Five first-rate marketers take us through their leadership journeys and career challenges at breakneck speed
LinkedIn 5 x 15
The Linkedin 5x15 event at Internet Week Europe had two rules: each speaker had 15 minutes only, and there were to be no scripts. With the clock ticking, these were the key takeaways from each.
Dominic Grounsell, Marketing Director at Capital One
Grounsell set out four rules for career success: know where you're going and how you're going to get there; spend time getting to know yourself; seek variety throughout your career; and, finally, seek adversity — remember that smooth seas don't make skilful sailors. "You've got to go to places that are painful," says Grounsell, "find a brand that's got a big problem and make yourself the solution."
Sarah Speake, Strategic Marketing Director for UK and Ireland at Google
"One of my key pieces of advice," says Speake, "is networking." And the secret of successful networking? Authenticity. For women this means not trying to be blokey — and Speake can vouch for this because she's tried it. "But if you remember nothing else from my presentation," she concluded, "remember that it's only a job. Break the mould: go home at 5pm."
Thomas Delabriere, Marketing Director at Innocent Drinks
Delabriere acknowledges that we are working in a tough context at the moment, but stresses that it is more important than ever to take risks. He recounts his experience launching Innocent's new juice range — he pushed for a packaging innovation, despite almost everyone on the board being against it. And it paid off. "Believe in your gut," Delabriere says, "and never ever give up."
Andrew Warner, Senior Marketing Director at Expedia
Warner initially only signed up to a marketing course at university because he liked the look of the girls in the queue. But two other things have stayed with him from his degree: firstly, be relevant, and secondly, be different. "We think that we work in a creative industry, but there are a lot of norms in the industry that people want to adhere to…and how can you stand out if everyone is adhering to the same norms?"
Phil Rumbol, Founding Partner at 101 London
"To be an effective marketer," says Rumbol, "you have to have strong analysis but you also need really good intuition…learn to listen to your inner consumer." As Rumbol explains, this was a principle that he stuck to firmly in his commissioning of the famous Cadbury's "Gorilla" — "the consumers got it quicker than the marketers."
-- Fiona McKenzie
Fiona McKenzie is a freelance writer in London and a contributor to Contagious magazine.
