Executive Connections LLC

Connecting organizations with the future of marketing

Branding Yourself Online

Filed Under: Announcements, Branding Yourself Online, Connections E-Zine, Getting Hired in Digital Marketing, Marketing Conferences & Events, New Executive Search, Personal Branding

CONNECTIONS Ezine No. 81

In this issue:

  • In Our Opinion: Rising Stars Are Our Future
  • Announcements:
    • Jon Davis Joins Accenture Interactive as Senior Manager, Digital Strategy
  • Articles:
    • MarketingEDGE Celebrates 2015 “Rising Stars”
  • Career Opportunities:
    • CMO – Customer Interaction – NEW
    • Chief Creative Officer – NEW
    • Vice President, Marketing – NEW
    • Digital Strategist – Senior Manager – NEW
    • Marketing Leader, Northeast
    • Marketplace Marketing Leader
    • Director, Insights and Strategy – Marketing & Sales

In Our Opinion by Jeff Gundersen & Lola White

Rising Stars Are Our Future

What an exciting time of the year for new job seekers…graduations are over or just taking place…high school graduates are thinking about the fall as they head off to college and ready to create new beginnings…college graduates are beginning their new jobs and some are thinking about (and so are their parents) where do I begin to jump start my career?

Pro-Bono Introductions

Each year for over 15 years, the team at Executive Connections identifies a talented group of young, high achieving college seniors who possess a demonstrated superior leadership abilities, and a passion and commitment to begin their careers in Marketing.

Once EC makes our pro-bono selections, we choose, coach and strategize with these college seniors to create a career map that matches their skill set and their goals.  We polish their resumes, scrub their online Social Media profiles and create a bio that supports their goals through the job search process until they land their first full-time career opportunity in Marketing. Students coming into EC’s “Rising Stars” program are from all parts of the US – New York, Florida, California, and most recently Tennessee, but can be placed anywhere in the world.

This is a “win-win” for both the students and the employers since the majority of our clients have entry- level Marketing roles to fill and are inundated with under qualified resumes without the benefit of any pre-qualification from a trusted source such as EC. EC cuts through this clutter and our “top down” approach can include presenting these new seniors directly to the Chief Marketing Officer level within our target client organizations.

Our experience has shown that once C-level executives meet and review our EC up and coming talent which comes with EC’s endorsement, the selection process moves rapidly to offer. In fact, it is not unusual for EC’s Rising Stars to have 3-4 companies interested in them resulting in multiple job offers.

We believe having a choice is better than just one option. As an example, this year’s EC “Rising Star” had two of the top 100 global marketers interested and two marketing services firms interested in offering her a position. This gave the student an early chance to evaluate and choose between going to work on “the client side” vs. “the agency side.”

We know the Rising Stars are our future, and they are the future Marketing leaders of tomorrow. This
initiative is a way for us to “give back” to the next generation in an industry that has been good to us over the past 25+ years. We do it to provide “talent gifts” to our clients who entrust us to fill senior-level positions.

Do you know a Rising Star that would like to jump start their career and receive support from experts in their field? Who doesn’t?

Look for our Summer and Fall Ezines to hear from past EC Rising Star recipients, details on our selection process, and timetable for the 2016 EC’s “Rising Stars.”

If you have questions and/or feedback about our Rising Stars program, please contact lwhite@executiveconnectionsllc.com

As always, we welcome your comments and input.

Jeff and Lola

Announcements

 Jon Davis Joins Accenture Interactive as Senior Manager, Digital Strategy

We are delighted to announce Jon Davis has joined our client Accenture Interactive recently in the position of Senior Manager, Digital Strategy, based in AI’s New York office.

Prior to joining AI, Jon was Founder of KatDavis, Jon headshotonah Consulting, a digital marketing and strategy consulting firm. Earlier, Jon served as VP, Group Director at eBay Enterprise Marketing Solutions, Sr. Partner, Interactive Marketing at Ogilivy Interactive, and Director, Client Services at Razorfish.

We wish Jon every continued success in his digital strategy and marketing career and we will be supporting him with EC’s unique “Accelerated Leadership Transition Program” as he begins this newest chapter in his career.

Articles

Marketing EDGE Celebrates 2015 “Rising Stars”

On Tuesday, June 9th, we attended the Marketing EDGE 2015 “Rising Stars” dinner in NYC where annually they honor the “Best & Brightest” direct and digital marketers under 40YO…plus a Corporate Commitment Award (Return Path) to a game-changing company within the digital/direct marketing ecosystem.

