EPeeps Dan Martin | Marketing Campaign Manager

Kia ora koutou! I’m Dan, our Marketing Campaign Manager. I’m based at Education Perfect (EP) Headquarters, down in Dunedin, New Zealand. I’ve been with EP for just over five years now, and I’m one of our proud rainbow EPeeps and part of our Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion Committee. I’m really excited to share more about myself and what my role looks like! If you’ve ever read an EPeep article, well, you’re now reading the article of the EPeep who manages them!

Tell us a bit about yourself!

Describing yourself is always hard for anybody! I’m often described by others as high-energy, boisterous, and always positive. In my spare time, I spend a lot of my time with friends, as I don’t have any family in Dunedin, so my friendships are an important network for me. I love getting out and about too, and it’s not uncommon to see me out at cafes, bars, restaurants, etc. I enjoy a bit of everything – getting out in nature, going to the gym, practising yoga, writing, brainstorming marketing ideas, networking – you name it, I probably enjoy it. I’m an easy person to entertain and will find fun in any situation. I enjoy meeting new people and getting the chance to connect with people who are totally different to me. Most of my growth has come from successful relationship building and expanding my horizons beyond my own perspective. I’m dedicated to constantly evolving, and challenging myself to continue to grow.

What does a typical day look like for you in your role? 

It’s a totally mixed bag for me day to day. A conventional marketing role has a lot of behind-the-scenes activity and a wide net of responsibilities – not that I’m complaining, the fast pace and wide variety challenge me so well! A lot of my day is pretty meeting-heavy, as I’m involved with all areas of the business in relation to product operations, campaign management, marketing ideas, channel management, and the usual day-to-day operations you’d expect in a management role. I also work with a number of other businesses that support us in our operations. I predominantly work across both our ANZ EP for School product (Primary and Secondary) and our EP for Professionals product. When you factor in each region across Australia as well – it all adds up quickly! My days are never dull, and that’s exactly how I like it. EP’s dedicated to creating accessible education for all learners, and for me, it’s an incredibly rewarding space to work in and be a part of.

What’s one thing that surprised you when you began working at Education Perfect?

I felt comfortable being more of myself very quickly, which I didn’t expect at first and isn’t common for LGBTQIA+ employees in a workplace. When I was applying for jobs, having to hide parts of myself was something I was nervous about. EP’s always been an inclusive environment that I’ve felt safe in, and since joining, is always challenging itself more and more to prioritise diversity and inclusion across all of its areas and initiatives. Many of the staff at EP contribute greatly to creating such a great and safe space to work in. Alongside that, I’ve always been welcomed with a lot of opportunities for growth. I intended to work at EP for a single year before continuing on to do a PhD, but EP’s completely changed my mind. I’m thrilled to be here many years later; it’s a decision I’ve never looked back on.

What is your secret talent?

I’m not an amazing piano player, I can’t speak 5 languages fluently, and I can’t suddenly drop into the splits, but I’m great at getting a smile and a laugh out of people! I don’t struggle with this at all, no matter how serious the other person is. Like a lot of others within the rainbow community, I’ve had a lot of hard times throughout my life, and keeping a positive attitude and having a smile has always gone a long way for making the spaces around me better. I do my best to share this with others and not be too serious all the time, and I try to do this no matter what setting I’m in. I’m not sure if it really counts as a talent, but it’s certainly helped me a lot with all forms of relationship building over my life – in and out of work!

How do you prefer to start your day?

Well, as someone who is not at all a morning person, I drag myself out of bed around 5:45 am on my weekdays to go to the gym. Once I’m up, I’m fine, but the getting up doesn’t come naturally. I really enjoy cardio, and it sets me up so nicely for my day. I do like having a bit of time each morning to gather myself too, so I really try to set aside time for breakfast and coffee and to shower without much else. I get to work around 8 am to begin my day, and often spend that time working out what I need to achieve, making a to-do list for the day, and making sure all projects on my mind are attended to in some way. I try not to have meetings before I’ve had a chance to gather myself first. 

What has been your biggest challenge?

I’d say my biggest challenge has been overcoming myself and getting out of my own way. I didn’t grow up with any rainbow-related role models and never saw anyone who was like me to look up to, which often made me feel like I didn’t quite fit in anywhere. As I got older, I made a commitment to myself to learn to stand on my own two feet and always back myself. It definitely takes a long time, as well as a lot of maintenance, but overcoming this allowed me to grow into someone I’m really proud of and can confidently carry myself forward. I still don’t find a similar mould compared to a lot of my peers still, but the difference now is that I celebrate that (and very fortunately, so do all my peers and colleagues!). 

What do you look forward to most in your role?

My honest answer is I look forward to everything. If I had to pick one thing, I look forward to its evolution! I’ve worn so many hats at EP – I once managed our Inbound Customer Support Team, our Online Events space, and now I manage one of our Marketing Teams. Every challenge allows me to grow, and I strongly believe I can do anything I put my mind to. I’m still in my 20s, so career-wise, I sometimes find myself feeling green, but I use this as fuel to push myself to match the outstanding work everybody around me brings to EP. I’m really lucky to have such strong support around me at EP to help champion my growth – beginning with our Chief Operating Officer, Emma McAllister, who was my manager for a number of years, and now my current boss, our Chief Sales & Marketing Officer, Alex Knigge, who has also only supported me, empowered me, and challenged me to grow. Our CEO, Alex Burke, has also always supported me and my growth and regularly takes time to check in. I feel really lucky to have the support I do, especially from our Leadership Team. 

Any last words you would like to share?

Growing and evolving is challenging and takes a lot of work, but the pay-off leads to results you can always be proud of. Don’t be afraid to push yourself out of your comfort zone, take on new challenges that are unfamiliar, and to make mistakes – this is where you’ll learn and grow the most in ways you don’t expect. 

Thanks for reading my article! If you have any questions about EP, whether it’s our offerings, EP as a place to work, marketing or any diversity and inclusion initiatives, reach out to me at [email protected]!