Monday
The week begins disastrously when I board my 06.59 train to find a random imposter in my usual seat. My fellow regular commuters see my dismay. At 07.20, later than usual, the first email of the day from Carat's press director Dominic Williams hits my Blackberry.
After reading The Times and The Sun on my iPad, I attempt to watch 'This is England 86', only to be disturbed by a further 13 emails from Dominic before the train reaches Charing Cross. Not sure why, as my first appointment is a weekly trading breakfast meeting with him. There's plenty to prep as we head from a busy Q1 into a hectic Q2.
Into the office for a team meeting led by myself and media director Justin Barns. Next up, I discuss some really exciting initiatives for 2011 with the PPA's Barry McIlheney and Matt Teeman. I'm not traditionally a massive fan of the PPA, but Matt and Barry have turned it around over the past 12 months.
Lunchtime is my staple – take away sushi eaten at my desk – setting me up for an afternoon of discussions with media owners, including Matt Salmon at Natmags and Bauer's Richard Hayes.
The entire afternoon is spent in a monthly trading board meeting chaired by Steve Platt, with Dom and the other trading directors – Azon Howie (broadcast) and Alex Randall (digital).
Back in Kent, I hop onto my new motocross bike (am I in the midst of a mid-life crisis?) and decide to divert home through the woods. Big mistake – I have an accident and fall off.
Attempt to wash muddy clothes and keep the mishap secret from my wife, Jenny and daughter, Maddison. Even bigger mistake, as Jenny notices the huge purple bruise on my arm at bedtime. Busted. At least the bike is fine.
Tuesday
Normal service is resumed, and I take my regular seat aboard the 06.59 service with a happy nod to my fellow commuters. After meeting my auditor at Accenture, I run through some of the 2010 audit results with Dom Williams and Justin Barns.
Lunch is my usual sashimi and nigiri box, squeezed in before conducting staff appraisals for some of our associate directors.
I've known Richard Hayes at Bauer for years, and our 4.30pm meeting is a colourful debate on historic and future trading. From 5pm, I trawl through a record number of emails (120, if you're wondering) and respond to any client action points.
That night, I stick to the safety of the main roads and get home in one piece on my bike.
Wednesday
Straight into a mid-week trading meeting where we check on progress.
A productive morning follows – I manage to get hold of clients and discuss projects without the usual cat and mouse voicemail game. In particular, I chat to my client at Monarch Airlines about our upcoming corporate day at the football (Arsenal vs Blackburn) this weekend. I am a lifelong Gunners fan.
I head to a working lunch with Dom Williams. I fancy pizza but Dom insists on his usual private table where all the staff know him. Lots of press directors have tables at Sheekey's or Le Caprice but for Dom…it's at our local Café Rouge. My to-do list quadruples over that 45-minute lunch.
The afternoon is spent in extensive conversations with Ian Rees at News International and then Grace Dawson and Simon Kippin at Glamour magazine, mostly covering trading opportunities.
There's plenty to debate at our internal trading meeting – the radio market is facing a challenging time.
We need to forecast where our clients spend levels should sit and the shape of the sector moving forward.
Thursday
I kick off the day with an internal meeting about MagazineWorks, a project I've crafted to drive spend in magazines. Then I head to Absolute Radio to meet Chris Goldson and Remy Kirk for a brand catch up and to mull over the new Ofcom regulations. Ofcom has basically ripped up the rule book, meaning greater flexibility for sales and promotions.
Lunch is the usual sushi, with Justin Barriball, GQ's associate publisher. GQ has a sports supplement coming up, which throws up interesting possibilities for clients such as Adidas, Quiksilver and Nivea.
We're moving offices in Easter – the hot topic at my weekly meeting with director of media operations Steve Hobbs, Dominic Williams and press planning director Zoe Bale. It'll mean fantastic developments in terms of team alignment and responsibilities.
Being away from my desk all day means two hours of catch-up, and I literally miss my train home by seconds. Waiting on the platform provides an opportunity for yet another call with Dominic. I can see why my wife might have cause for concern.
Friday
My 6am alarm heralds a frantic morning. Richard Hayes and I conclude Tuesday's discussion before I head into a weekly innovation meeting with Steve Hobbs. We look to identify opportunities outside of normal display or spot activity, much as we do with MagazineWorks.
Then it's into an equally important meeting: signing off on which filing cabinets I want moved to the new Carat offices in Regents Place.
I've failed to book a room for my meeting with Glamour's Grace Dawson, so we convene at my second office – the Kingsway Hotel opposite Carat. It's a fantastically quick discussion, so I have time to interview two candidates for our graduate recruitment scheme. They're promising, although one of them is extremely nervous which takes me back to when I was starting out some 20 years ago.
A quick lunch with Future's ad director Malcolm Stoodley (you guessed it – sushi), to review the previous 12 months of trading and how we can move forward within the branded content space. Digital opportunities are ripe for creating brand communities beyond the print product.
We agree to disagree on the iPad debate – namely whether it is a game changer or just another device for reading content. The bigger issue for me is when the other big tablets, like Android, finally catch on.
I wearily come to the end of the week and am literally about to trip on the finish line when a call from Dominic interrupts my final email of the day. He asks if he can buy me a glass of wine to round off the week.
I agree and without finishing my email, meet him in reception. Where to? The usual table at Café Rouge, where we review the week over a well-deserved glass of red.
On the way home, I bump into Jo Blake, press director at Arena BLM on the train platform. She is eating a doner kebab, classy!
Weekend
I'm up early, mucking out with Maddie at the stables next door. A gardening fanatic, I mow my lawn before catching the train to join my Monarch client for the Arsenal match.
Despite a disappointing 0-0 result, a great day follows and I'm back for midnight – only to have to grovel for a lift as I forgot to book a cab.
Sunday is Mother's Day, and I make up for my misdemeanour by doing all the cooking.
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