EC extends our congratulations to the 2015 Award winners:

  1. Lewis Cohen – SVP, Digital Marketing – CitiCards
  2. Amina Dilawari – Director, Marketing Strategy – St. Jude Children’s Hospital
  3. Jessica Hawthorne-Castro – CEO, Hawthorne Direct
  4. Lisa Radding – Director, Research & Product Development – Ethnic Technologies
  5. Andrea Steele – Omnichannel Marketing Manager – Unilever

MarketingEDGE is a unique educational non-profit organization with innovative education and placement programs that intersect 3 audiences – college student, educators, and corporations. Jeff Gundersen of EC is a Board Trustee and this year this non-profit served over 6,000+ college students with programs including one day career forums, one week boot camps in Analytics and Digital strategy, collegiate business competitions leading to scholarship awards, and entry level job placement services.

MarketingEDGE is seeking new corporate sponsors for the 2015-16 school year, so please reach out to  if you would be interested to learn more about these programs.

Career Opportunities

We have career opportunities at a variety of companies including a Global HR Professional Services firm, a Global Financial Services firm and a Global Digital Consulting firm.  Please take a moment to click on a link and see the complete position description:

Learn more…

Filed Under: Announcements, Branding Yourself Online, Connections E-Zine, Executive Coaching, Executive Talent, Getting Hired in Digital Marketing, Marketing Conferences & Events, New Executive Search, Recommended Articles, Spotlight On

CONNECTIONS Ezine: Issue No. 80

In this issue:

  • In Our Opinion: ‘Mad Men’ to Data Geniuses
  • Invitation REMINDER:
    • 2015 Rising Stars Awards Dinner – Tue, June 9, 2015
  • Announcements:
    • Monika Wilczak Joins Accenture Interactive as MD, Customer Advanced Analytics
    • NOW 2015 Women of Power & Influence Awards Dinner — June 11, 2015
  • Articles:
    • #MktgFemme – Direct Marketing News’ 2015 Marketing Hall of Femme Awards
  • Career Opportunities:
    • Marketing Leader, Private Exchange – NEW
    • Marketing Leader, Northeast – NEW
    • Social Media Strategist
    • Digital Strategist – Senior Manager
    • Digital Strategist – Manager
    • Social Senior Manager and Account Lead
    • Manager, Social Media
    • Director, Insights and Strategy

In Our Opinion by Jeff Gundersen & Lola White

 ‘Mad Men’ to Data Geniuses

Kudos to AdAge Editor Simon Dumenco and his team in compiling the 2015 Agency Issue (published May 4, 2015). AdAge highlights several trends which underscore while ‘Mad Men’ the TV series is ending this year, there will be plenty of ‘Mad Men’ continuing to dominate the global marketing, media and entertainment sectors for decades to come. Except ‘Mad Men’ are starting to look much different today than the ‘Mad Men’ from the 60’s and 70’s.

With IBM Experience, Deloitte Digital, and Accenture Interactive moving into the list of Top 10 global agencies (and Top 3 global digital agencies), and digital capturing nearly 40% of total advertising spending and rapidly heading to 50%+, it is becoming clear the future of marketing is shifting (as Dumenco and AdAge projects) from Art & Copy ‘Mad Men’ of the past to “Data Geniuses and Technologists” of the future driving targeted digital, mobile and social brand engagements with consumers which are apparent in the revolutionary marketing innovations we are experiencing on a daily basis.

Where and when will the next Uber, AirBnB, or Jet.com appear? Almost every sector is rapidly shifting toward a greater digital focus to assure their business is not rapidly encroached by a new unforeseen digital competitor.

It’s great to see the marketing industry leading U.S. economic growth. In 2014, U.S. agency revenues grew 5.4% to a record $43.6B. Ad-agency employment is climbing, and agency stocks scored all-time highs. It’s indeed a good time to be in the agency business…especially if you’re connected to digital.

One final thought…some ‘Mad Men’ from the 60’s and 70’s who were really revolutionary and predicted the future of marketing…were the pioneers in direct marketing…leaders including Lester Wunderman, Stan Rapp, and others who predicted “mass marketing” was wasteful and would give way to “one-to-one” marketing (or direct marketing). Those who have been around the direct marketing sector for 3-4 decades know digital marketing is “direct marketing on steroids”…so thanks to Lester, Stan and the other direct marketing pioneers who paved the way for the data geniuses and technologists of the future.

As always, we welcome your input and comments.

Jeff and Lola

Announcements

Monika Wilczak Joins Accenture Interactive as Managing Director, Customer Advanced Analytics

Monika J. Wilczak Head ShotWe are pleased to announce Monika Wilczak has joined our client, Accenture Digital, as Managing Director, Customer Advanced Analytics.

Prior to Accenture, Monika was Global Head of Customer & Market Intelligence at Bloomberg LP, and earlier, Monika was Head of Decision Management, Commercial & Small Business Banking at Citibank.

