“For our employer branding campaign,

The Pudding overachieved. The end result

was not just unbelievable assets for the

recruitment drive, but instead, a campaign

that we can use going forward for international

marketing, now and into the future.”

A conversation with Darren O’Dwyer,

Lead Talent Advisor EMEA at WP Engine.

Today we got a chance to catch up with Darren O’Dwyer, Lead Talent Advisor EMEA at WP Engine, and client of The Pudding. Having recently launched our IDI Award-nominated ‘Powering the Freedom to Create’ campaign with WP Engine, we wanted to learn a little more about their experience working with us.

WP Engine is the world’s leading WordPress digital experience platform. Prior to opening the doors to their new, state-of-the-art office in Limerick, they needed to recruit highly sought-after engineers and developers. What started as an Irish employer branding campaign would result in a catalogue of assets that would help drive WP Engine’s worldwide marketing and recruitment initiatives. Here, we catch up with Darren to learn more about his journey with The Pudding.

1. Can you tell me about your partnership with

The Pudding and how you came to work with us? 

WP Engine is a global company with its headquarters in Austin, Texas. 2021 has been our biggest year of growth, especially in Ireland. We wanted to mark this by developing a strong recruitment campaign. 

WP Engine are a WordPress technologies company, but, unless you are in the internet sphere, or in web development, it may be unlikely that you are familiar with what we do. In Austin, we drive a really strong brand, and people are aware of us. So, we wanted to improve our employer branding here in Ireland, and make people aware of what we do, and our culture. 

We came across The Pudding as they have a very good brand themselves. We had approached a couple of agencies, however, The Pudding was the one that we felt came up with the best concept, and understood what exactly we were trying to achieve.

2. Can you tell me more about the

‘Powering the Freedom to Create’

employer brand campaign with The Pudding?

For our employer brand campaign, The Pudding overachieved. The end result was not just unbelievable assets for the recruitment drive, but instead, a campaign that we can use going forward for international marketing, now and into the future. There is such a sense of longevity to this work. The Pudding definitely advised us in that way: to ensure that we were creating something that is timeless. They advised us really well, and we are really happy with the outcome.

This work has now set the bar for WP Engine’s other international offices – for what they want to achieve, and how to work collaboratively with an international partner, like The Pudding. Our marketing team are based in Austin and we were able to work really well to ensure that Gillian and the team at The Pudding were connected right from the start. From day one, The Pudding knew what we were trying to achieve, and it made such a difference. 

3. How did you find the process

working with The Pudding?

The Pudding’s processes are very well organised. From the start, everything was communicated so well in terms of why we were doing what we were doing, and how those elements would line up with the planned outcome. 

We started with workshops, and then we moved to interviews which Gillian hosted with different team members at WP Engine. Communication was key. From the beginning, we built a really good relationship and were able to pick up the phone for anything we needed. We were always aware of what was happening next, and why it was happening, which was really important to us.

4. What has been your key learnings

from working with The Pudding?

In the beginning, during the workshop phase, The Pudding wanted to bring in team members to learn about WP Engine’s culture, and not have their managers present. That gave us a reading of what our culture was truly like, and what it meant to different people. 

Gathering that knowledge and information from the start was important to us. It was a very positive experience hearing what people really felt about working at WP Engine. 

5. Would WP Engine work with The Pudding

again, and would you recommend

working with The Pudding to others?

I would definitely recommend working with The Pudding. We absolutely loved the entire process. Everyone that I met from The Pudding was so nice. Their professionalism and communication were hugely important to us. As we are an international business, there were a few challenges to bring this together, but the cooperation was always there from the get-go with The Pudding. We built a really good relationship.

They are incredible at what they do, and we would absolutely love to work with them again. We would also love to see them work with our other offices going forward, to try to create something as cool as what we have created for our ‘power in the freedom to create’ campaign. 

WP Engine’s employer branding campaign ‘Powering The Freedom to Create’ by The Pudding won the IDI Award 2021 for ‘Use of Video in Design’ in the category of Visual Communication.