Finding the Future Beyond COVID-19

We talked to Katie Buckett, cofounder at OneFifty about architects of what comes next and she had the following to say about it.

First of all, how are you and your family doing in these COVID-19 times? 

Katie Buckett: With a young child and a business, life is pretty full-on with or without a pandemic!

Tell us about you, your career, how you founded OneFifty.

Katie Buckett: I always knew a) I wanted a career in marketing, and b) I loved the internet. I chose to do a degree in communications and worked in-house at Vauxhall Motors and in an agency. Alex, my cofounder, and I met while working in the agency and later founded OneFifty. 

How does OneFifty innovate? 

Katie Buckett: We are architects of what comes next – it’s literally baked into our proposition. What we mean by this is that we help organizations navigate the digital future – how it impacts how we communicate, research, and purchase. We use data to understand consumer behaviors, which we believe are the best guide to evolving their approach.

How the coronavirus pandemic affects your business, and how are you coping?

Katie Buckett: We have a diversified client-base, so whilst our travel and hospitality clients were badly affected, others, such as food and drink brands and B2B technology, saw opportunities. So, overall we’ve fared much better than I feared in March 2020, but behind what I hoped in January 2020. 

Did you have to make difficult choices, and what are the lessons learned?

Katie Buckett: I think all choices you make when growing a business are hard – you’re choosing between opportunities, with ripple effects which can have unforeseen consequences over the years ahead. 2020 brought greater uncertainty around the choices, as the operating environment is, to deploy the year’s most over-used word – ‘unprecedented. I’ll only know in years to come the lessons of the decisions, but it has reminded me to stick to your principles – when the environment is uncertain, your principles are the only certainty remaining.’ 

How do you deal with stress and anxiety?

Katie Buckett: Wine (joking). Exercise. But also distinguishing and understanding the differences in these words: Responsibility naturally brings pressure. That’s not the same as stress. Likewise, anxiety – we all worry about things, but anxiety is a specific medical phenomenon that needs not to be devalued by overuse by people who are simply experiencing life’s usual worries.

Who are your competitors? And how do you plan to stay in the game?

Katie Buckett: When you’re focused on what comes next, your competition is the status quo and those seeking to preserve it. Our plan is to stay future-focused, with the people and skills to remain there.

Your final thoughts?

Katie Buckett: Craig David deserved his New Year Honor from the Queen. 

Your website?

www.onefiftyconsultancy.com