MarketingRecon

Marketing Recon partners with executive teams to create stronger strategic linkages
between a company, its clients, and partners – laying the groundwork for new market growth
and designing custom programs to support the growth initiatives.

A Marketing Hypothesis on Talent| Re-Energizing Recruitment and Retention Together

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A Marketing Hypothesis on Talent| Re-Energizing Recruitment and Retention Together

While I am not embedded inside large HR organizations, my recent work alongside them has led me to a marketing-based hypothesis about today’s talent challenges.

In prior engagements, I focused on strengthening the talent pipeline through a rigorous TVP/EVP research process. What began as structured research quickly evolved into something more powerful: authentic employee storytelling.

Employees—often long-tenured, middle managers—were asked meaningful questions about their experience for the first time since being hired. Their responses were candid, minimally edited, and strikingly human. As the interviewer, I observed genuine appreciation for simply being asked. What started as research became engagement.  We not only learned what was important to employees about the company as a whole but also what energized them by department – something quite important for the hiring process.

The Current Talent Landscape

Recent industry reports reinforce the urgency of rethinking talent strategy.

  • Workday notes that while hiring continues, promotion rates have fallen across most industries. Internal mobility is slowing, reducing advancement opportunities and weakening engagement. Compounding this, unclear AI strategies are increasing anxiety about job security.
  • Korn Ferry observes that rigid RTO policies are eroding trust and engagement, negatively affecting productivity and culture – impacting recruitment and retention.
  • Deloitte emphasizes that organizations must rethink their EVP in an AI-shaped world of work if they want to drive both human and business outcomes.  Individually, these trends are concerning. Collectively, they reveal something deeper. 
  • A 2025 Talent Trends SHRM report highlights persistent applicant shortages, competition, and candidate “ghosting,” leaving critical roles vacant and driving operational strain – citing, “Over time, these pressures can weaken market position, damage your employer brand, and undermine sustained competitiveness.”

Re-Calibrating the Keywords

Acquisition. Retention. Engagement. Disengagement. RTO. AI.

These are not separate issues—they exist on a continuum. Recruitment and retention are often treated as distinct functions, but they are deeply interconnected. Organizations market aggressively to attract new talent yet often fail to generate the same excitement and intentional communication for those already inside.

It is the equivalent of offering attractive incentives to new customers while overlooking loyal, long-standing ones.

An Employee-Centered Acquisition & Retention Program

There is an opportunity to use the TVP process not only as a recruitment tool, but as a strategic engagement engine.

By inviting employees to help redefine the organization in light of RTO shifts and AI integration, companies can:

  • Clarify and modernize their EVP
  • Surface department-level differentiators that matter to both candidates and current staff
  • Reinforce internal mobility and growth narratives
  • Reduce AI-related uncertainty through transparent strategy and use cases

In many organizations, Talent Acquisition and Employee Engagement operate in parallel —often under-resourced and loosely connected. Yet both can benefit from a unified, authentic storytelling program that celebrates employees and reflects the evolving reality of work.

When thoughtfully executed, this approach does more than fill roles. It strengthens culture, reinforces loyalty, and injects renewed energy into the workforce.

In an AI-infused environment, organizations that align recruitment and retention through genuine employee voice will not only compete more effectively for talent—they will keep it.

Context is King in pursuit of influencing a positive AI future!

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The Kendall Project is educating and inspiring Boston businesses and professionals with its thought-provoking workshops

I think I speak for most professionals who are trying to navigate AI opportunities and challenges. Where do I begin? What’s working? How do I get started? Am I already too late? Thanks to the generous effort of the team at the Kendall Project, some of us can breathe a momentary sigh of relief after attending their AI workshop for marketers at the Cambridge Innovation Center earlier this week.

The Host:

The Kendall Project has a clear mission “to empower companies to rapidly identify opportunities where AI can solve real business problems and create a positive impact, without compromising jobs.” But the important first step is to form a community and common language. By attending the workshop, each of us began the journey. In this case- most of us were independent marketing advisors or agencies – coincidentally one the very top areas where AI is being applied and enjoying the highest growth rate.

