because we've discovered that he studied Dolphin Behaviour (!) at university. That one was a curve ball.

Introducing, Tom!

Who are you and what do you do?

Hello! I’m Tom, I’m a Client Partner at Great State. My job is to partner with our clients (the clue is in the name 😏 ) and the internal teams to ensure we’re delivering the best work while constantly looking for new ways to improve the digital experience.

How did you get to be here?

I’ve been on a bit of a weird career journey! After graduating with a Biology degree I went to study Dolphin Behaviour in the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park in Australia. I returned to Sydney after 5 months and there I did a short stint in a friends agency and I found myself more fascinated by what makes people tick. This has turned into a 20 year passion in customer experience and communications. I’ve worked at various integrated, insight and digital agencies producing award-winning campaigns for the likes of Mars, Pepsico, Nivea, Philips and Sainsburys.

What are you working on right now?

I’ve spent the last seven months getting under the skin of the Royal Navy. They’re a fascinating client; an organisation with purpose and passion that’s so deeply embedded in our culture. I’m focussed on helping them hit their recruitment targets as they seek to represent the diverse nature of a modern multi-cultural United Kingdom.

How do you know when you’ve produced something great?

 ‘Greatness’ is a team effort; it’s when you can feel the energy around a project and everyone pushing in the same direction. Ultimately, it’s the combination lots of small incremental changes that turn a good idea into a great idea. Often that last 10% requires the most challenging discussions, but it’s always worth it.

What excites you about your work?

We’re always solving problems, we may not be saving the world but the work we do makes people's lives easier and improves their digital experiences, plus I work with a fantastic bunch of ridiculously bright people who all care passionately about they do.

What excites you in life?

I've always been passionate about cider, I have a few apple trees, and a very small business making and selling cider to pubs and bottle shops across the west country (check out @wildling_cider on Instagram).

What is the future of tech looking like to you?

Trends change all the time and today’s bandwagon quickly becomes yesterday's news. Ultimately it is about putting the user at the centre of the experience rather than tech for techs sake.

Ask a question back. What do you want to know?

How can we help?

Want to get talking all things cider and client services with Tom? Get in touch.