Written by Annika Hedström, IMA Norway

At the IMA International Conference in Helsinki in 2022, I was approached by Christina, the newly elected Executive MarCom officer. She shared an exciting vision - she wanted to establish a social media team for IMA, with the goal of revitalizing the organisation’s communication channels and taking IMA’s presence to the next level.

By the start of 2023, we had formed a dynamic team: Tina from Denmark, Karin from South Africa, Nicole from the Netherlands, and myself from Norway. Together, we embarked on a mission to bring IMA into the heart of the social media space. And if I may say so myself, we made a pretty good start!

Over the past two years, the team has seen changes - new members have joined, and some have moved on - but one thing has remained constant: my enthusiasm for being part of this incredible group. There have been days with less motivation and a writer’s block, but speaking with the others often helped cure those too. It’s been a rewarding journey, not only because of the results we’ve achieved, but also because of the fun, creativity, and collaboration along the way.

We set out to create content that would not only engage our existing members but also attract potential ones. Our campaigns have highlighted everything from why people choose to become members to what it’s like to serve on IMA’s board. We’ve done monthly summaries of the activities happening in IMA chapters across the globe and recently launched a guest writer series to bring fresh voices to our channels.

In less than two years, our LinkedIn following has grown by nearly 2,000 people - a 67% increase - and we’ve seen a 37% boost in our Instagram audience. Posting has also become a regular part of our routine. We’ve gone from sporadic updates to consistent, meaningful posts several times a week. It’s a transformation that’s both exciting and fulfilling.

But social media isn’t just about posting content. It’s about strategy. It’s about having a clear plan and being willing to experiment with new tools. As a team, we’ve learned to leverage platforms like Canva for designing visuals and ChatGPT for harnessing the power of AI. And perhaps most importantly, we’ve built a supportive environment where we can bounce ideas off one another, bringing out the best in our creativity.

One of the highlights for me has been the connections we’ve fostered within the wider IMA community. We’ve hosted webinars for the social media coordinators in various IMA chapters, sharing ideas and strategies. It’s been amazing to witness the growth of those chapters and see them blossom on their own social channels.

What really keeps us going, though, is the engagement from our members. Every like, share, and comment matters. They aren’t just social media interactions - they’re a form of support that fuels our motivation and helps us spread the word about IMA to new networks. And yes, you may have heard me talk about "the algorithms" - well, this is why they’re important!

Being part of this team has been a tremendous learning experience. I’m always on the lookout for opportunities to grow, and I’ve discovered that the skills and insights I’ve gained through IMA’s social media team have also enriched my professional life outside of IMA. It’s been incredibly exciting to see this part of the organisation evolve and grow, and I can’t wait to see where we’ll go next.

After two wonderful years, though, it’s time for me to hand over the reins. I’ve learned so much from being part of this team, and I know that with new members comes new energy, fresh ideas, and exciting innovations that will take IMA’s social media presence even further. Although I’ll be stepping back from the team (to focus on the IMA Norway board team), I’ll continue to support IMA through my likes, comments, and shares - cheering from the sidelines as this amazing journey continues.

Annika Hedström, IMA Norway

Written by Christina B. Kragh, IMA Denmark 

Have you ever had such a long break in attending meetings, that you honestly don't know if you want to continue? what if the others don't recognize you - what if you don't recognize anyone? is it embarrassing to show up all of a sudden? what will the others think?

I felt like that after the years of meeting online - my connection to the international IMA was as strong as ever because of my online work for the EC and my close collaboration with former Executive Marcom Sabrina Franchini - we had a strong collaborating online all through the pandemic. 

But meeting with the Danish group - MY group - in person? that was a tough one. Don't get me wrong - it's a great group of people! But in my mind, it was SO long ago we had met last, and I was actually a bit people-phobic by then - plus it was a long-ish drive to where the meeting was... and I'm sure it was cold too, might have been raining... the couch looked mighty inviting... should I just stay home? 

