From Firehose to Focus: The First 30 Days as a New Content Director

By Kori Hill Wallace

Starting my adventure as the new Content Director at Ceros has been a thrilling journey and one I’m leaning into with my hands in the air like it’s 1998 and I’m riding the Hurler at Paramount Kings Dominion (IYKYK)! What better way to document this exciting development than to share my musings on LinkedIn—after all, content typically involves some sort of writing (or nowadays, prompting your favorite LLM) and it felt like a fitting and useful way to flex those ol’ article chops.

This isn't just a look back at my first month; it’s a blend of my lessons learned, and a sprinkle of insider tips and templates. Whether you’re about to step into a similar role or just curious about the behind-the-scenes of a tech-driven, creative powerhouse, join me as I travel this wild and wonderful rollercoaster. (Sorry, I’m all out of Dramamine.)

Weeks 1 & 2: Navigating the information overload

In my first two weeks at Ceros, the influx of information was overwhelming but crucial.

Thankfully, I managed to stave off my sensory overload (ADHD loses this time!) and ultimately, benefited from this initial "firehose" of information. Here’s what I learned:

• Embrace the learning curve: Dive deep into understanding the company’s products, history, and the team. For me, getting to grips with Ceros's no-code platform and its capabilities was essential. It’s important to grasp both the strategic and operational aspects.
• Assess the landscape: Pay close attention to any recent shifts within the company. Last year, Ceros had ventured deeper into AI, an exciting yet challenging field, which held a lot of implications for the company. Understanding these moves helped me align my strategies effectively.
• Setting strategic directions: The information gathered in the early days should form the basis of your strategic planning. I approached it by implementing the “Hero Hub Help” content model. It helped streamline our content efforts by categorizing them into types and themes, ensuring that our content not only meets diverse needs but is also well-organized. Oh look, here’s a pretty little chart I made in Miro: 

Weeks 3, 4 & 5: Laying the operational foundations

The third week was about turning strategies into actionable plans through team collaboration:

• Offsite workshop: If feasible, organize face-to-face workshops. Ceros is a fully remote business, but we were lucky enough to have a session in NYC, which was instrumental in brainstorming and aligning on the content themes that would drive our marketing strategies. The boost in team dynamics and creativity is immeasurably valuable. NGL, margaritas were involved at one point. 🍹

After some New York bagels (definitely not to nurse any margarita-induced hangovers 🫥) and with strategies in place, the focus shifted to execution:

• Detailed content roadmapping: Thanks to the Hero Hub Help model and some set content themes, we developed a comprehensive content roadmap for Q3 that included 2-3 blogs published per week, 12 industry hub website pages, 6 customer stories, 2 webinars and more. This kind of detailed planning is crucial for setting expectations and ensuring cross-team alignment. Here are the templates we used: 

A content planning matrix where we mapped a big cross-team brainstormed idea list to our content themes: 

Which then turned into a detailed content calendar:

For us, setting clear guidelines for content creation and leveraging a cross-team content calendar helped keep everyone on the same page.

Side note: Would you be interested in getting any of these materials in template form? Drop me a note—happy to provide! (From the gal who LOVES a template and never does anything original … except for this LinkedIn article.) 

The road ahead: Embracing challenges and documenting success

My first month at Ceros has been a profound learning experience filled with intense growth and strategic achievements (and shhh don’t tell anyone but I’m actually over 60 days into my role sooo, hey, don’t stress if you don’t always achieve your self-set timelines!) The foundations we built during my first month will guide our efforts as we aim to innovate and inspire with our content. I plan to share ongoing insights and dive deeper into specific strategies like the Hero Hub Help model in upcoming articles.

For anyone stepping into a new leadership role, especially in a fast-paced tech environment, embracing the initial chaos, setting strategic frameworks early, and fostering strong team collaboration are keys to early success. But I know for me, maintaining consistency, tracking the metrics and adjusting where necessary will be the true test of wills!

I’m eager to hear from others in similar roles:

• What strategies have you implemented in your first few weeks?
• How do you approach content planning and team management?

Drop me a DM or comment below.