❔ Welcome to Home Station, Uyen! Let’s introduce yourself.
💬 Hi, I’m Uyen, currently working as Head of Product & Brand Marketing. I’ve joined Home for over 3 years.
❔ Could you share your experience as the person in charge of Home's brand image and positioning over the last three years?
💬 In the consumer finance industry, the biggest challenge is often dealing with misconceptions about the field. Many people have doubts about joining Home for the same reason. However, for me, changing these misconceptions is not just the responsibility of a marketing team in any company; it's a challenge for the entire business and the industry as a whole. Changing a customer's perception and the market's view of an industry takes at least 8-10 years to yield significant results. So when I joined Home, my goal was not just to change that perception, but to help everyone understand Home accurately.
Looking back at my 3-year journey at Home, I see significant changes. When I do self-reflection, I can see how my team and I have evolved alongside Home's transformation, and everything is quite different from when I first joined. I'm proud that more and more people reach out to me for career opportunities at Home or to refer exceptional profiles for open positions. I believe that Home has become an ideal workplace where people take pride in being a part of, and I'm one of those people.
❔ Could you share more about Home's brand transformation over the past 3 years?
💬 Brand positioning and image at Home have always been aligned with the business strategy at the time. Three years ago, Home targeted customers in rural areas, and the brand image reflected that. However, comprehensive surveys revealed that Home's services and products cater to a broader range of customer segments. Therefore, in the brand image development strategy, Home decided to expand its customer base.
In terms of Brand, we also needed to change our approach and undertake a brand refresh aimed at a more youthful and appealing image that resonates with a wider range of customer preferences. Fortunately, at that time, we received support and collaboration from the Executive Committee and all employees, making the brand refresh process much smoother.
Especially since 2021, Home has been focusing on digital transformation, introducing numerous innovative technological advancements in services and products. And brand image has also been updated to better align with the company's strategy.
❔ Over the past year, Home has adopted a new Brand Promise of "Comprehensive Digital Finance." Could you share the process of developing and implementing it?
💬 The idea of "Comprehensive Digital Finance" was developed after a lengthy process and was entirely based on company strategy and customer feedback. We had numerous brainstorming sessions to identify what Home had, what the market offered, and what customers needed. The convergence of these three aspects became the Brand Promise that our team presented. With the spirit of "Customer Obsession," we conducted in-depth surveys to truly understand what customers needed and wanted. At that time, customers found the phrase "digital finance" easy to understand. They also wanted access to all services in one place, anytime, anywhere, which led to the "comprehensive" part. "Comprehensive Digital Finance" was born from this process—a journey always focused on customers.
Whether you work on Branding at Home or elsewhere, the key is customer-centric. Every action we take is aligned with customer desires and needs. Without listening to customers, you can't successfully introduce a product. Even if I spend hours with hundreds of Product or Sales colleagues, we might not fully understand customers' needs to execute a project effectively.
❔ With experience in both agency and client firms, how does Home's branding differ from other companies or industries in your view?
💬 Every job comes with its challenges, but for me, working on brands for multinational companies in various industries like FMCG, Banking, Retail, etc, whether from a client or agency perspective, has always been somewhat glamorous. This doesn't mean it lacks challenges, but fundamentally, you get to work on projects with beautiful titles: Brand Identity, Brand Image, working with Brand Ambassadors, becoming a Creative Director on set, and more. Doing branding at Home involves similar tasks, but it's a completely different experience.
As I mentioned earlier, because Home is in an industry with many misconceptions, every message we convey needs to be carefully crafted and sensitive to the timing. Branding at Home requires maximizing your Brand Management skills. Sometimes, you may need to take a step back to let the brand shine in the most suitable way, which demands a certain level of sensitivity in your approach.
Nevertheless, branding at Home is a job that suits me, and it's an experience worth trying.
❔ So, who will be a good fit with the Brand Team at Home?
💬 The Brand Team at Home welcomes individuals with different backgrounds, styles, and experiences because that's the spirit of Home. However, there are some prerequisites: you must prioritize customers, be willing to delve deep into how to maintain the health of the brand, be adaptable to handle sudden changes and be open to learning from the unique experience of branding in a digital finance company like Home, where branding isn't as glamorous as in other markets.
❔ What will you say about your team?
💬 For me, it's a dream team. My leadership style aligns with Home Credit DNA, which is People Centricity. I believe that when you work, you should nurture not only work-related values but also human values. So, I accept that my team may slow down at times, but the human values must always be intact. "People Centricity" is the guiding principle in everything I do, and I'm proud that everyone in the team is working and dealing with situations accordingly.
My team consists of 26 members, divided into 5 smaller teams, but I don't see any difference in the work culture. Some may come in early, some a bit later, some are highly skilled, and some are more easygoing, but they all share a common spirit: "Your problem is mine." When an issue arises, they prioritize supporting each other. This support is crucial, not just for solving work-related problems but also for helping those facing difficulties in isolation. This makes every team member feel more confident in any situation because there are always helping hands available. This is what makes me proud of my team.
❔ What would you say about working in Branding at Home and leading the Brand Team at Home?
💬 Working in Branding at Home, while not as glamorous as in some other companies, is a “beautiful job”, a job where I feel I'm contributing to helping millions of Vietnamese people achieve their goals.
Working in branding at Home has helped me acquire many skills that might not be common but are essential for my personal growth. Leading the Brand Team here has helped me understand what true leadership is. Home is where I witness my own growth and setbacks every day, and it holds many memorable moments in my career journey.