I ended up going - might as well as my company would be invoiced whether I got there or not. And am I glad I did! OH YES! 

It was a Half Training day on how to get the most out of your network - and after the first break, I suddenly felt that same feeling I had had before - it reignited something in me . This was MY network - and no, I didn't know part of them but that's what a network is for - get new contacts and meet people.

I got so many ideas from that one meeting - if you read the article in the member's area on How to get more out of your network, you will know what I got out of it! and more importantly it showed me why I'm still in IMA after 14 year.  

Written by Christina B. Kragh, IMA Denmark

Within a span of four years we have experienced a pandemic that shook the foundation of our world as we know it, and before that was even over, we saw war break out in Europe and the Middle East again! Even with all that we still have to focus on the positives - we also get to celebrate our 50 year anniversary as a network. This is monumental! 

When the Covid pandemic broke out we were all shocked - our world as we knew it would forever change, of that we were certain. But not much else was certain. Each country handled it differently - and some countries were hit harder than others. In the midst of all that - we still had a network to run. How do you do that!? Your members lose their jobs, your world may be breaking apart because you lose loved ones, all you knew for certain is no longer a certainty - but we in IMA knew we had to stick together. We HAD to offer something to keep the sense of togetherness - even though we were as apart as we had ever been. 

The EC had new people coming in during Covid - they had never had a "normal" year so they had to invent what normal was during Covid. 

Suddenly we saw innovative ways of meeting without meeting - we saw cocktail hours on Zoom, we saw people writing articles about how life would return to more normal ways of working when all this was over - reassuring others but also themselves. This was how our Insights articles started out.

We saw the rebirth of webinars - as we all used Zoom and Teams extensively to try and cope with our work, why not also use it to learn something. Yes we were all sick of staring at a screen all day - but at least we could see our IMA family now and then.  The innovation going on in all countries was amazing - we reinvented our network to stay alive and relevant.  

When you know people around the world and something like this happens, you worry about them, what are they going through? I was glad I was able to write with those I missed and have Teams meetings - we connected because we simply had to. The friendships in IMA are strong.

I missed the training day in Luxembourg in 2022 but I got to go to Helsinki for the Conference in 2022 - now we finally dared to set up a Conference in person. There were tears and long long hugs. It was like it always is when we meet for international events - but next level. It had been so long without meeting each other, and the joy of seeing that we were ok - that was fantastic. 

And now we look towards the next big milestone in IMA - our 50th Anniversary which we celebrate in 2024 ending with a big party in Stockholm for our annual conference. 

Written by Oya Karabulut, IMA Germany

My first contact with IMA was overwhelming for me, a huge thunderclap into a completely new perspective on my job. Today I go to work in a completely different way than before I met IMA.

My company Gleiss Lutz hosted an "Assistants' Networking Hub" at our Frankfurt office on 21 June 2023. My first thought was "motivational speaking doesn't make the job of an assistant any better". I've been working as an assistant in various law firms since I was 16 years old. My colleagues persuaded me to take part in the event and, I was proved wrong: motivational speaking makes every job better!

We were able to attend great presentations on key competences for the assistant of the future, skills in the context of "new work" and digital transformation, the "winning team" and the right attitude towards one's own role and the definition of one's own "WHY". This was followed by an interesting exchange of ideas and a chance to get to know each other at the after-work event. This was the first time I heard about IMA.

As part of this event, an annual IMA membership was raffled off, which was won by my dear colleague Christiane. I was incredibly happy for her because this enabled her to attend the international conference in Cape Town. When do you ever get the opportunity to travel from Europe to South Africa to attend a conference?

For personal reasons, Christiane wanted to give up her prize and - although we didn't even know each other - thought of me, for which I am very grateful. Without her, my trip to South Africa would not have happened in this form.

I spoke to my employer, who kindly gave me time off for the duration of the trip and then everything happened very quickly.