The Content:


After a brief introduction to AI basics – level setting terms like Large Language Models, Context, Persona, Vector Databases, Nearest Neighbors, and Hallucinations – the Kendall team (Brendan McSheffrey and Kevin Gulley) introduced the fundamental rules of AI engagement and excellence – including these top three:

• PROBLEMS ARE AI’S FUEL
• AI IS A TEAM SPORT
• AI PLAYS BEST WHEN IT KNOWS THE RULES – WHAT’S IMPORTANT AND WHAT’S NOT

Context:
A key message of the day is that AI relies on context – defined as “what we know.” It can be mundane or strategic. In any case it helps inform the agent about the focal point or “what to pay attention to.” Prompting is a type of context as are personas. These translate into instructions that tell the LLM how to act and become an expert.


Hands-On


The workshops, organized into various peer groups lay the groundwork for introducing AI into different types of businesses. The hands-on portion of the workshop offers a step-by-step approach to problem identification AI-style – using logical components – role, capabilities, problem, and processes worksheets voting to flush out priorities of each sub-group. Yes, we had to actually do work and articulate problems to be solved in our individual businesses. Voting helped distill priorities for each group. Though many concerns were common among marketers – challenges like reconciling all the data coming from different marketing applications came out on top. The purpose of doing the workshop was not only to populate an AI marketing utility to solve today’s problems but also to lay the ground work to understand AI’s future problem solving capabilities. Technically speaking, the goal was to create “controlled structured data.” All the data is collected and the group will receive the output of the data collection as part of the process. Seeing the output from previous workshops helped us visualize how the data starts to form an AI utility. I am looking forward to seeing how our discussions came together!


The Eco-System:


Being co-located in the CIC with AI startups and investors is purposeful. The Kendall Project is dedicated to its investment in the local tech economy and Governor Healy’s stated opportunity for Massachusetts to be a global leader in AI. The leader of C-10- Labs, Beth Porter (a venture studio and eco-system of founders for applied AI companies) finished off the day sharing some of the work being done with her cohorts at the CIC – building solutions from scratch or customizing existing ones. Per Beth, agents are like the millions of semi-conductors in our phones – each has a unique relationship with the other. Therefore, the potential for custom AI solutions is limitless.


Call to Action:


This project is important, ambitious, and a somewhat altruistic effort. Similar to the early days of Open Source and Cloud Computing, AI will have to iron out the misunderstandings, concern, and/or barriers to entry for the industry or specific sectors. It’s a clear case of a community coming together to raise awareness and education, putting aside individual motives, so that the entire industry can benefit and move forward. I fully recommend to my clients and colleagues to sign up for one of the future workshops. Better yet, invest in a company-specific one as a very practical and useful “off-site” for their team. The time to jump on this bullet train is now while you can still catch it! Find upcoming workshops here and become part of this exciting new community.

Emory women demonstrate shared values on their path to leadership| Insights from Boston TrailblazHer panel

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Leading Ladies| Left to right – Jacqueline Ganim-DeFalco, Elizabeth Halkos, Nabiha Saklayen, Sophia Hall, Jodi Rosenbaum

Emory’s mission “to create, preserve, teach, and apply knowledge in the service of humanity” was on full display in the lives and professional accomplishments of panelists of the TrailblazHER event on the eve of the Presidential debate.  Even the venue, More than Words, is an entity born out of alumna Jodi Rosenbaum’s passion to change the system she observed over twenty years ago while she worked at the Atlanta area courts reviewing cases.  “I spent more time in the courts than in the classroom and even had a key to the courthouse,” said Jodi, whose organization empowers at risk youth through entrepreneurship and leadership.

The Journey and the aha moment!