In this new marketing era of targeted, relevant two-way communications with customers and prospects, Monika is an analytics executive leader with a proven ability to identify business growth opportunities and translate them into new revenue streams using customer insights. Monika’s expertise includes B2C, B2B, and vertical sectors including media, technology, financial services, and consumer goods/services.

At Accenture Digital, Monika will have both U.S. new business development responsibilities as well as leadership of clients/teams delivering cutting-edge Analytics strategies and program results.

Monika holds M.S. and Ph.D. degrees in Statistics & Operations Research with Honors (from Stern School – NYU).

Executive Connections LLC initiated this executive placement as part of  an ongoing senior-level talent acquisition relationship with Accenture Interactive.

We wish Monika well in this exciting new career opportunity!

Upcoming NOW 2015 Women of Power & Influence AwardsNOW logo

Please join me at the NOW 2015 Women of Power & Influence Awards Dinner on Thursday, June 11, 2015 from 6:30 pm to 9:30 pm at Three Sixty in New York City.

 

For more details…

Invitation REMINDER

Join Me At Marketing EDGE 2015 “Rising Stars” Dinner
in NYC on Tuesday, June 9, 2015RSA15-banner-linkedin

Register now and start planning how you’ll take advantage of the networking opportunities at the Rising Stars Awards Dinner – with this year’s Rising Stars and the 400+ industry leaders expected to attend.

Marketing EDGE provides many training and employment programs for college students including Collegiate ECHO Awards, Scholarships, Student Career Forums, One Week Immersion programs (I-MIX – Interactive Marketing Immersion Experience; I-MAX – Interactive Marketing Analytics Experience), Next Generation Leaders, Summer Internships, and Entry-level marketing positions.

Marketing EDGE also provides programs for educators in over 100+ colleges and universities nationwide including Professors’ Academy, Journal of Interactive Marketing, Research Summit, Professor’s Institute, and Collegiate ECHO Challenge.

Marketing EDGE sponsors and corporate partners include Brierley & Partners, Direct TV, Epsilon, Executive Connections LLC, Facebook, Google, Gerber Life, Guthy Renker, IBM, Javelin, KBM Group, Ogilvy & Mather, Merkle, Microsoft and Twitter, among others.

2015 RISING STARS HONOREES —Louis Cohen, Citi Cards | Andrea Steele, Unilever | Lisa Radding, Ethnic Technologies | Amina Dilawari, St. Jude Children’s Hospital | Jessica Hawthorne-Castro, Hawthorne Direct

Link to MarketingEdge event…

Article

#MktgFemme – Direct Marketing News’ 2015 Marketing Hall of Fame

By Laura Gigliotti – April 27, 2015

“18 chief marketers who put the ‘excel’ in excellent”
“An elite group of women who are driving marketing today”
“Exceptional leading ladies who have risen to the apex of their profession”

So were the accolades floating around the Grand Hyatt in New York City last Friday during Direct Marketing News’ 2015 Marketing Hall of Femme Awards.

In its third iteration, the annual Award ceremony recognizes the achievements of the most accomplished and influential women in marketing. Over 80 nominees were submitted during the call-for-nominations period, 18 of which were selected for induction. Selection criteria included leadership style, approach to marketing, and career achievements—both past and present.

For complete article…

Career Opportunities

We have career opportunities at a variety of companies including a Global HR Professional Services firm, a Global Financial Services firm and a Global Digital Consulting firm.  Please take a moment to click on a link and see the complete position description:

Learn more…

Filed Under: Ask Our Coach, Branding Yourself Online, Executive Coaching, Executive Talent, Personal Branding, Recommended Articles

Career Path Insights

Is Career Jumping Different Now From In The Past? Is It More Or Less Common?

Career jumping is definitely the “new normal” and it’s the result of several factors. First, the rapid global transition to a digital- and mobile-first economy has created enormous opportunities for technology-savvy and analytical/quantitative young professionals to join or start new businesses (i.e., Google, Facebook, Amazon) with rapid growth and significant wealth creation possibilities. Additionally, many legacy industry sectors (i.e., print, media, CPG, retail) are experiencing consolidations which eliminates traditional career path growth opportunities within the same company and forces career change.

How Can Someone Know They Are Truly Ready For A Career Change?

You know you are ready for a career change if any of the following conditions are present: (a) you no longer believe in the vision/mission of your company/organization; (b) you no longer respect your direct boss (and/or the company leader); (c) you are not growing/developing new skills in the role; (d) you are not feeling challenged by the path in front of you. We are seeing less loyalty today in both directions. Companies are less loyal to employees and routinely make cutbacks (in both good times and bad) as a result of increased efficiencies. Likewise, today’s employees are less loyal to their companies than previous generations, and it has become more readily acceptable that each individual will shift jobs/career several times over the course of their work life.

