Twitter Interview with Alyson Gausby, BBA '05 - Head of Research

April 8, 2019

WORKING AT TWITTER

What’s it like working for one of the biggest social media brands in the world?

Twitter is where the world goes to see what’s happening, so in our world there is always something interesting to talk about. Twitter is where the news gets their news.

What types of things do you do day to day in your role?

Our mandate is to prove and improve the value of Twitter advertising to clients. [The research team] measures the impact of campaigns on the platforms, helps clients understand what works and what doesn’t, what they can do better next time, and helps them to better understand our audience so they can better connect with their audience.

What did the steps look like to go from new grad to where you are today?

If you think about every job you have in your career as a different building block to get you to where you are. I’ve worked for some of the biggest research companies in the world which were great because they taught me process and gave me good foundations. I’ve worked for a startup which taught me to be nimble and scrappy and to be ok with working from a blank slate. I’ve worked internationally which was a great experience, and then to come back here and work in tech and advertising. So if you think about where you are as a sum of all the pieces, everyone has a different story but you take and you learn different things working in different industries or different jobs.

LIFE AT LAURIER

What were the things that helped make your Laurier experience special?

I played on the Varsity Rugby team which was an amazing group of loving, totally kick-ass women and uh, I only played for a year, but after that we played like powder puff football, so, I mean, we were a tight group and it was a really great experience.

Do you have specific memories about your time at Laurier that you draw into your everyday work or that have contributed to helping you along the path to getting here?

Having to write all of those executive summaries was really helpful. The ability, in my role, to take huge data sets and distill that information into what really matters is really helpful in my day-to-day.

Were you in the co-op program?

I wasn’t because I didn’t want to go to school in the summer. When I was there, there were a lot of us who didn’t do co-op.

ADVICE FOR STUDENTS AND NEW GRADS

What advice do you have for someone who’s looking for a co-op or grad role? What do you see that sets the Laurier students apart from the overall applicant pool?

You would be surprised the number of people who don’t do their research, who don’t have a question to ask you at the end, so I think if you do get to the interview stage those are things that the school really stresses. In terms of resumes, it should reflect who you are, not just what you’ve done, but I’m also always surprised at the number of 3 page resumes that you get for an entry level position – it’s important to show that you know how to distill information concisely.

Is there any other advice you’d like to share with our students or new grads?

It’s very easy to get really stressed out about your grades, and they are important, but I don’t even remember what my GPA was. It’s very easy to focus solely on your grades and not on the stuff that makes you a well-rounded student, a well-rounded person, and somebody who we would want to hire. Grades are important but they’re not everything –there’s so much more in terms of the experience.