More Than Words Bookstore

The evening began with each panelist sharing their journey and reflecting on when they realized they were in a leadership position.   The panelists included Elizabeth Halkos 01MBA, Sophia Hall 09C, Jodi Rosenbaum 97C, and Nabiha Saklayen 12C and were led by moderator, Jacqueline Ganim-DeFalco 81C.    Jacqueline kicked off the evening by setting the tone for leadership in the broadest sense.  At various points in our lives, we are called upon to lead professionally, in our community, in our family – but once a leader, always a leader in some capacity.

Nabiha, a Ph.D. in physics, admits that she didn’t set out to be a CEO, but nearly everyone around her, all leaders in their field, believed in her and she simply stepped up to the challenge, jumping into many roles as the CEO of a biotech startup, Cellino.  Her diverse background growing up all over the world and speaking multiple languages gave her a unique perspective that only she could bring to her role.  Sophia heard “no” too many times and just pushed through various roles until she found a firm that said YES to her ideas and passion.   Jodi was motivated by anger about the way things were done and was driven to make an impact.  Elizabeth was given a series of roles she thought were better suited to other experts, but quickly realized, she was the leader they needed in her organization, and she would learn what she needed to fill in the gaps. 

Challenges, Derailment, & Resilience

Michele Davis opening the evening

The simple answer to this is “yes,” we have all had them.  All panelists agreed that the main point is to constantly remind each other that we will all have bumps and bruises along the way, and you just have to know this is often the most memorable part of the journey.  For Nabiha, fundraising to the tune of $120M has been her most recent challenge which began in 2017 – facing head on the fact that only 2% of women-owned companies receive venture money.   Elizabeth remembers many closed doors when presenting the concept and raising money for an all-female venture fund.  “No,” was often based simply on gender (you don’t look like us) – a reflection of the tech industry as a whole.   She added somewhat humorously that one of her memorable experiences is being “deposed” for 9 hours when she was 8 months pregnant – a degree of discomfort unique to our gender.    Sophia emphasized that “success usually happens after going through the stuff that really hurts,” and vulnerability helps build the character we need as leaders.  Jacqueline reflected on her experience being asked to open up the Asia-Pacific markets for her employer NYNEX in the late 80’s.   “At the age of 26, I became a ‘Managing Director’ representing a major corporation overseas. Knowing the markets, building credibility quickly, and avoiding any social faux pas was essential to my success and the company’s reputation.  My reputation and the company’s were one in the same being halfway around the world.”

Leadership essentials – Innovation, Vision, and Relationships

Jodi reflected on how important it’s been for her to hire people “smarter that she is” in various parts of the More than Words team.   Innovation is part of their everyday mantra – and essential to growth of the individuals and the business.   Innovation in a different form allowed Nabiha to launch her cell tissue business which focuses on cells that are specific to ethnic groups – something truly new in the bio-tech world.  Elizabeth is breaking barriers in the Health Tech records management space – a thorn in the side of medical administrators.  Sophia reflected on one of her most interesting cases during the “me too” movement – exploring and representing issues unique to the Latino restaurant workers.  

The panel collectively agreed that relationship building, particularly outside your organization is a call to action for everyone in the room throughout their career and in their communities.   Jacqueline had the privilege of a co-consulting relationship with James Masciarelli, noted author of PowersSkills – a formula for building and leveraging top tier relationships for success.  Elizabeth shared a story about graduating from Emory’s Goizueta MBA program in ‘01, being ready to move to NYC to take on a new consulting role exactly 23 years ago when 9-11 changed the NYC hiring landscape.  Having found herself jobless, her strategic networking yielded an entirely new position in a different city.  Nabiha unlike many scientists, makes every effort to find new connections every day.   She focuses in on the “conversation” and works hard to get to know potential investors and partners and emphasizes the importance of the human connection.  No doubt, she has earned her 9000 following on LinkedIn!  

As each has advanced in their careers, the panel emphasized that “advocacy” becomes another dimension of their leadership.   For Sophia, it’s look at the systemic changed needed in her work for Civil Rights.   For Jodi, it’s becoming a lobbyist to advocate for a better eco-system for at risk youth.