For the complete article by Melissa Batchelor Warnke…

Filed Under: Announcements, Branding Yourself Online, Connections E-Zine, Digital Proficiency, Executive Coaching, Executive Talent, Marketing Conferences & Events, Personal Branding, Recommended Articles, Spotlight On

CONNECTIONS Ezine: Issue No. 77

In this issue:

  • In Our Opinion: New Year’s Resolution – ‘Aspire’
  • Spotlight On Sean Rach:
    • Sean Rach Promoted to Chief Marketing Officer at PCA
  • Career Opportunities:
    • VP, Individual Digital Experience – Global Financial Services
  • Your Comments:
    • Susan Cotton, Executive Chairman of The Lily Project – “2014-The Year of Social Enterprise“
  • Articles:
    • “The Tyranny of ‘Scale’ ” by Michael Baer

In Our Opinion by Jeff Gundersen & Lola White

New Year’s Resolution – ‘Aspire’

Happy New Year!

One thing we love about January is all businesses start again at zero, create new surges of momentum, and begin implementing action plans to achieve the strategic, marketing, operational, and financial plans created in the prior fiscal year.

However, frequently there is an overlay to the global business environment, a general mood, influenced by CEO and consumer confidence, and economic forecasts/trends, which enhances or dampens the enthusiasm of individuals and organizations to assertively drive to achieve their best potential performance.

In our view, the 2014 economy (especially the US) outperformed forecasted growth rates, led by sectors including healthcare, mobile advertising and online shopping which grew in double digits. While there are several areas of global concern including rising terrorism, political instability in the Middle East, and government dysfunction, the overall sentiment heading into 2015 feels strongly positive on balance, and we see many early signs of companies investing more heavily in marketing, technology, and mobile commerce to achieve significant global growth objectives.

We recently read an editorial column by Matt Walsh, Editor & Publisher in the January 2-8, 2015 edition of Business Observer – Florida’s Newspaper for the C-Suite (www.BusinessObserverFL.com) where Walsh said…“The Word for 2015 is ‘Aspire’ “…and we could not agree more heartily. Walsh’s column included the following:

“We used to aspire. We aspired to be great, to be the best, to win. And we went for it. We worked for it. We did whatever it took to be great. We need to bring this back. We need to teach everyone – especially America’s children – to aspire to be great. Bring back Vince Lombardi. During Lombardi’s era in the 1960s as head coach of the Green Bay Packers, he epitomized America’s desire to win. He is most frequently associated with the quote, ‘Winning isn’t everything, it’s the only thing.’ He expressed the opinion, forcefully and unapologetically, that the pursuit of victory, fairly and squarely, and within the rules, is life’s great challenge. Not victory for its own sake, but victory as a test of how far you could push yourself to your limits and beyond, a test of your ability to overcome your doubts and weaknesses, and a test of how much of your God-given talent and ability you were willing to expend in the pursuit of success and victory.”

Aspirational leadership starts at the top. We have written consistently about CEOs from companies including Google, Amazon, Apple, Facebook, Starbucks, and Uber, among others, who have pursued aspirational category-changing strategies that resulted in hyper market capitalization growth in short time frames. These CEOS and category-leading companies demonstrate what’s possible with aspirational leadership which pushes for the extraordinary instead of modest growth objectives.

On a personal basis, this is a great time of year to take stock of your business and personal career/brand, and ask yourself the hard questions regarding whether you are playing full-out and pushing yourself and your team/organization/company to your limits and beyond in order to achieve the stretch goals you aspire to produce.

What we know, and what we feel, is we agree with Matt Walsh, if there was ever a year which was right for a mantra of ‘Aspire’…it’s 2015!

Best wishes for continued personal and business success, health and prosperity!

As always, we welcome your comments and input.

Lola and Jeff

Spotlight On Sean Rach

Sean Rach Promoted to Chief Marketing Officer at PCA

Sean RachWe are pleased to share an announcement from Barry Stowe, CEO of Prudential Corporation Asia, that Sean Rach has been named Chief Marketing Officer for PCA effective January 1, 2015.

Executive Connections LLC placed Sean at PCA in 2009, where he has championed the development of integrated marketing solutions for all business lines and has developed innovative digital and branding programs including Cha-Ching, Safe Steps, Prudential Eye, and the Regional Brand Platform – “I am Prudential.”

Sean brought a strong digital marketing foundation to PCA and his promotion to CMO fulfills an EC prophecy that the “CMO of the future” must be digital-first marketers.

Sean is also an “aspirational” CMO who stretches himself and his team to consistently produce the extraordinary instead of  the ordinary results.

We wish Sean continued success in his career!

