Office Hours: I’m the Director of Bumble LATAM (currently serving as interim Director of Bumble North America). I’m Samantha Garcia. AMA!Featured

samanthagarcia·Dec 05, 2022

Posted in:Office Hours Management and Leadership

Hi everyone!

My name is Samantha Garcia and I’m the Director of Bumble LATAM. I'm focused on driving growth through integrated marketing strategies, international expansion, and brand-building across the region. I lead cross-functional work with global teams.

Before Bumble, I was at Uber, where I led as Head of Marketing mobility for Mexico and Latin America Brand Lead, spearheading high-profile national and pan-regional marketing campaigns. A strong contributor to Uber’s growth in the region, with an impact of being part of the launch of Uber and Uber Eats in Latin American cities.

During my downtime, I explore Austin, my new city, going to good restaurants, and doing hikes.

Ask me anything about being a manager, leadership, marketing, product, dating or anything else!

ElphaStaff·Dec 05, 2022

Thanks so much for joining us @samanthagarcia!Elphas – please ask @samanthagarcia your questions before Friday, December 9th. @samanthagarcia may not have time to answer every questions, so emoji upvote your favorites 🔥👍🏾➕

tamarathomas·Dec 05, 2022

@samanthagarcia It’s a pleasure to meet you, and thank you for sharing your bio! I live in Atlanta, but Austin is one of my favorite places (my first is San Diego).

samanthagarcia·Dec 09, 2022

Good taco spots!

magdalenajensen·Dec 05, 2022

Hi @samanthagarcia - thanks for doing this! As someone who has recently moved to Mexico City (I am Polish-American and my adult life is spent in Europe and the UK), I am trying to get a feel for the work ethic in LatAm. What do you think are the main differences and what can be learned from both Mexican/LatAm and American work styles/ethics? THANKS! xx

ingridmedina·Dec 07, 2022

Hi Magdalena I am Ingrid , I live in Mexico City. I am originally from venezuela and live here 23 years ago, so already mexican. I am coach and IT headhunter we can chat about culture and ethics. What do you think ? I live in la Colonia Roma and yourself ? My ph number is 5527284510

ingridmedina·Dec 08, 2022

Hi @magdalenajensen, Now I am including the @, not sure if you got my message . See above message

magdalenajensen·Dec 08, 2022

Hi @ingridmedina - so good to meet you! Would love to connect - please Whatsapp me +44 7375 368 756 xx

samanthagarcia·Dec 09, 2022

I love your question, which is close to my professional experience. One of the big opportunities we have for living in a globalized economy is to work and learn from different cultures. LatAm people are resilient, hard workers, and creative, normally focusing on finding solutions to every problem. As a Spanish-speaking region, the connections and opportunities for growth have a regional landscape. The areas of opportunities (as we all have) is that hard work is confused with long hours; this has been changing in recent years. Another one is the hierarchical culture; as leaders in different industries, we should focus on opening doors for our teams to be part of meaningful conversations.LatAm and Mexico have a lot to offer, and I hope to hear back from you on your thoughts.

magdalenajensen·Dec 12, 2022

Thanks @samanthagarcia for taking the time to answer! I would love to hear what you think "we" (non-LatAm-born people) can also learn from people here in LatAm in terms of working styles.My first impression is that YES of course people here work incredibly hard and I love how solutions-focused people are - there's ALWAYS a way to figure something out - and I also notice that people here are happier in general. I wonder if that has to do with overall life priorities and perhaps work isn't the only one?

anushyaparam·Dec 05, 2022

@samanthagarcia! I’m looking for a mentor. I’m looking to career transition. Will you be able to chat with me ?

michellebanham·Dec 06, 2022

Welcome @samanthagarciaWow what a background! I’ve been watching Uber for roles and recently applied to one. Bumble is also an incredible growing brand! How do you make an impression or standout when applying for large brands who have hundreds applying per role?

samanthagarcia·Dec 09, 2022

Hello @michellebanham, thanks for your question; I always think that finding a new job is a job.It is important to dedicate time to finding that next opportunity that excites you. Plus, the time to research the role and the company. Also, have clear that our experience and resume are not a one fits all document. I try to take the time to modify my resume and talking points to the opportunity. When applying to big companies, one key is networking to connect with people already inside the organization, which will always give a plus to the candidates. I hope this inspires you in your search, let me know your thoughts, wishing you the best of luck!

