Athena CHRISTODOULIDES

1. What was your very first job? 
I started working and contributing to my household at a very young age. I got my first job when I was 15 (turning 16). It was a summer job as a receptionist and makeup artist at a hair salon. I have alwaysloved people and product, and how personal the intersectionality of those two things are. The way a red lip…a new haircut…can make someone feel. I don’t believe in coincidences, and so I’m not surprised I now work for The Estée Lauder Companies championing and developing our Creative talent.

2. Please describe, in your own words, what your job is and what work it entails.
In my current role as Creative Talent Management Lead for the Estee Lauder Companies, I am responsible for Acquisition, Development, and Mobility of our most senior worldwide Creatives. Beyond the aforementioned I am responsible for ensuring that our Creative function is truly set up to be best-in-class. From future-state competencies, capabilities, and org design…to cultivation of a Creative Community, I consider my position to be just as much rooted in People and Culture as it is in traditional HR/Talent Management practices. I love to enable businesses, through enabling people to do their best work – particularly when Creative has a “seat at the table”.

3. How did you discover that the creative world was right for you? Was there a time in your life that you credit to this discovery? Was there a train of events that brought you where you are today?
I received my Degree in Design after basically completing a minor in Political Science. My goal going into college was to become an attorney. I wanted to negotiate contracts for the entertainment industry. Mid-way, my mother inspired me to pursue a career in Creative. She is an exceptionally talented artist and creator, who never considered a career in the industry (she came to this country as an immigrant and didn’t necessarily have the luxury of options!). I did it for her. Ironically, my job now requires me to represent and negotiate contracts for Talent – but in a capacity where I am still close to Creativity and Design. Best of both worlds!

4. In your constantly growing and expanding industry, how do you find inspiration to keep your work fresh, innovative and relevant?

I don’t “make” work the way that other Creatives do. I design the teams that allow that work to be made! For me, people are my greatest source of inspiration. I am fascinated by the way humans interact with the world around them. With how people consume content, the Zeitgeist, the intersection of commerce and culture. How that translates into artistic expression, no matter the medium, never fails to amaze me.

5. If you had to pick one piece of work or project that you are most proud of, more for the creative work and innovation rather than its recognition or industry success, what would it be?
When I was in second grade, my mom and I made a diorama for school…if you went to public school in NYC you know what that is…it’s essentially a three-dimensional scene made in a shoebox stood up vertically. That was a “thing” back in the day. The assignment was to depict (dimensionally) what we did during winter recess. We made a miniature Rockefeller Center with an ice rink made from aluminum foil. That’s always stayed with me!

6. Which creative disciplines do you commission most, and are most interested in seeing more of and why? Which of these disciplines are you most interested in seeing at CONNECTIONS? (ie photo, film, production, social, experiential, vr, cgi, animation etc)

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