Advice to a younger self

Nabiha reflected on the fact that she rarely slept during college and her lack of personal care could have had severe long-term consequences.  She advocates for better self-care and “health above everything,” “we don’t get to choose how our bodies respond to stress.”   Elizabeth and Sophia focused on risk-taking and keeping an open mind to paths you may not even consider.   Elizabeth recommends trusting our gut – remembering a time when she simply felt like the environment she was in was to big for her to make a difference.  Sophia reminds us that “we are presented with many molds, but it’s important to embrace your authenticity.”  Furthermore, take risks BEFORE you have children as that truly changes the landscape.  Jodi summed up the question and the session by her revelation that she wishes she paid less attention to what others thought.  In other words, set your own standards, get clear on your values and stick to them.  On that note, truly each of these panelists embraced a higher set of values very much in the spirit that Emory has built its culture.  It was remarkable to see that given the diverse range of backgrounds, experiences, and graduation timeframes that the group was united in their commitment to do good in their work and community. 

Summation:

As per the moderator, “when I began my career, I was grateful to the women that came before me to pave the way for a more balanced set of opportunities and career choices, but that was just the beginning.  Now, more than ever, we need to support each other and celebrate our collective success by paying it forward.”  Leadership comes in many forms.   It can happen in your family, community, profession, and the workplace.  Sometimes it evolves over time as you gradually build credibility and others start to look up to you for your expertise– other times it happens quickly.  Regardless, it’s important to understand your responsibilities once you are in a leadership position.  Help those around you become their best selves, listen and observe before making changes, reward your peers and team for their leadership, build healthy long-term relationships, inspire people through your actions, and be self-aware – taking time to learn, grow, and attend to your mental and physical health.

Special thanks to all the Emory family working hard behind the scenes to support Emory’s many initiatives – especially the Women of Emory Impact Circle.  A special shout out to Nicole Holubar and Michele Davis for having the vision to make this come to life.

Favorite Leadership Books, Tools, Workshops

Board Development: For non profit and private co boards

Event: Inc 5000 Fastest Growing Company events

Books – Daring Greatly by Brenee Brown, Good to Great – Jim Collins and zero to one – Peter Thiel.

Teamwork: The  Music Paradigm and  Meyers-Briggs (MBTI)

Leadership: Strengthsfinder from Gallup and PowerSkills   VIP Relationship Management

General Learning/Inspiration: HBS/WSA Dynamic Women in Business Annual Conference at Harvard Business School annually in February.

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Harvard Tech Conference| Snapshot & Observations

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In this blog, I’ve tried to capture some of my notes and observations to share with anyone that wasn’t able to attend the @HBS #TechClub Annual Tech conference or the individual sessions.   It’s also an attempt to share some of this fabulous content with a wider audience, acknowledge the organizers, and THANK the speakers for sharing their time and expertise.   The full article is posted below.

The State of AI | Generating Value, Impact, and an evolving Playbook

Knowledge if truly power whether it’s you and I being better informed or AI getting smarter as we feed it better and better data.  In fact, I felt so much better about how we can embrace this new era after the incredibly informative presentations. 

For most mortals, AI is an intimidating concept, so for those of us who are privileged to be exposed to some of its potential impact, its incumbent upon us to help share the learning and if in a position to do so, help “shape” the future. Share on X

The opening keynote at the HBS Tech Conference, Rodney Zemmel of McKinsey, explained the transformation from Analytical to Generative AI and shared research on what was really making an impact or contributing to value creation.   Speed and cost – attributable to both hardware and software advances are at the heart of AI being applied across many dimensions of business.   AI has changed so much that we even learned that the old word doesn’t fit it anymore and that Generative AI is a “retronym” to characterize where we are today.