Career Opportunities

VP, Individual Digital Experience – Global Financial Services

The VP, Individual Digital Experience is a senior level, cross-business leader accountable for collaboratively defining and designing digital experience for Individual constituent types. Constituent types include investors, participants, policyholders, beneficiaries and other individual consumers. The successful candidate will lead diverse, internal, matrix teams, including third-party consultants, to develop competitive web, social and mobile engagement channels across our Client’s portfolio of businesses and corporate functions, including brand, advertising, thought leadership, market research, communications, information technology and digital solutions, ensuring that the Individual’s critical cross channel needs are addressed throughout their customer life cycle.

Learn more…

Your Comments

Hi Jeff –  I was intrigued by your title 2014 – The Year of Social Enterprise, because I am studying at Pepperdine for a MA in Social Entrepreneurship and Change…and I see the impact of social enterprises increasing, but we still have a long way to go.  And while I find both of these companies really great examples of the collaborative consuming/sharing economy, I don’t believe they are great examples of social enterprises.  Social enterprises are built first and foremost to create positive social value – with measurements that go well beyond shareholder value to stakeholder value.  You can generally see it first in their vision, mission, values and financial reporting (does it go beyond shareholders?).   Here are a couple of articles that talk about the distinction between social businesses that are part of the sharing economic and social enterprises.

I think the easiest way to think about it is…Does the company view its mission to deliver social good first or is social good a side benefit?

There are really great examples of both for-profit/non-profit social enterprises – and many are hybrid organizations.  Take a look at Dlight, Divine Chocolates, Homeboy Industries, D-Rev, Enterprise Community Partners…even Warby Parker.  All doing awesome things!

I can see a lot of potential for your business to get to know this sector well – it is growing and there are some amazing people involved…I’m having a blast 🙂

Susan Cotton headshotSusan Cotton is Executive Chairman of The Lily Project, a community-based women’s health program based in Leon, Nicaragua.  Unlike the US, where widespread adoption of Pap testing has made cervical cancer one of our most treatable and least deadly cancers, in Nicaragua, regular screening is available to only about 10% of the population, and cervical cancer is the #1 cancer killer of women – responsible, on average, for the death of one woman every day. The Lily Project’s mission is to deliver preventive health care to women in rural Nicaragua reducing the number of women newly diagnosed with terminal cervical cancer 30% by 2020 through implementation of an innovative screen and treat approach proven effective in other low-resource communities. The Lily Project is launching in Miramar – a small coastal village where the closest medical clinic is more than two hours away – on January 28th, 2015.

Articles

“The Tyranny of ‘Scale’ ” – by Michael Baer

Commentary from MarketingDaily – December 9, 2014

There it was, in HuffPo, in a listicle called “10 Tricks to appear smart during meetings.” Along with a recommendation to “Pace around the room” and to “Nod continuously while pretending to take notes” was number 6 on the list: “Ask ‘Will this scale?’ no matter what it is.” And, it’s true – say this and people will think you are smart. But, unfortunately, it only perpetuates a fallacy.

You see, there’s an on-going illusion about scale. In digital and mobile advertising, marketers, sellers and buyers are all participating in this illusion day in and day out. That is, there’s a desire and demand for more and more impressions, more eyeballs and views, more tonnage reaching your target. But does this tonnage really reach the target? Is this scale actually useful, valuable or even real?

Link to complete article

Filed Under: Branding Yourself Online, Connections E-Zine, Executive Coaching, Personal Branding

Thanks and Giving Are Good Branding

“The deepest principle in human nature is the craving to be appreciated.” —William James

Give ThanksWith the Thanksgiving holidays upon us, we would like to express our personal “thank you” to all of EC’s connections—clients, friends, our business colleagues, and emerging members of our personal and professional network. We’ve been honored to reinvigorate and clarify career and personal brand directions for those we’ve touched this year, especially with those who have experienced the power of our Personal Branding Retreat Center.

Each year, we take our own offsite retreat to reflect on our year in business and to plan for the upcoming one. An important part of our mission is to “be the brand you want others to see.” For us, this also includes the focused charitable work we do and being a business growth catalyst to those personal brands we believe will have a great positive influence on others.

At this time of year, we encourage you to reflect on what you are thankful for and what you can continue to give. Here is some food for thought:

  1.  Thanks
    • For whom are you thankful?
    • What has transpired over this past year that makes you feel grateful?
    • Have you acknowledged yourself for your own professional accomplishments?
    • Have you sincerely acknowledged others who have supported your personal brand and career building efforts? If not yet, what can you do to express your gratitude now?
  2.   Giving
    • Are you truly sharing the best of your talents with those in your “inner circle?”
    • Is there a way for you to share your core knowledge in a way that would also benefit your wider target audience (think articles, blog posts, comments, answering relevant questions on LinkedIn, media interviews, or speaking?)
    • Do you regularly support a particular charity that aligns with  your personal vision?

