It’s been close to 17 years since Deem Communications is leading in the communications sector. It has always been on the lookout for new opportunities digging deeper into market trends to better understand the current needs. What have you achieved so far? – you may ask. Let’s recap the past months.
On November 5, DeeM hosted a signature conference called Generation N: Decoding Communications to bind communications and tech in a post-Covid-19 reality.
The pandemic forever changed the world order. It served as the biggest disruptive force in the acceleration of e-commerce integration into our lives. The trajectory of consumerism shifted and adaptive behavior followed suit. Brian Solis, a digital anthropologist and a global innovation evangelist coined the term for the generation that emerged slowly at first and more aggressively during the pandemic. Generation N (Novel) is the term for a disruptive, cross-generational consumer segment that is not age-bound, but rather a digital-first community. Brian Solis believes that the demand for accelerating digital initiatives has recorded an all-time high, and customers are now more digitally literate and versed. Generating digital versions of traditional in-person experiences has also become the key to satisfying the demands of the current cohort of employees.
New demands for personalization are also being driven by Gen N, as they desire workplaces tailored to their preferences. Decision-makers have to adapt to a combination of communications and technology to ensure an efficient and smooth workflow and to balance technology and flexibility with security. To meet the expectations and standards of a digital-first world, brands must reimagine their visions, touchpoints, and communications. It’s imperative that the new and advanced pillars reflect customer safety, values, and trustworthiness, as well as one’s role in becoming a positive force in society.
“This concept spoke to me and mirrored my own thoughts,” shares Raffi Niziblian, Creative Director of DeeM, during his interview with e4m about Generation N. Keeping all this in mind and being inspired by the transformative force, Raffi did not miss the chance to integrate it in the Armenian reality. Reminiscing on the PR Summit Armenia, Raffi decided to bring back its thought leadership platform. With a reinvigorated vision and a highly motivated team, he conceived an event, with intellectually challenging topics, and an inspiring location for a target group of decision-makers and innovators.
Close to 80 leaders from the tech, banking, and other sectors attended what promises to be the first edition of Generation N. The new model of the conference touched upon topics of talent, culture, “Great resignation”, and communicating during a time of crisis. Web3 was discussed under the umbrella of the new notion of “Generation Novel”. Tech was the focus since the industry has experienced a “boom” despite the global pandemic in recent years. Hybridization of the workplace was as smooth as ever for tech companies abroad and in Armenia.
Why now? Digitally savvy consumers are the new trendsetters, DeeM acknowledges and integrates these trends into the Armenian market in order to meet their needs.
One of the key topics was the workforce flows and identifying the talent needs of companies, especially in the tech industry. The Great Resignation began in the global job market in 2020. Despite the fact that the Covid-19 pandemic was not necessarily the catalyst for this trend, it certainly accelerated it, and companies around the world realized how important it is for employees to have better working conditions. A speaker at our event, Madlene A. Minassian, shared how Picsart has adapted to new standards: “We have been thinking about this question from the very first day of the COVID pandemic till now. We have realized that we, at Picsart, are a remote-friendly but not a remote-first organization. So, first thing, we have developed hubs around the world that our people can be in and an actual center. An office for them, to be together and have a physical home, when they want it. Secondly, we made sure that our learning offerings are live. We shifted from completely online modules to live sessions making sure that the modules are interactive, that people engage, that people contribute and it’s a co-learning space”.
Panelists shared their own experiences regarding how their companies cope with the challenges of remote working, isolating people, and how it became increasingly difficult for them to convey empathy through a screen.
Suresh Raj, Global Chief Growth Officer, Virtue (Vice Media Group company), was the Keynote Speaker who crossed the Atlantic to attend the conference. He touched upon the topics of Creativity and Communications Solutions in Tech.
He then joined the first panel discussion to talk about Talent, Culture, and a Response to the “Great Resignation” which was moderated by Dr. Lara Cholakian and also featured panelists Madlene A. Minassian, Head of Learning and Development, Picsart and Meaghan Smulders, VP People & Operations, Conduit who noted the following: “I look at the history of work. We were required to come to the office every single day from nine to five or from nine to nine to get things done, with almost no flexibility. We, at Conduit, decided that we are a remote-first globally distributed company. We have people that are solo in a single country. So we shifted the way that leadership operates, we talk with team members before each call as humans; about what’s going on in their life, and work. Making them feel more like a human, not a bubble head in a Zoom call. So 50% of managers’ time should be going into nurturing their relationships.”