As the chart clearly shows, Customer Engagement, Creative Content, Coding, and “Concision” (Concise + Precision) are among the most prolific applications.  Companies surveyed in the analysis are trying to achieve 20% cost savings and 30% revenue goals. But on an informal level, when he met with a few hundred executive teams to see how they are REALLY using AI day-to-day, there’s more experimentation with personal uses such as travel planning, birthday, and retirement poems.  Nonetheless, fascinating research is taking place for interactions between patients and doctors – where a patient could clearly differentiate the chat bot from the doctor, but still preferred the chat bot for its breadth of knowledge and empathy.  This certainly caused a ripple in the audience!

Much of the next phase will require retooling of the business.  He covers much of the research in his book, Rewired.  But some of my key takeaways were:

  • Leveraging the combined data sources – public and proprietary is where the true power of AI takes place – to create more credible expertise

There are three groups of adopters – Taker, Maker, and Shaper. Most companies are still “taking” but true competitive advantage will come in shaping the future.   Making can be expensive as it always is to be the early leader.

  • The playbook has some clear guidelines that will make or break success. These include starting at the top and working all the way through the organization for commitment, having clear financial targets, the appropriate and engaged talent pool, an agile (or equivalent) operating model, not to over “technologize” the implementation – focus on the key areas that need it; and data humility (good, trustworthy, ethical data).

Key Players in AI Infrastructure| Spotlight on NVIDIA – Beyond Games

NVIDIA SVP of Enterprise Business, Shanker Trivedi used his time in the spotlight to enhance our understanding of the NVDIA story.   Described as an accelerate company platform – NVDIA is a full stack offering of hardware and software that makes developers more efficient.  Developers are the main focus and “go to market” is accomplished through a vast network of partners.

Although its roots were in gaming, gaming gave the company the tools and understanding needed to go deep into other verticals – emphasizing that “acceleration is domain-specific.”  NVDIA uses its unique combination of tools to attack killer workloads.   In terms of AI, it can be thought of as an operating system for AI.   The ensuing panel of Ampere, Memryx, and Interl emphasized that GenAI requires a robust AI infrastructure and one of the great outcomes of this computing environment is the time to market (e.g. ChatGBT was just 14 months out of the lab) and the ability to simulate. Simulating can provide significant savings and efficiencies down the line – especially in areas like manufacturing or plant design.

Panels: Health Tech and Bio Tech

 

Life Sciences and Health AI| Really Good Stuff

The Health and Bio tech panel was wonderfully diverse offering perspectives from the startups, investors, and the support team – in this case a Law Firm.  All the companies had an element of AI in their offerings – AI for dentistry – Videahealth; AI for immunotherapy Noetik, AI for health using biosensors (NIX), and AI for home health care – Vaxess.  Among the key topics of discussion were the types of expertise needed in the growing AI field.  The obvious skill set is data science, but in addition to the technical areas – it’s equally important to “be a dreamer” and be able to ask the right questions.  Just having the data truly isn’t enough.  Knowing how to query the data is critical. In the case of Noetik, data is gathered from tumors to infer properties.   The tasks that are being undertaken by AI, in this case, are far too difficult for humans.  That is where the AI is adding the most value.

In the case of Videahealth, the applications help the dentist and patient decide what will happen if you don’t do something (e.g.fill the cavity, add the crown, etc.).  The cumulative data helps predict future results.   Ideally, the combination of the large data sets and the individual’s history will create the best decision-making data set.  In other words, taking personalized database, but use in a longitudinal fashion.

Investment strategy was another track of the discussion.  Meredith went down the venture path citing that as a direct-to-consumer, it made the most sense.  She also rode the wave of sports tech.  Now that some of that wave has diminished, she is looking more to high-net-worth individuals with ties to her customer base – e.g. sports teams like the Celtics, Texas Rangers, etc.   Those with a personal passion for understanding health through “sweat” are her best advocates.   Florian was cautious on the VC investment direction IF one believes that VC’s can provide all the value added (beyond the actual dollars) that one assumes they will. 