I arrived in Cape Town on the morning of 26 October 2023 after an almost 12-hour flight. That same evening, there was a welcome reception where I met wonderful people from so many different countries. I felt very comfortable and warmly welcomed from the very first second. The community is really very special and radiates warmth. I was able to meet so many interesting people from so many different countries. I was overwhelmed.

We had an exciting African evening in the Gold Restaurant and the get-together brought us even closer together. It was an unforgettable evening, which began with extensive drumming by all the IMAs and continued with a small performance by singers and dancers in very colourful costumes. Afterwards we were served many different dishes and at the end members of the staff sang for us on site.

The presentations on the following 27 October 2023 were incredibly interesting. I was able to take away so many insights and valuable approaches. Sonja de Wet guided us so wonderfully through this interesting day. She was wonderful.

Quinton Coetze - Business lessons from the wilds of Africa - Entrepreneur and Wildlife Conservationist

The first speaker with the most entertaining presentation of the conference for me, as he skillfully drew parallels to the need for cohesion and cooperation between people in the business world using many examples of the simple but very efficient coexistence of the San San, where he lived for a time. In many short film sequences, he showed how these people appreciate nature on the one hand and make use of the resources on the other, acting in a very sustainable way. The audience alternated between laughter and amazement during his interesting presentation.

Prof Thuli Madonsela - Shaping an ethical workplace - advocate and professor of law at Stellenbosch University

The soft-spoken woman has a strong professional background as a professor of law and was involved in drafting the new constitution on equal rights laws, equal treatment in the workplace and various post-apartheid constitutional laws, among other things. She spoke about the principles she has established in the world of work, which she also passes on to her students. As a single mother and former ANC member, she courageously took action against corruption in the country years ago.

Alinda Nortje - "Employee Engagement" - Founder and CEO of Free to Grow

The former social worker and community worker spoke about company culture. With her organisation, she wants to encourage and enable people in communities and organisations to realise and connect themselves. She did a learning exercise with us using Japanese numbers, which I found very interesting. “Free To Grow” now specialises in employee engagement and related learning and development activities.

Helen Monument - Chair: World Administrators Alliance

Helen Monument, who is well known to most IMAs, presented the Global Skills Matrix set up by the organisation, which is a good compass for assistants around the world on how to position themselves when applying for jobs, negotiating salaries and so on.

Ronald Samuels - Building Bridges - CEO: Botswana Insurance Life and author

His presentation about his own eventful and sometimes tragic story of his childhood and youth during apartheid touched me the most. He is the author of the book "The bitter olive", his biography, and based on extracts from it he taught us the following lesson:

In the end, it's not what happened to you that counts, it's what you do about it that matters.

In his presentation, he also spoke at length about the role of assistants and how we can achieve better results in our daily interactions through communication, mutual appreciation, cohesion and confidence in our own high value.

In the evening, the traditional gala dinner also took place in the Congress Centre with the theme "Denim and Diamonds". The hall was beautifully decorated and the tables were set in an unusual way. We danced for a long time and it was a very exuberant atmosphere, which also spread to the service staff.

What touched me the most was the immense solidarity and goodwill among all the participants. You rarely experience something like that in life. At least I do, working in the shark tank that is Frankfurt, where there is always a society of elbows.

My first contact with IMA was overwhelming for me, a huge thunderclap into a completely new perspective on my job. I am no longer just the little assistant who follows her boss's instructions. I am a key person, an ambassador between two worlds (I do build bridges!), my job is important and significant. Today, I go to work in a completely different way than before I met IMA. I am eternally grateful for that.

The event has massively boosted my self-confidence, my self-worth as an assistant. I feel like I'm an important link in the chain, having spent the last 25 years literally wandering through various offices in Germany. I am someone. And I am infinitely grateful for that.

My onward journey through South Africa only reinforced this feeling. I hired a car and bravely drove 2,557 kilometres along the Garden Route and Route 62 through left-hand traffic. I encountered many friendly and warm people and the most exciting animals. It broadened my horizons quite a bit and I am so grateful for this enrichment.

Oya Karabulut, member of IMA Germany