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Our office is in a refurbished, 30-year-old tower block with comfortable open-plan offices and plenty of natural light. There is a great coffee shop, with flexible work space and room for meetings.

Can everyone on the marketing team change a tyre? Probably not, but we know a man who can.

What is your main marketing challenge? To ensure that the AA remains the UK's number-one breakdown organisation.

Do AA employees get free breakdown cover? Not quite, we get it for half price.

Has anyone on the marketing team ever missed a meeting with a client because of a vehicle breakdown?

A senior colleague once broke down on the way to a major agency pitch.

Thanks to the AA, she was back on the road in no time and managed to catch most of the presentation.

What gives you most pleasure in your role? Being charged with looking after one of the most trusted brands in the UK.

Does the marketing team socialise outside office hours? We try to socialise whenever we can. Now we have moved to Basingstoke, we are on the lookout for a new local.

What are the hours? Standard pub hours, we would imagine - or did you mean office hours? We work hard and play hard. How many UK marketers are there? About 50 in the roadside business.

What about the salary and benefits? They are competitive.

How do you come up with new ideas? Often the best way to generate ideas is to spend a day on the road with a patrol.

What else is of interest about working for the AA? The AA celebrated its 100th birthday this year, yet it retains a fresh and forward-looking approach, so we get the best of both worlds - a sense of heritage brought into the 21st century. We work in the tallest building between London and New York and, apart from all the other advantages, there are often good-looking patrols (both male and female) walking around in uniform.

CAREERFILE

- The AA has 8000 employees.

- It was founded in a West End restaurant in 1905 by motorists keen to avoid police speed traps.

- The AA was responsible for all road signs until the early-30s. By 1939 it had 725,000 members.

- Kerry Cooper is sales and marketing director of the breakdown business.

- Its head office is at Fanum House, Basing View, Basingstoke, Hampshire, RG21 4EA.