Movement Strategy

If you're a creative and really into social marketing. Check this organization out.

Meet Movement Strategy, a social-first marketing agency behind some of the biggest names in entertainment, including Amazon, Hulu, and Bravo. In this episode, Culture Uncovered host Jena chats with Colette Gardner, Head of People and Culture, about how Movement builds a deeply people-centered, remote-first culture where authenticity and innovation thrive.

What you’ll learn:

• How a $1,500 “Movement Journey” stipend helps employees grow personally (weaving classes and heritage trips included!)
• What it’s like to grow from 40 to 150+ employees and acquire another agency
• How Colette transitioned from opera singer to Head of People - and beat imposter syndrome
• What it takes to build an inclusive, anti-ego creative team (plus their real “no assholes” policy)
  
  

Some Movement Strategy highlights:

Founded: 2008 by friends Eric Dieter and Jason Mitchell
Size: ~150+ (following the acquisition of Newfangled Studios)
HQ: Fully remote-first with hubs in NY, LA, Denver, Atlanta, and more
Perks & Culture:

• $1,500 Movement Journey personal growth stipend
• DE&I woven into hiring, client work, and creative processes
• Remote culture supported by quarterly meetups, Slack channels, WeWork days, and an annual retreat
• Clear career pathways, “create your own lane” opportunities, and a pod/COE team model

To learn more about Movement Strategy:

Careers Page (They are hiring!)
LinkedIn Page
Colette's LinkedIn

Transcript

Jena Dunay: Hello friends and welcome back to another episode of Culture Uncovered! I'm so excited for you to hear how this team is changing their model and their culture. Joining us is Colette Gardner, Head of People and Culture at Movement Strategy. Colette, welcome!

Colette Gardner: You are very welcome. I'm excited to be here.

Jena: So, give us a baseline. What does Movement Strategy do?

Colette: Movement is a social media marketing agency. We're the team behind major brands on social, creating content, boosting strategy, and keeping things moving for big names like Amazon, Hulu, and Bravo.

Jena: So fun! It’s wild how we scroll past all this content without realizing there’s a whole creative team behind it. I love it! Tell me, how old is the company?

Colette: We were founded in 2008 by two best friends, Eric Dieter and Jason Mitchell. They started the company right out of college to build a place where they could thrive and have fun. We’ve grown a lot since then, most recently acquiring Newfangled Studios, which brought us to over 150 employees!

Jena: Wow! When did that acquisition happen?

Colette: Just last month! It’s brand new and super exciting. They’re very like-minded and complement a lot of our capabilities, especially in paid and production work.

Jena: Love that! And I hear you flipped the script on marketing. Tell us more.

Colette: Absolutely. Our philosophy is that marketing should start with social media. It’s the core. From there, you build out to traditional campaigns, print, out-of-home, etc. That’s what we call “social-centric.”

Jena: Interesting! I think more orgs are leaning into that model now. Where are you all located?

Colette: Our headquarters were originally in Denver, but we went fully remote in 2020. We shut down our offices in Denver, LA, and New York. We still have strong hubs in those cities, and employees sprinkled across the U.S.

Jena: So you’re fully remote with regional hubs, love that! What was that transition like?

Colette: I started in 2018, so I had a couple years in-office. The shift to remote wasn’t easy. It came with challenges around communication and collaboration. But we’ve evolved our strategies and we’re committed to making remote work. No plans to go hybrid anytime soon!

Jena: I love that! Music to job seekers’ ears! It’s rare these days. Most orgs are pushing back into offices. So, how did you personally find your way to Movement?

Colette: Funny story! I wasn’t looking! The CEO reached out to me. At the time, we were around 40 people and wanted to build out HR for the first time. I was intrigued, they were prioritizing people at such a small size. And that people-first mindset? Still true today.

Jena: I love that story! People-first leadership makes such a difference. And you weren’t even looking. You were a true passive candidate!

Colette: Yes! It was through a connection. Jason’s wife’s boss knew me from a past role. Also, random fact: I used to be an opera singer! I went back to school at UCLA, pivoted into HR, and found my way here.