Happy Thanksgiving!

Jeff Gundersen & Lola White

Filed Under: Branding Yourself Online, Digital Proficiency, Executive Coaching, Executive Talent, Marketing Conferences & Events, Spotlight On

DMA2014 Has A Magic Opening

DMA2014 needed a spark to ignite some passion into attendees at the annual conference held this week (Oct. 27-29th) at the San Diego Convention Center. DMA got that and more from keynote speaker Earvin “Magic” Johnson, 5- time NBA champion, NCAA champion, and successful business entrepreneur.

Magic lit up the crowd, much as he did years earlier playing for the LA Lakers at the Forum, with his big smile and warm, winning personality. And Magic’s message went far beyond his sports career and basketball successes. Many were surprised to learn Magic Johnson Enterprises has partnered with over 20 corporations, including Allstate, Delta, Disney, Sony Theaters, Starbucks, and Toyota…building successful businesses serving Urban American consumers.

Magic shared his winning marketing strategies of targeting urban consumers, knowing their needs, tailoring his product/service/message, and then over-delivering every day. “I love to over-deliver” was a strong message Magic shared while taking countless pictures and selfies with the engaged crowd of DMA2014 attendees. Magic also shared the value of persistence…never taking “no” for an answer…and believing in yourself (and your product/service) no matter what others say. After he was turned down five times in his attempts to raise institutional capital to expand his urban-targeted small businesses, Magic finally received his first institutional fund of $50M…and he has subsequently raised funds of $300M, $600M and most recently $1B.

The DMA2014 theme is Don’t Market Alone and Magic emphasized the importance and power of building successful partnerships…by understanding your partner’s vision, mission and core values. One example Magic shared was his unique partnership with Howard Schultz and Starbucks…where he was the first outsider to build, own and operate 175 Starbucks units in urban neighborhoods…which he later sold back to Shultz at a significant profit. In addition to switching scones for sweet potato pies, Magic spoke about treating customers special, knowing their names and favorites drinks…so loyalty remained high during times of economic recession.

Magic spoke about the value of mentors. When he left the LA Lakers he called 20 CEOs who met with him and gave him advice as he started his business pursuits. Magic ended his keynote address by challenging each attendee to perform 2 SWOT (Strengths/Weaknesses/Opportunities/Threats) analyses each year…..then working hard to improve yourself and your business based upon these insights. Magic stressed the importance of paying attention to your competition. He spoke about his relationship with Larry Bird…..and how Larry drove Magic to become better. “I knew Larry was in the gym 3 hours every day so I knew I had to work hard to beat him.” Magic still gets up at 4:00am daily, hits the gym for 2 hours, and his mantra is “nobody outworks me.”

Magic Johnson was the spark DMA2014 needed to kick itself off in high gear…and everyone left the opening session buzzing.  JoAnne Monfradi Dunn, DMA Chair, even sold Magic a DMA membership backstage just prior to the opening session, so business had begun happening even before the opening bell.

You can learn more about conference highlights by visiting DMA2014.

You can also reach out to me directly (jgunderen@executiveconnectionsllc.com) or check my BLOG postings (@JeffGundersen) for additional highlights from DMA2014.

Filed Under: Board of Directors, Branding Yourself Online, Digital Proficiency, Executive Talent, Getting Hired in Digital Marketing, Marketing Conferences & Events, New Executive Search, Personal Branding, Webinars

Short-Form Content Is A New Media and Entertainment Priority

One of the most interesting conversations during Advertising Week 2013 was Michael Kassan, CEO of Media Link, interviewing Jeffrey Katzenberg, DreamWorks Co-Founder & CEO of DreamWorks Animation regarding the future of media and entertainment in the face of the current technology changes.

Creating New Opportunities in the Content Creation Business
Rather than feeling media and entertainment companies are facing a diminishing and fractured market, Katzenberg indicated there has never been a better time to be in the content creation business.

He indicated new, smaller mobile screens (smart phones and tablets) which are with people constantly…have created new opportunities for short-form content including both news and entertainment. Katzenberg talked about Brian Robbins, Founder & CEO of Awesomeness TV, an exceptional storyteller and producer of TV and motion pictures. Robbins has now shifted and is devoting 100% of his energy producing short-form content.

Katzenberg indicated new technology (and devices) have created an opportunity to fill the “waiting time” in people’s lives…short windows when people are waiting for a bus, waiting in line, etc., and are passing time accessing their mobile devices. Awesomeness TV is already one of the leading producers of content on YouTube and he expects this sector to represent a new opportunity for growth in entertainment and media content distribution. Forrester and other research firms have confirmed consumers are spending 2+ hours daily on mobile devices separate from the 4-1/2 hours of daily television time. So that’s the new “window of opportunity” in a nutshell.

