Category: All
So, just who are the faces behind Arena Partnership? This month, we would like to tell you a little more about ourselves; our past, our present and our hopes for the future.
We hope the following interview with Company Director Alan Marshall and his team, Jamie, Sandy, Tom and Lucy will tell you everything you need to know about Arena but never dared ask…
We’ve also created a presentation to give you the full picture; click to read The Story of Arena Partnership
Read on to meet the people behind TP Tracker and the inspiring story of Arena Partnership’s rise to success.
Alan’s Story
Q. When was Arena Partnership started and what was its focus/ aim?
A. I started Arena in 2003 with my colleague Mark Overton with the aim of bringing private sector marketing skills to the public sector. We worked with a number of organisations like Business Link and the East of England Development Agency to attract audiences to their events and support programmes. We were asked by a couple of social housing providers to help increase their engagement with tenants and the rest (as they say) is history.
Q. What would you consider to be TP Tracker’s USP and main benefits?
A. The biggest shock to me was when I realised one day that I was running an IT company: Tracker was originally developed simply to help our clients to record and analyse who was taking part in what activities but it soon became the centre of everything we do.
We designed Tracker for people just like me who are not very ‘techy’ so it has always been really easy to use and needed very little training.
By linking a range of different modules to a core tenant database means we can give users some ‘joined up’ software for a change.
It is really easy to get started and has the price of an ‘off-the-shelf’ package, but gives users lots of opportunities to customise it so it meets their specific need: truly the best of both worlds.
Q. What’s been the highlight of your career so far?
A. I always thought I could never be a ‘front man’ for a business: customers always seemed pretty scary. But now I just love getting out and about meeting all the interesting, professional and thoroughly nice people who work in social housing and sharing with them the challenges that face us all in this sector. I really wish I had discovered this earlier in my career.
Q. What are you hoping the future will bring for Arena Partnership?
A. Find a way of continuing to do what we do and growing bigger whilst retaining that very personal relationship that we have with all our friends in the sector and which has been at the heart of the way we do business.
Q. In 3 words, why should a landlord choose TP Tracker?
- Specialists (in your sector)
- Quality (products and services)
- Personal (care and suppport)
Jamie’s Story
Q. What’s your job title? Describe a typical day at Arena for you in no more than 3 sentences.
A. My job title is Operations & Support Manager. A typical day at Arena consists of helping customers with any queries they have regarding their data, how to use the Tracker site and the best way to use Tracker so it assists them with their work. I also keep an eye on making sure the site is working efficiently and the data being shown is up to date and accurate by liaising with our programmers and also our Tracker customers’ IT departments who play a major role in assisting in making the data appear in Tracker.
Q. What is the most frequently asked question when training new customers on TP Tracker?
A. The most frequently asked question is, ‘Can you reset my password?’
Q. What’s been the highlight of your time at Arena?
A. The biggest highlight of my time with Arena so far was when I went from being purely office-based to taking the step up to becoming one of the main trainers for Tracker and making onsite visits to our customers and meeting them face to face to discuss any queries they may have. To stand in front of a room full of people and they are responding enthusiastically to your training session, and can see for themselves the benefits of the Tracker product is a great feeling of accomplishment.
Sandy’s Story
Q. What is your job title? Describe a typical day at Arena for you in no more than 3 sentences.
A. Survey Service Manager. My day is extremely varied. I work closely with our Feedback customers to ensure that they are using Tracker efficiently in order to get the results they need to drive their business forward. I provide help and guidance on the surveys they wish to undertake, questions design and layout, defining a sample in order to ensure that they achieve a statistically valid result and anything else relating to surveys. I also provide training and support for Tracker and answer any queries people may have about the system.
Q. In your view, what is the best thing that TP Tracker offers our customers?
A. The customer service. We are very ‘hands on’ with our customers and strive to give the best guidance and insight into what is going on in the sector.
Q. What are your hopes for the future at Arena?
A. Professionally I hope that we become bigger and diversify so more customers can benefit from our great products and services. Personally I hope that I am able to increase my knowledge of the public sector and also increase the time I am meeting with our great customers.
Tom’s Story
Q. What is your job title? Describe a typical day at Arena for you in 3 sentences.
A. My job title is ‘Administrator’. During a typical day in the office, I will start by checking that updates for different landlords’ TP Tracker database have gone through successfully. I will also check any survey responses sent to us, and upload responses to the relevant landlord’s site. During the day I also provide support when customers contact Arena with issues or queries, create mail lists for surveys to be sent out, make sure the site is running as is expected and help Sandy and Jamie with any jobs they may need doing, amongst other tasks that may need to be completed.
Q. Why would you recommend TP Tracker to a landlord?
A. I would recommend TP Tracker to a landlord, because there are several areas of the site useful for different jobs and tasks, but all the information is recorded in the tenant’s profile, meaning you are able to see any contact a tenant has had with an organisation, and when the contact was made, even if it was not the individual user who was in contact with them. I feel this could be more useful than having one system for recording tenants’ details, another for contacting tenants, another for recording tenants’ participation etc. Also, if there is an area of the site you are unsure how to use or how to make the most of, you have the option of using the Help Guides or contacting the Arena helpdesk, which can help you to use the system to its full potential.
Q. What life skills have you gained from working at Arena?
A. I feel I have gained many life skills working here, not least of which is the ability to speak to people in a more confident manner. I now feel that I can answer the phone and answer any query a user may have with certainty. I would also say I have learnt about time management, computer skills and communication skills, as well as several other important abilities.
Lucy’s Story
Q. What is your job title? Describe a typical day at Arena for you in no more than 3 sentences.
A. My job title is Marketing Coordinator. My day consists of monitoring and updating our social media accounts, writing copy and developing visual content for the website and planning future marketing content. On a monthly basis I run Google Analytics and social media reports, and on a quarterly basis create and send the Arena Partnership e-newsletter. I also ensure that Arena has a strong, visible profile on the internet using various marketing techniques.
Q. What’s the best part of your job?
A. I really enjoy working on promoting Arena Partnership and TP Tracker to both current and potential customers, particularly through designing visual content and by connecting with other organisations via social media. It’s very gratifying to run a report and see that engagement with our customers has increased.
Q. What are you aiming to achieve at Arena?
A. My main aim is to raise Arena’s profile throughout the social housing sector and let audiences know what an excellent product we provide and how exceptional our customer service is. I am aiming to connect with as many people as possible, and ensure that I convey how approachable and accessible Arena Partnership and its services are.
What are your experiences of Arena Partnership and TP Tracker?
We would love to hear about your experiences of liaising with our team and find out what you consider to be the best thing about Arena Partnership’s TP Tracker. Please e-mail us with any comments.
You can also contact us at sales@arenapartnership.co.uk with any queries, or to book your free demonstration (either online or face-to-face at your office).
Don’t forget, you can also follow us on Twitter, LinkedIn and Facebook. For the latest updates on our services and special offers, please use #TPTracker.