‘Leadership has nothing to do with your title’: a guide for future media leaders
Opinion: Career Leaders
Starcom CEO Nadine Young shares three lessons that she’s learned from being an agency leader.
Welcome to the wonderful world of media, a truly never-ending rollercoaster ride through brilliant creativity, exciting changes in tech, sophisticated applications of data and a deep understanding of cultural change.
I love this industry and its passion for people, and I know I am lucky and privileged to lead a 500-strong group of talented and committed professionals who have chosen to be part of it.
When The Media Leader asked me to pen some words of advice for the industry’s “Future Leaders” though, I faltered a bit.
Search for ‘leadership advice’ and you’ll go down a rabbit hole. There’s no lack of ‘top tips’, ‘key traits’, ‘must haves’… there are endless resources on the subject that all say the same thing.
If you act on all this advice, you will be the “perfect leader” for these times: authentic, a good listener, empathetic, visionary, inspiring; you’ll surround yourself with a strong team, you will fight for that team come what may; you will be kind, inclusive and goal oriented.
That’s quite the list — and I won’t argue with any of it. So, what can I possibly add that hasn’t been said literally hundreds of times already, by people who are far more expert than I am?
I thought I’d get a bit more personal and talk about “what I’ve learned”, with more of a focus on the “how” to do it, rather than the “what” you need to be.
Here are three lessons I’ve tried to take to heart to guide me on my own leadership journey.
Leadership has nothing to do with your job title
Leadership can exist at every level, and I am inspired everyday by seeing leaders in Starcom stepping up to fix, drive, motivate and inspire.
I have seen examples of leadership from apprentices who bravely speak up for what they believe in; from managers who say ‘this process isn’t working — I’m going to fix it’; from account execs who rally the agency behind a cause that means the world to them; from directors who put their hands up to work on an ‘unwinnable’ pitch (and then go and bloody win it).
This is all Leadership. If you want to be a leader, you can start today, don’t wait for a fancy title to drop.
People who work hard, play harder, and want to make things better are all natural leaders.
Harness your inner teen
Remember saying “I’ll never do that when I grow up” — after your parents had done something to annoy you? Or “I can’t wait to do that when I grow up” — when someone really inspired you?
I try to act on those behaviours and to avoid the behaviours that demotivated me, as far as I am able.
On my list of behaviours to avoid are things like: cancelling an appraisal at the last minute without explanation, refusing to discuss pay or promotion opportunities openly, not being open to being questioned…. There are more, but you get the gist.
On my list of things “I will definitely do when I grow up” are: sharing updates from senior meetings; sharing bad news instead of pretending bad stuff never happens; fighting for my team, who will always come first to me.
Look around, remember what inspires you, remember what deflates you, and emulate or avoid those behaviours yourself as you become more senior.
To lead, you need to follow
It’s up to the leader to inspire belief in the people around us that, with enough focus and trust, they can achieve anything. Leading is as much about letting go and trusting others to lead.
I am inspired every day by the wonderful people in our agency who lead through empowerment; they trust their own teams, and they show them that they can lead.
Try to worry less about managing the day-to-day shenanigans (they will never end!) and focus more on what really matters — to build trust in the teams around you, to fight for those people, and to empower others to lead.
In the end, it’s the difference between managing and leading. The more you can inspire belief in others that they can reach unstoppable heights, the more you will all be unstoppable. Together.
Nadine Young is UK CEO of Publicis Groupe media agency Starcom
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