Never Been a Better Time
This reminds me of past experiences when new channels opened up…and Katzenberg commented on this…when TV arrived back in the 1950s, there was speculation other channels (newspapers, radio) would diminish. In fact, this never happened, and Katzenberg indicated with so many consumers watching high-quality, premium content (movies and television) ON-DEMAND, the market (on demand) and consumer response (to great content) has never been stronger. Just check Homeland, Boardwalk Empire, Breaking Bad, and other outstanding entertainment content being produced by the networks, cable channels, and movie studios…with the addition of short-form content programming, the future looks very exciting and there has never been a better time to be in these businesses.

Filed Under: Announcements, Ask Our Coach, Branding Yourself Online, Digital Proficiency, Executive Coaching, Executive Talent, Getting Hired in Digital Marketing, LinkedIn, New Executive Search, Personal Branding, Uncategorized, Webinars

DMEF Rebrands to Create a Marketing EDGE

Marketing EDGE is launched…to Educate, Develop, Grow & Employ the next generation of marketing leaders!

At the Direct Marketing Educational Foundation (DMEF) annual “Rising Stars” Awards Dinner Tuesday night in NYC, Terri Bartlett – DMEF President  – announced the rebranding of the organization introducing a new name – Marketing EDGE (www.MktgEDGE.org), aligned with the organization’s mission to Educate, Develop, Grow & Employ the next generation of marketing leaders. This rebranding clarifies the organization’s mission and vision to all constituencies including students, corporations/employers, academics/educators and individuals.

“Rising Stars” Recognized & Celebrated

The evening was a major fundraising success with record-breaking attendance… in excess of 400 people created a “sold-out” event at Three-Sixty in a trendy downtown NYC venue. The evening celebrated 6 of the marketing industry’s “Rising Stars” (40YO and under) including JP Lind – Co-Founder SpotRight, Matt McGowan – MD, Americas – Incisive Media, Kim Postulart – Marketing Director – Democratic National Committee, Brion Roberto – Global Head – Digital Marketing & Social Media – Diageo, Slavi Samardzija – EVP, Market Intelligence – Wunderman/KBM, and John Wernz – EVP & CMO – Wealth Enhancement Group.

These next generation marketing leaders are steeped in digital marketing, marketing technology, analytics, social media, and mobile marketing skills. This underscores the importance of current and future education, training/development, internships/placements, student and educator forums being led by Marketing EDGE.

Epsilon receives Corporate Commitment Award

The evening also celebrated Epsilon as the recipient of the 2013 Corporate Commitment Award. Epsilon has been a consistent and long-term sponsor and champion of the Marketing EDGE programs.

Now Is An Ideal Time To Join MarketingEDGE.

We encourage all companies to check out the programs offered by MarketingEDGE including The Next Generation Leaders Forum, I-MIX, I-MAX, Student Career Forums, Scholarships, and Journal of Interactive Marketing.

If your company or organization has a talent management strategy to identify and acquire the next generation marketing leaders, you need to consider joining Marketing EDGE (www.MktgEDGE.org) and speaking with Terri Bartlett about getting involved in one of the organizations programs as a volunteer, speaker, sponsor or Board Trustee.

As a Marketing Edge Executive Board member, please feel free to contact me  to discuss sponsorship opportunities or answer any questions you may have about the mission and scope of Marketing EDGE and how you and your company can get involved.

@JeffGundersen

Filed Under: Ask Our Coach, Branding Yourself Online, Executive Coaching, Getting Hired in Digital Marketing, Personal Branding

The Results of Our Online ID Survey

In our recent Online Identity Survey, we gained further insights into the role your online identity plays in your ability to land the right career opportunity and your challenges in building out an online presence that is a match for your personal brand.

Thanks so much to those of you who participated and to the many who remarked that our questions were “eye-opening” and “thought-provoking.”

We will spotlight the prize winning recipient of our Online Identity Package Makeover (valued at $1,500) conducted by our personal branding experts, Lola White and Kirsten Vernon, along with the results of our collaboration in an upcoming issue.

Highlighted survey results:

  • 100% cite LinkedIn as the social network they use most often for professional purposes
  • 93% believe their online identity plays a role in securing or finding new roles and/or clients
  • 93% are not using video to communicate their brand message
  • 89% are mindful of the personal brand impact of every post
  • 86% feel they need to invest more time managing their online reputation
  • 85% have not registered their name as a domain name
  • 68% would like to raise their visibility and credibility as a subject matter expert or thought leader, but are not certain of how to publish and promote their content so their target audience will actually find it
  • 65% regularly monitor their online ID in some way
  • 44% feel they are not taking the opportunity to fully maximize their brand building activities (speaking, article writing, etc.) using social media
  • 41% invest 30 minutes per week in managing their online brand
  • 37% agree they are using the full potential of LinkedIn

Stay tuned…the top challenge in building your online brand is not knowing the best tools to utilize. We’ll have our personal branding experts address this in an upcoming blog post.