The final discussion focused on distribution and adoption.   The point was made that one of the key values of AI is the ability to simulate before committing to full coding of a product.   This is key for cost savings and also for understanding end user impact.  In the case of therapeutics and all the required documentation to conduct a trial, AI could accelerate clinical trials.   In the big picture, this helps ease the tension between technology push and market pull.

Climate Tech and Tough Tech Panel:

Tackling the Big Issues| A long term view

The Climate and Tough Tech panel was eye opening.  The focus of this area will have a direct impact on the planet and the challenges are unique in each part of the sector.   The “tough” problems in this sector are depletion of natural resources and finding more economical ways to deliver energy in a climate friendly manner.  Following a step-by-step path, Electric Hydrogen’s head of Corporate Development, Supratim Das explained how they were the first company to bring down the megawatt costs – one of the barriers to hydrogen as an energy source.  Even so, the profitability would not be possible without tax credits.

Melissa Fensterstock, from Material Impact shared their big picture thinking around what will drive the next revolution in human and planetary issues – Space Tech, Food Tech, and Water were among the innovative areas being explored. Anything driven by Material Science were among their focal points as investors.  They focus on solving problems but many of the solutions in climate tech, for example face scaling challenges.   They also require many outside influencers – government and broader support to be successful in many cases.

Each investor was asked to comment on the tough tech spaces that need more attention.  Manufacturing technology, battery and solid state were among those that need innovation and investment.  For example, looking beyond oil and water emulsion in manufacturing. FedEx discussed robotics and the importance of robots needing a “sense of touch” for the next phase. To do so requires convergence of different technologies.   All in all, this group of investors and innovators are taking on some of the biggest challenges we face as human beings.

Wisdom for Women in Tech| Make your presence known

Speakers:

The Women in Tech panel was focused on the how to stay ahead of the career game.  The expert panel shared their insight on the importance of being active in learning, coaching, and thought leadership, and staying on top of trends.  Being an “information carnivore” came up as a recommendation! 

In terms of leadership, one line of advice revolved around the importance of sponsorship and a personal board of directors.  Another point of view was offered by Kathy Pham who said that all her roles were “made up” and effectively being a pioneer gave her opportunity.

Specific advice was offered by Shailaja about being heard and taking your seat at the table.  “Don’t cede it” once you get there.  If you are invited to a meeting, it’s because you have a valued opinion.  When things don’t go your way, handle rejection well.

And finally, the point was made to stay health and “take care of yourself” because you need your strength.

VC Panel:

Inside the VC World| Career Competencies

For the audience, this session was a very real breakdown of what it takes to pursue a career in venture capital.  It was a frank and very useful discussion.  The panel was diverse and the major takeaway was for anyone considering a career track in venture to carefully consider the investment theses and style of the fund – multi-stage, pre-revenue, etc. Each was very specific about the stage of companies, percentage of controlling interest, and sectors of investment.  A second major point was the type of experience valued in the funds.   Clearly, operating experience is at the very top of the list but not a deal-breaker if you are bringing other key areas of expertise to the table.   Analysis, strategy, professional development, product management, and having a broad and deep network are also key skills.

Rob Go from NEXTVIEW made the point that it is possible to build an entire career in venture by apprenticing with the more senior team members as a lot of the decisions are made by looking at patterns over time.    He made the point that VC is no longer the “craft” business it used to be and that it’s much more institutionalized and careers can be launched there successfully.  Rob also believes strongly in keeping the “idea

Fireside with Adam Selipsky, CEO, Amazon Web Services

Adam kicked off his fireside answering questions about organizational affinity – the traits that help align everyone in the company.   He shared many of the tenets shared at AWS that are known as their 16 Principles of leadership.  To that he added that they always take the long term view – making huge capital investments in the future – truly core to the foundation of Amazon.

On the topic of AI, he believes that we won’t have a good read for at least five years but at AWS they are taking a customer perspective.  What he sees as a priority is to stay in the forefront of innovation and to create industry frameworks on how to act as AI evolves.

