Andreea is in charge of handling every email that comes to our agency on a daily.
As a modern agency, we rely almost entirely on email communication. Invented in 1971, email quickly became a mass communication tool, especially in business.
But let’s not deviate. We’re here to talk with Andreea, who handles hundreds of emails daily and somehow never misses a message. Orders, internal directives, confirmations, reviews, revisions, complaints, and more. She is the first to know about everything related to our Internal Department (and beyond).
Who is Andreea?
Although Andreea Mereuță is our “Internal” colleague, asking her to write a few words about herself revealed a character who should be in marketing, not just answering emails.
Cc @ Management!
Hi, I’m Andreea but people call me Office, Andirea, or even Mr. Andrea as per many of our international collaborators. For almost two years, I’ve been part of the Internal project managers team. You know that moment when someone asks about you, and you draw a blank? Well, I’m an energetic, agitated person and apparently, I’m much more multitasking-capable than I initially thought!
What do I like most about this job? The satisfaction at the end of the day or week when I know I gave it my all and managed to find solutions. Whether I offer alternatives, find the optimal solution, or solve unpleasant situations, I feel incredibly fulfilled knowing I did my best. Ultimately, it all boils down to finding solutions and making things work smoothly.
In the Morning…
Andreea starts the morning with a double dose of cafe latte. There’s no question about it.
The office@ address is like an Easter egg; you never know what’s inside until you open it. The second thing I do is say my serenity prayer (just kidding, although it might not be a bad idea) and then I check my email and set the day’s priorities, emergencies, client responses, meetings, and projects with issues.
This step is mandatory, alongside bombarding colleagues with emails!
Then… the fun begins! When I get to work, it’s like one of my little OCD elves wakes up and wants to see the email inbox as sexy as possible… not naked but empty! Although it sounds chaotic, in this tornado we find the best solutions, together, and get things done!
To make the fun absolute, our agency has an internal policy we strictly adhere to, stating that we must respond to any request within 15 minutes. With the help of people like Andreea, we achieve this in over 95% of cases. Which is a lot!
Andreea at Lunch…
Some days, Andreea is so busy responding to tons of emails that she forgets she needs food, surviving only on coffee and other drinks. Despite her colleagues’ protests, some things cannot be postponed.
The most important thing is to understand what is requested and the client’s expectations before forwarding an email to a colleague or to another department. It’s even more fun when I receive emails in languages other than English; Google Translate and ChatGPT have been my good friends for two years now!
Since I receive requests for every colleague in the agency, I’ve come to know certain clients as if they were my own. Usually, we as PMs handle communication and maintain a very good relationship with the client. So we handle requests, and problems, and find the optimal solution for a “happy end” (laughs).
The Afternoons…
In the afternoons, Andreea eats. The email avalanche usually comes in the morning. After 3:00 PM it’s usually quieter, allowing her to do something other than respond to the dreaded office@. Usually…
But it can also be the other way around, with the afternoon being busier than the morning, and emails coming in one after another. There’s no notable difference, except that some mornings I have over 50 emails when I open my inbox, and the same can happen in the afternoon. Maybe I don’t notice the buzz as quickly because I’m already at the laptop and responding promptly. A day without emergencies is a wasted day!
End of the Day
A good day is when our colleague somehow manages to do it all. And in 99% of cases, she succeeds. Only she knows how, to be honest…
At the end of the day, I pray that I’ve seen, allocated, and responded to emails in a timely manner for all the requests and situations that were on hold. I take one last look to ensure everything is in order, and that I’ve received the necessary confirmations, and then look at the projects I have for the next day. That way, when I arrive in the morning, I know at least part of what to expect.
I check everything once more to ensure everything is fine, get the confirmations, and prepare for the next avalanche. It’s like setting the GPS for the next day—I know I’ll get lost but at least I’ll do it in style!
If you need translations, you can start with an email to our colleague. She’s the best at forwarding, so you can trust that your request will 100% reach the right person.