Filed Under: Ask Our Coach, Branding Yourself Online, Digital Proficiency, Executive Coaching, LinkedIn, Marketing Conferences & Events, Personal Branding

Managing Change: Respond Instead of React

The world of work as we have known it is changing and evolving at an extraordinary pace. The “rules” of the past no longer apply, and new “rules” are being written and rewritten all the time.

Changes can be unsettling, whether they’re potential or actual, positive or negative. You may be gearing up for a promotion/new position, staring at a wide-open field of new prospective clients, or launching new products and services. Or you may be hunkering down in the face of outsourcing, downsizing, mergers/consolidations, takeovers, and local or global competition.

Consider the Changes Taking Place at Yahoo!

Yahoo CEO Marissa Mayer has certainly unleashed enormous, untold passions about how, when and where people should work at Yahoo.

The recent, now infamous, change requiring Yahoo employees to work in the office instead of telecommuting from home has been likened to the shot heard round the world.

No less than a great war has ensued and Marissa Mayer has been villainized and vilified by some and verified and validated by others.

It is no secret that Yahoo has been struggling to keep pace with the likes of Apple, Facebook, and Google, all of whom have strong in-office cultures and not coincidentally, strong revenues to match.

In Our Opinion…It’s not about trusting people to work at home, it’s about Mayer’s challenge in the turnaround of Yahoo regardless of where people are working. Mayer has to build a new corporate culture of trust in the infinite possibilities of what the Yahoo organization can create together.

However, as we are hearing, this change process is creating considerable stress for Yahoo employees.

How We Respond to Change

Do you respond or react to change and do you know the difference? As soon as something nudges you out of your regular routine, or challenges your understanding of how the world works and where you fit into it, it will likely trigger a deluge of feelings including; fear, anxiety, overwhelm, excitement, distraction or denial.

How Does the Way You Respond to Change Impact Your Brand?

These feelings can manifest in your behavior.  You may, unconsciously, act out with behavior that is not a brand match for you, or your communication style alters, both at work and at home. You might feel compelled to push yourself and others to overwork, or take the opposite approach – which most do – and procrastinate, avoid the work that’s on your plate and get sidetracked with misconceptions, assumptions and gossip to changes that may or may not happen.

On a personal level, your self-care may suffer and you may reach for unhealthy substances, get less sleep, skip meals or overindulge. You might cut yourself off from friends and family, and spend more time alone or with other people who have unhealthy habits or attract people who are in the same place as you.

The Impact

Dealing with change requires flexibility, resilience and an ability to think on your feet. Unfortunately, when you’re caught up in your reaction to change, these mental abilities are affected as well. When you’re preoccupied, worried and focused on the future instead of the present, it’s much harder to concentrate and apply your brainpower to what’s in front of you.

Great leaders are admired for their serenity and confidence even in the face of uncertainty and upheaval. For many of us, though, when change is afoot, serenity is far from our reach. Instead, emotions are much closer to the surface and can flare up at the most inopportune times. Whether you lash out, cry, or pound on your desk behind closed doors, it’s incredibly uncomfortable to feel so out of control.

Consider, also, the impact on the people around you. Emotional outbursts, whether at work or at home, can irrevocably damage your effectiveness, your reputation and your relationships.

Successful Strategies for Dealing With Change

Here are five strategies to help you remain flexible and resilient in the face of change:

1. Take care of YOUr body. Eat well, sleep well and refrain from harmful habits like indulging in caffeine adrenaline behavior, excessive drinking, or other risky behavior. Work out whatever that is for you!

2. Take care of YOUr mind. Stay in the present moment. Challenge your negative thinking and keep things in perspective; when the doom and gloom sets in, ask, “How important is this, really?”

3. Take control of YOUr emotions. Find reasons to smile and laugh, even when you don’t feel like it—especially when you don’t feel like it! Funny movies, blogs or videos can help. Vent your negative feelings by exercising, banging on a drum or pounding on a pillow.

4. Treat others well. Strengthen your good relationships so you can draw on their support and work at your challenging relationships so they don’t add to your stress.  In fact, this may be a good time to remove them from your life altogether.

5. Take charge. Be proactive and prepare the best you can for the changes that might come, but then accept the reality of the moment. Think back to other challenges that you’ve come through and remind yourself that everything will work out okay this time, too.