karirusso·Dec 07, 2022

Hi @samanthagarcia, Nice to meet you and thank you for sharing and offering your time to help others! I live in Austin too and still so much to explore :) My question: I am part of the recent tech layoffs and facing a tough job market. What stands out to you most in candidate resumes and interviews as a hiring manager?

jessicalloyd·Dec 07, 2022

Same @karirusso I'm also part of the tech layoff community now and looking for same way to stand out with a powerhouse of skills but need to get in the door.

samanthagarcia·Dec 09, 2022

Hi @karirusso and @jessicalloyd, I'm sorry to hear the news, and I can relate to your situation. In my experience, I've been close to layoffs and had my team impacted by them. You are already doing the first part: finding organizations that can get you closer to hiring managers, like Elpha. I was commenting on a post earlier that networking is key; often, big companies have referral policies that benefit both the employees and the candidates. Find that time to share your experience through Linkedin (I'm not an outgoing personality, so I always find it harder) but taking space on different social media to showcase your work and the impact you had in your organization is a great way to get eyeballs in your resume. It takes time and patience, as most things in life, routing for you. Let me know what you think.

karirusso·Dec 17, 2022

Thank you, @samanthagarcia. I am glad to be part of Elpha, especially during this time. I am also working on my LinkedIn. I have added the green banner but have not posted about being let go as I also find it harder to share at that scale. I will brand myself and accomplishments a bit better there and utilize my network more. And be patient :)

melissajenkins·Dec 08, 2022

Hi @samanthagarcia, I'm love to hear about the pivotal moments in your career - the things that moved you forward or in a new direction. Serendipity? Neighbours? Advocates? Watercooler conversations... The bits that aren't in a LinkedIn profile! Thanks!!

samanthagarcia·Dec 10, 2022

Hi @melissajenkins, when I think of pivotal moments in my career, it reminds me of patience; all those moments came from waiting for the right moment and opportunity. Of course, I don't think it is like that for everyone, but in my experience, it has been a constant. But once that opportunity has arrived, stepping up and feeling comfortable with the uncertainty and challenges have helped. One specific moment was my start in tech companies. After some years at a consultancy (knowing that marketing was my passion) I got the call to join Uber, at that moment, nobody in LatAm knew the company. Although my family told me that it was a high risk and that I should think it through, joining Uber in its early years was a critical experience that consolidated my path in tech companies.

DivyaB1·Dec 08, 2022

Hi @samanthagarcia! I was wondering how you approach brand building for two pretty different products - especially one that is very logistics/operations dependent versus one which consumers maybe have a more personal connection to. What were some similarities and differences between the two? Thank you very much for your time.

samanthagarcia·Dec 10, 2022

@divya, that's a question that got me thinking, for me is all about having a customer-centric strategy. True, Uber is an operations-led company, but at its core, the users want to move from point A to point B for many reasons (work, family, friends, dreams, opportunities). Human knowledge and insights (motivator, barriers) marketing are transferable to any industry, especially in the dating world.

DivyaB1·Dec 20, 2022

i see! so at the end of the day both are about a very human experience. thank you!!

malshina·Dec 08, 2022

Thank you, Samantha! Dating apps is a hot space. How do you find your loyal audience when you don't have a huge budget as an early-stage startup?

samanthagarcia·Dec 10, 2022

@malshina that's right, in the world that we live in where the customer spam of attention is Tik Tok videos, it is important to maintain relevance at the right time and in the right way. In my opinion, the way to find budget efficiencies is to know your customer and how it interacts with your product; knowing this will guide you in choosing the strategy, channel, and creativity and finding scalability and efficiency with it. Important measurements and learnings should be a starting point of any plan to optimize and prioritize the best-performing strategies; I always think it is better to have only one measurable strategy than many that won't give learnings. x

Aleta113·Dec 06, 2022

Thanks for doing this AMA! One question that comes to mind is, what's your process for building a marketing strategy for regions you're less familiar with? I imagine different types of messaging will have varying degrees of effectiveness in different geographical areas. What are your team's initial steps for getting a sense of what might work and what might not?

samanthagarcia·Dec 10, 2022

I'm excited to be here; I've enjoyed a day of reflection. Thanks for your question @aleta113! 1. Analyze the market; you don't need expensive tools but set a framework to get to know the consumers, economic environment, risks, and opportunities. 2. Once you have the information, find efficiencies with similarities with other regions and optimize for localization when needed. 3. Surround yourself with experts, you don't have to know it all but good partners such as agencies can be that missing piece in the puzzle This are few things that come to my mind

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