To that, Raj added: “It’s difficult for the creative industry. If you think about creativity, it happens when people are jamming in the rooms. We also came to the understanding that people have very diverse personal lives, they have different commitments. We don’t always use Zoom calls for meetings, or work. We do it also to socialize. But for creativity or especially for pitching to a client, we are trying to bring our team in a room together, because that changes the dynamic.”
Anastasia Elaeva, Global Development Director, musicAeterna Orchestra and Choir, Dr. Armen R Kherlopian, Chief Science and Innovative Officer of Covenant Venture Capital, and Raffi Niziblian spoke about critical issues related to Communications in Times of Crisis. This panel was moderated by Arin Keshishian, a crisis communication consultant. As part of their discussion, they each shared their perspectives on communications during crisis times, and this is what Anastasia Elaeva, Global Development Director, musicAeterna Orchestra and Choir added on her behalf: “The art is the facilitator of something that is more important than just a product or service, and we know from surveys and polls that the new generation is also expecting to know the values and standpoints of the brands they work for or consume. Who they are culturally and what kind of partnerships they have. During the times of pandemic, a lot of institutions and brands that had cultural engagement had things to communicate to their communities, like some of them would organize virtual tours to the studios or halls creating digital residences, meaning that being culturally engaged helped them to engage allies and friends, partnerships at a time of trouble”.
And lastly, in the third panel, which was moderated by David Bequette, Director of Sales and Business Development at ACX, a blockchain company, participating panelists were Stephany Sanossian, NFT, Visual Artist, Viktoria Khechumyan, CEO at Nooor, Web 3.0 consulting company, and Artyom Harutyunyan, Web3 Evangelist, Blockstars. They raised the question of Finding Your Place on Web3 with new channels of communication such as NFTs and gaming. As the discussion progressed, Sanossian interjected with the following: “We definitely know that NFTs are now the new means to help brands communicate their stories via artwork, in new platforms never imagined before. We still don’t know, and can only imagine to what extent the NFT will impact the way we use them for communications, but one thing is clear – it is now a new reality of how we create, distribute, consume, and communicate not only art but other things as well”.
The event ended on a high note with a networking reception where many of the participants got to develop the ideas of the day contextualizing them with their own experiences. The room was filled with buzzing ideas and optimistic energy. Talks to continue such important events with more contemporary issues to be tackled were circulating throughout the event. We promise to return with invigorating thoughts, guests, and speakers. We hope to expand the scope of these discussions to include a wider range of audiences and contributors since we strongly believe that communication is the tie that binds. And as our panelist, Viktoria Khechumyan said: “One important thing about the event today was that it brought all the dots together. The world is changing fast, and communications are happening in multiple new channels that we need to leverage.”
Close to 80 leaders from the tech, banking, and other sectors attended what promises to be the first edition of Generation N. The new model of the conference touched upon topics of talent, culture, “Great resignation”, and communicating during a time of crisis. Web3 was discussed under the umbrella of the new notion of “Generation Novel”. Tech was the focus since the industry has experienced a “boom” despite the global pandemic in recent years. Hybridization of the workplace was as smooth as ever for tech companies abroad and in Armenia.
Why now? Digitally savvy consumers are the new trendsetters, DeeM acknowledges and integrates these trends into the Armenian market in order to meet their needs.
One of the key topics was the workforce flows and identifying the talent needs of companies, especially in the tech industry. The Great Resignation began in the global job market in 2020. Despite the fact that the Covid-19 pandemic was not necessarily the catalyst for this trend, it certainly accelerated it, and companies around the world realized how important it is for employees to have better working conditions. A speaker at our event, Madlene A. Minassian, shared how Picsart has adapted to new standards: “We have been thinking about this question from the very first day of the COVID pandemic till now. We have realized that we, at Picsart, are a remote-friendly but not a remote-first organization. So, first thing, we have developed hubs around the world that our people can be in and an actual center. An office for them, to be together and have a physical home, when they want it. Secondly, we made sure that our learning offerings are live. We shifted from completely online modules to live sessions making sure that the modules are interactive, that people engage, that people contribute and it’s a co-learning space”.
