Employee Spotlight: Hannah Bollman

Hannah Bollman recently joined the EC team as our Digital Marketing Specialist. She has come on board to do a deep dive into content creation and online marketing after mastering SEO at her previous company. Read more about Hannah and what she hopes to accomplish at EC.

So far, what are your work days like?  

I’m loving it! The role itself is new to the company, and I’m new to the role, so it’s a lot of learning and growing. I’m still familiarizing myself with the company and brainstorming ideas I can share with the team. One of my favorite parts of my new work day is visiting the EC kitchen across the street to document our processes, get to know the catering staff and watch our food come together!

Your last job was with a national company headquartered in the Chicago suburbs. We’re located in the West Loop—hyperlocal and entrepreneurial. How has the shift in location and perspective affected your work? Overall and on a day-to-day basis?

Geographically, I love being closer to home. I live near the lake on the north side of the city, and my commute is already much better than it once was. As for the work, I’m really enjoying the challenge of marketing to a much more specific audience. I have to rethink the strategies I know and come up with new ones. I also feel like I have the privilege to see and understand how the business works, inside and out, as the company is smaller. I love working as one unified team!

Have there been any big surprises since you joined EC?

I’m (pleasantly) surprised every day by the creativity and dedication of the team. The work they all do is phenomenal, and I see now why EC is so highly rated and raved about by clients. I’m also surprised by just how much EC does. We have a hand in nearly every part of the event planning and execution process—so much more than just a catering company.

In the future, what is the type of content that you will want to add and share with clients and readers of the EC blog?

I think there’s so much opportunity for growth and experimentation on the blog. I’d love to share more content that’s interesting and engaging to a local readership—hidden Chicago gems, Illinois food and entertaining history and features on hometown folks doing cool things in the industry. I also have a background in print journalism, so I’ve got plenty of pitches to share with EC. I’d like the blog to become a community itself, a place we can share knowledge and inspo with each other.

We heard you do stand up comedy! That must be amazing. Can you tell us a little bit about that? Where do you perform?

I do perform stand up! I started regularly going to open mics about a year and a half ago, and I’ve been dabbling ever since. I perform mostly in DIY shows in anywhere from a comedy-themed bars with real stages to tiny attics in art houses—all fairly lowkey.

How did you get into that initially? Why did you start doing stand up?

I started because I’m funny! Just kidding. Kind of. I’ve always been a performative person, entertaining friends and family with jokes and antics since I can remember. I also grew up watching John Belushi comedies and SNL with my parents, so I was never a stranger to comedy. I had wanted to try stand up for years before I finally worked up the nerve, and I’m so glad I did. It’s become a great outlet for self-expression and creativity, and it allows me to really feel like I’m a part of a community in this big city.

Does stand up have any parallels to what you are doing at EC?

Definitely! Stand up has improved my public speaking skills and my overall self confidence, both of which are must-haves for almost any job. It also helps me stretch my creative mental muscles, which come in handy for both blogging and coming up with content ideas for social media.

What do you most look forward to in this job?

I look forward to amplifying this awesome company and all the great work we do! I can’t wait to show more Chicagoans how we can help them celebrate their big moments in beautiful ways.