Lauren Baines is Head of European Sales, Gamesquare. She has over 16 years’ experience in media sales spanning across OOH and Gaming. She has worked in both local and international business across global brands and agencies. Previous to joining Gamesquare she was Global Sales Director at Bidstack Group.
Who is your digital hero?
Tim Harvey, Founder of Knitting Media. Tim has a worked in a host of digital roles and we worked together when DOOH in the UK changed from the minority share of screens to the majority of the media sell which meant a huge amount of systems overhaul and change to build a programmatic model.
What has he done to win hero status in your eyes?
Tim listens to everyone and makes their viewpoints feel valid and equal. At the time I was far from the most senior person in the room, I felt like Tim was interested in everyone’s challenges and how the day-to-day of the business operated. He has a huge amount of experience in the digital space but was always learning from others and never condescending.
He took an incredibly detailed and fragmented bunch of systems/processes and streamlined them into a workable model. The end product was just one element in the process and although a lot of people can claim credit, the real heroism was getting everyone around the table and building a coherent future-facing strategy. His ability to see all sides and create something brilliant has stayed with me over the years.
He’s also one of the kindest people in media with his time and support – which helps.
How has his heroism helped drive digital?
Although a number of people have helped drive the oldest medium, OOH, into the future, Tim stands out to me as someone who set it on the right path for future growth and was passionate about the road ahead, even when it was rocky.
His enthusiasm is infectious and he got many people on board with a vision of what DOOH could and now looks like.
What the biggest challenges in digital we need another hero to solve?
We need more diverse voices in the digital world and that comes from demystifying the jargon and enabling people to access the table through learning.
As someone who has moved from a more traditional buying model to a programmatic one in the last few years I can see the disconnect in skills – we need to be mindful that we are creating an inclusive space and need more champions to do that.
What is your most heroic personal achievement so far in digital?
I took the leap to go into gaming as I believe the space is truly extraordinary in terms of potential. It combines physical events, streaming, influencers and programmatic options.
One half is a world I know well but I have had to really upskill my programmatic knowledge and am still on a steep learning curve but I am proud I threw myself out of my comfort zone.
Massive thanks to a couple of digital heroes Jenny Jirathammakul and Matt Blackholler for helping me on that journey in the last year.