Panelists shared their own experiences regarding how their companies cope with the challenges of remote working, isolating people, and how it became increasingly difficult for them to convey empathy through a screen.
Suresh Raj, Global Chief Growth Officer, Virtue (Vice Media Group company), was the Keynote Speaker who crossed the Atlantic to attend the conference. He touched upon the topics of Creativity and Communications Solutions in Tech.
He then joined the first panel discussion to talk about Talent, Culture, and a Response to the “Great Resignation” which was moderated by Dr. Lara Cholakian and also featured panelists Madlene A. Minassian, Head of Learning and Development, Picsart and Meaghan Smulders, VP People & Operations, Conduit who noted the following: “I look at the history of work. We were required to come to the office every single day from nine to five or from nine to nine to get things done, with almost no flexibility. We, at Conduit, decided that we are a remote-first globally distributed company. We have people that are solo in a single country. So we shifted the way that leadership operates, we talk with team members before each call as humans; about what’s going on in their life, and work. Making them feel more like a human, not a bubble head in a Zoom call. So 50% of managers’ time should be going into nurturing their relationships.”
To that, Raj added: “It’s difficult for the creative industry. If you think about creativity, it happens when people are jamming in the rooms. We also came to the understanding that people have very diverse personal lives, they have different commitments. We don’t always use Zoom calls for meetings, or work. We do it also to socialize. But for creativity or especially for pitching to a client, we are trying to bring our team in a room together, because that changes the dynamic.”
Anastasia Elaeva, Global Development Director, musicAeterna Orchestra and Choir, Dr. Armen R Kherlopian, Chief Science and Innovative Officer of Covenant Venture Capital, and Raffi Niziblian spoke about critical issues related to Communications in Times of Crisis. This panel was moderated by Arin Keshishian, a crisis communication consultant. As part of their discussion, they each shared their perspectives on communications during crisis times, and this is what Anastasia Elaeva, Global Development Director, musicAeterna Orchestra and Choir added on her behalf: “The art is the facilitator of something that is more important than just a product or service, and we know from surveys and polls that the new generation is also expecting to know the values and standpoints of the brands they work for or consume. Who they are culturally and what kind of partnerships they have. During the times of pandemic, a lot of institutions and brands that had cultural engagement had things to communicate to their communities, like some of them would organize virtual tours to the studios or halls creating digital residences, meaning that being culturally engaged helped them to engage allies and friends, partnerships at a time of trouble”.
And lastly, in the third panel, which was moderated by David Bequette, Director of Sales and Business Development at ACX, a blockchain company, participating panelists were Stephany Sanossian, NFT, Visual Artist, Viktoria Khechumyan, CEO at Nooor, Web 3.0 consulting company, and Artyom Harutyunyan, Web3 Evangelist, Blockstars. They raised the question of Finding Your Place on Web3 with new channels of communication such as NFTs and gaming. As the discussion progressed, Sanossian interjected with the following: “We definitely know that NFTs are now the new means to help brands communicate their stories via artwork, in new platforms never imagined before. We still don’t know, and can only imagine to what extent the NFT will impact the way we use them for communications, but one thing is clear – it is now a new reality of how we create, distribute, consume, and communicate not only art but other things as well”.
The event ended on a high note with a networking reception where many of the participants got to develop the ideas of the day contextualizing them with their own experiences. The room was filled with buzzing ideas and optimistic energy. Talks to continue such important events with more contemporary issues to be tackled were circulating throughout the event. We promise to return with invigorating thoughts, guests, and speakers. We hope to expand the scope of these discussions to include a wider range of audiences and contributors since we strongly believe that communication is the tie that binds. And as our panelist, Viktoria Khechumyan said: “One important thing about the event today was that it brought all the dots together. The world is changing fast, and communications are happening in multiple new channels that we need to leverage.”
Stay tuned!
Mary Mooradian
Pencil Priestess
Deem Communications
DeeMmag, December 2022
