22squared Senior Account Executive Kristen Bowman is passionate about female empowerment, purpose-driven work and all things corporate social responsibility. Uncover the industry veteran's journey in our latest Champion for Good!
Q: How have you worked with the Ad Council? What campaign(s) have you supported and what was the project you worked on with us?
Kristen Bowman: My team at 22squared had the pleasure of partnering with the Ad Council and Grads of Life on the Pathways to Employment campaign. Driven by the insight that hiring managers only spend an average of seven-seconds reviewing a resume, the heart of the campaign was a series of seven-second video resumes that allowed opportunity youth to share how their inspiring stories of overcoming adversity resulted in invaluable traits that don’t show up on the typical resume.
Q: Social good ads pull at our heartstrings. What social good ad has made you cry or stand up and cheer?
KB: #LikeAGirl is one of my personal favorite campaigns and definitely one that made me want to stand up and cheer. I love that the campaign made people think twice about the impact of their words and transformed the phrase “like a girl” into a positive statement.
Q: Why do you think it’s important for brands to have a corporate social responsibility plan in the world we live in?
KB: I think it’s important for brands to have a social responsibility plan because they often have the resources and audience to make a significant impact.
Brands often have the resources and audience to make a significant impact.
Q: What was the greatest piece of advice someone gave you, and how did it end up helping you?
KB: I had a fifth-grade teacher that said all students were capable of being A students, but the straight A students were the ones that worked the hardest. For some reason those words stuck with me well beyond fifth-grade and anytime I run into a challenge, I remind myself that all I need to do to “get an A” is put the work in.
Q: What age would you want to meet up with your former self, and what advice would you give to that younger you?
KB: I would tell my 18-year-old self to spend less time worrying about the future and more time enjoying the present!
Spend less time worrying about the future and more time enjoying the present!
Q: What values of your organization are you most proud of?
KB: I’m proud of our agency mantra (together, we give rise to change) and the fact that the agency not only finds opportunities to do purpose-driven work for our clients but also encourages us to make an impact in our communities by providing generous service leave time to employees.
Q: What can we look forward to from your organization this year
KB: We’re excited to continue our diversity and inclusion efforts through partnerships with Times Up Advertising, Advertising for Change and the American Advertising Federation.
Q: In 40 years, what will people be nostalgic for?
KB: Driving…crossing my fingers we’ll be able to teleport by then. ;-)
Q: Tell us what you hope to see more of or experience more of in the next year, using only emojis.
KB: ☀️