Jena: Wait, I love that! From opera singer to Head of People?! That is the best pivot story ever! So many listeners are in career transitions. It’s so encouraging to hear that it’s possible to change directions and grow into leadership.

Colette: Absolutely. I didn’t step into this as a Head of People. I grew into it. I’m a creative at heart. HR became the right fit because of who I am; empathetic, relationship-driven, and shaped by amazing mentors. I even loved my HR class in business school!

Jena: So good! Now, let’s talk about something many job seekers struggle with imposter syndrome. Especially when stepping into a stretch role. Did you experience that?

Colette: Oh, absolutely. It almost paralyzed me. I still battle it sometimes. Early on, I was lucky to have a coach, and we spent a lot of time unpacking my confidence. Not everyone has access to coaching, but the lesson is universal. You don’t have to know everything. You can ask questions. You can be vulnerable.

Jena: Yes! That’s so powerful. Leaders don’t need all the answers. They need to stay open and real. And especially in HR, that human connection matters so much. I know every people leader listening right now feels that!

Colette: It really does. And Movement gave me the space to grow in that way.

Jena: So let’s talk culture. How would you describe Movement’s culture?

Colette: The core of our culture is genuinenity , inclusivity, and innovation. We’re a creative agency, diverse teams are a must for meaningful content. We’ve built strong DE&I programming, not because we had to, but because our people wanted it. We’ve also leaned into innovation, especially in areas like AI. We even hired a VP of Innovation this year.

Jena: Yes! That innovation piece is so important in creative orgs. And I love that you’re not forcing AI on people. You’re educating and empowering them.

Colette: Exactly. Our head of innovation is great at meeting people where they are. It’s all about understanding the “why” and giving people confidence to use new tools.

Jena: So what are some of the perks or benefits that make Movement unique?

Colette: One of our longest-standing perks is Movement Journeys, a $1,500 personal development stipend. It’s not for vacations, it’s for anything that evolves you as a human. We’ve had employees take yoga certifications, weaving classes, and even heritage trips to explore their ancestry.

Jena: I love that! What a cool way to fuel creativity and personal growth!

Colette: It’s a beautiful benefit and it’s been around even before I joined.

Jena: How do you stay connected as a remote-first company?

Colette: Slack is our hub, with channels for everything. We also prioritize genuine connection. Every quarter, each regional hub gets together in person, completely optional, but funded. We also have quarterly virtual events, a quarterly “It’s a WeWork Day,” and an annual retreat. Last one was in Nashville!

Jena: I wish I had known! I’m in Nashville! I would’ve popped in!

Colette: I know! Next time!

Jena: So good. Now let’s talk professional development. What does growth look like at Movement?

Colette: Career progression has always been a priority here. We’re now moving into a pod Center of Excellence model. While creative titles like art directors or copywriters remain, the pod model creates new ways to grow, like stepping into leadership or innovation-focused roles. Many employees have even carved out entirely new lanes here.

Jena: That’s amazing. But no company is perfect. What are some areas you’re working on improving?

Colette: Middle management. We scaled fast during COVID, especially since we serve a lot of entertainment clients. Our focus was client delivery, and we didn’t invest in people management early enough. Now we’re playing catch-up, introducing coaching, building tools, and upskilling leaders. It’s a big focus for us.

Jena: Yes! That middle layer often makes or breaks employee experience. So good to hear that’s getting attention. Alright, let’s close with hiring. What’s the status?

Colette: We just launched a new website and careers page. Thank you for the compliment! Right now, hiring is light as we adjust to our new pod model. We’re being really intentional before opening more roles. But we are open to interest! Candidates can submit resumes directly through our site and it goes straight to our people team.

Jena: I love that! Thank you, Colette, for this honest and inspiring conversation. So many nuggets in here for job seekers and culture builders alike!

Colette: Thank you! I really enjoyed it!

Jena: We’ll see you all next time on Culture Uncovered!