What Do Honey G, Football Manager and SMS Messaging Have in Common?

The answer: One of our newest account managers Jordan Russell! He’s been with us for a little while now, but it’s time to introduce him to the world.

Jordan handles our healthcare, local government, education, sports clubs and gym accounts. That probably sounds like quite a load for one person but he handles it well. In fact, the diversity is something he enjoys. He talks about that, and some other interesting tidbits in the probing interview below.

Fastsms: How long have you been with Fastsms?

Jordan: I have been working with Fastsms for 8 months now after leaving HSBC earlier this year due to restructuring. I worked very closely with Sandy in the past, so joining Fastsms was an easy decision when offered to me.

Fastsms: What is your educational background?

Jordan: I went to Ounsdale High School, in a village called Wombourne where I stayed for sixth form also. I got a couple of A’s in my A-Levels (Not that I am bragging!) and then I went to the University of Worcester for 2 years to study Business Marketing & Economics. After living with 5 mates in a confined flat for 2 years, living the Uni Dream, I decided to put a halt to my studies and join HSBC and their Commercial Banking Team.

Fastsms: How does your previous work experience help you at Fastsms?

Jordan: Being a Relationship Manager at HSBC taught me many valuable lessons on how to manage business accounts, be involved in the day to day running of certain aspects of a business, converse with all varieties of businesses and people behind them. And on a personal level, it helped me to grow up and become determined and hard working to achieve my ambitions in life.

Fastsms: What do you like most about being an account manager?

Jordan: The customer. It is awesome to speak with our clients on a day to day basis, and discuss potential use cases with them and discuss the potential benefits to helping them grow as a business or organisation. The satisfaction in seeing plans turn into actual results shows that the service we are providing here is beneficial and shows that SMS messaging is growing into a vital necessity for businesses in this day and age.

Fastsms: What do you like about the Fastsms office?

Jordan: The atmosphere within the office, we have a great team and it isn’t a struggle on a Monday morning to get out of bed and come to work! The office is bright and spacious as well, so it feels very open and you are not on top of each other, which has been the experience I have felt in previous jobs when it comes to working at a desk.

Fastsms: You’re account manager for healthcare, local government, education, sports clubs and gyms. Those are diverse industries. What do you bring to each that ensures they are getting the best advice and support?

Jordan: The variety of the sectors is actually a benefit to me in my opinion. It has allowed me to get a real insight into how other business sectors work across the board and different use cases they use Fastsms for. In turn, this allows me then to share the potential use cases across other business sectors, and it has helped some of my clients use SMS in ways they did not think would work for them, but when implemented, has seen high levels of growth in areas such as sales revenue lines, appointment turn ups, or new sign ups to their companies.

Fastsms: What is your personal philosophy?

Jordan: Keep on smiling. It is very simple, but a pet peeve of mine is all these inspirational quotes that fly around all forms of social media which people ‘’buy in-to’’, I feel that if I am happy, and the people around me are happy, that is all that matters to me. But if you would like an inspirational quote for the day, a wise man on a film once said ‘’It’s not worth winning if you can’t win big’’, that wise man being Coach Bombay from the Mighty Ducks franchise. Modern day classics, all three of them.

Fastsms: Where is your favourite place to be?

Jordan: I would have to say Dublin. I went this year for the fifth time. I would like to say it is for the culture and the attractions, but the only attraction I seem to visit when I go is the Guinness Factory and then camp out around Temple Bar for the duration of my trip!

Fastsms: What’s the one thing you can’t live without?

Jordan: Right now I am slightly addicted to the new Football Manager. I told my Girlfriend not to get me it this year as every year, it takes over my life for at least 2-3 months (She is called Emma, and she does exist, I have the photos to prove it!). It gives me some satisfaction playing with Wolves and actually winning games unlike what we do in real life.

Fastsms: What is your favourite food?

Jordan: I have a real sweet tooth and love my chocolate, I could quite easily smash a shares size Galaxy bar in one sitting

Fastsms: Do you have any funny work stories (fastsms or other)?

Jordan: There are a few that probably aren’t appropriate to go on the blog! The Monday mornings re-watching Honey G are usually entertaining when Katie and Aimee try to imitate her. It comes to something when you can say Honey G is comfortably better at singing/rapping/ruining songs than you.

Fastsms: If you were going to be stranded on an island for a year, and you can only bring one book (no electronics allowed). What book would you bring?

Jordan: I think the last book I ever read was The Travel Diaries of Karl Pilkington, which probably shows you I do not read that much anymore. But I would probably take the Game of Thrones books, love the TV series, and would love to read the books from the start.

Thanks Jordan for answering the questions so willingly! If you’re in one of the sectors Jordan manages, you can reach him directly via email at jordan.russell@fastsms.co.uk. If you’re in a different sector, you can connect with us via live chat, email, or phone and we’ll get you in touch with the right account manager for your industry.