As an HBS graduate, he was asked to articulate what he didn’t learn at HBS to which he responded, “managing people.”   He expanded on this by discussing his interactions with the team during the Pandemic when everyone faced uncertainty.  Openness and transparency were the core of his approach.  He felt that if he was honest about what was happening, people would come with him even if they disagreed.

At the end of the day, he was asked the inverse, what he LEARNED at HBS to which he responded – first the business “toolkit” but more importantly, the power of the Case Method.  He specifically discussed that the real world does not offer simple answers.  Most business challenges are based on open ended, ambiguous questions to which we will never really know the answer.  In fact, you will never know if you are right or wrong.  So, you have to understand what facts are important, make a decision, and be able to defend your decision.   This was powerful insight and a great takeaway from the conference. 

Putting People First Requires a Open and Intentional Culture

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The issues around Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion continue to create new conversations.  Forward looking organizations know first and foremost that there is significant value in investing in this area.  However, when things get messy, they cannot ignore the challenges and must take some risks in order to get it right. There are no guarantees that it will work the first time, but being honest about the learning curve and acknowledging success and failure is part of creating an authentic environment.   These were among the many takeaways from this morning’s “People First” Roundtable hosted by Gallagher and Benson Search.  This was the first of the live roundtables hosted in the post-Pandemic climate and clearly there was an energy in the room demonstrating the need to communicate face-to-face – especially on such key issues.

Hybrid Environment| Shedding a new light on DEI

DEI issues also now have to take into account a hybrid work environment and “post Covid integration” where work and life are inseparable, particularly to the newest generations of workers.  This group has raised the bar for expectations around company culture.   Interestingly, the return to the office has brought forward issues that didn’t surface before.  The presenter, Ruby Hamacher, pointed out that there were always nuances in the work environment that caused a degree of bias.  By way of example, she points to an anecdotal observation from client survey that found that “primary caregivers feeling a lower sense of inclusion.”  The transition back to the office is an opportunity to re-up our listening and observation skills!   To have these courageous conversations, it’s important to create a safe space – keeping in mind these four pillars:  LISTEN AND STAY ENGAGED; RESPECT DISCOMFORT; VOICE YOUR TRUTH; and EXPECT AND ACCEPT NON-CLOSURE.

Analysis| The life-raft in unchartered waters

What really stood out in the presentation was the range of options for companies to improve their DEI performance.   A robust but flexible communications plan is an important first step.   But informally, being sure to respond in a timely manner to feedback and questions. 

Implementing changes that include training, inclusive benefits, and a review of language to ensure its inclusivity.  Crafting and sharing the employee brand or EVP – another important aspect of the plan.

A critical key to success, however, is to couple the overall strategy with the use statistics to get the conversation on the right track.  It’s not always comfortable, but HR teams have to transcend talk to get down to numbers.  In Ruby’s words, “Using data to make fair & equitable decisions and to address DEI concerns helps take the uncertainty out of HR Analysis” and reveals the truth about what’s really happening mitigating perceptions that arise from casual observations.  Gallagher invests heavily in these people analytics and provides support with strategies to define, measure and embed DEI into organizational culture utilizing an ISO-certified framework to quantify the qualitative.  Ruby Hamecher  is happy to discuss this one a 1:1 basis with interested parties.

Reaction from the Room| Shared learning is critical.

Current world affairs naturally brought up how employees and employers are dealing with the conflicts in the Middle East.  In some cases, the leaders of HR were getting push back that their organizations were not doing enough or clearly communicating their positions.   It’s not uncommon that the CPO is leading the charge on the conversation, but often the CEO is lagging behind on how to handle the issues.  Public and consistent communication and vision is key.  Where best practices don’t exist – and that’s quite common – one has to conduct “courageous dialogue” similar to what was experienced during the George Floyd inspired protests.  

Another concern was how DEI impacts employee advancement. One of the participants suggested that training of managers to manage a diverse team is one of the keys to making sure that they strike a balance on creating and executing promotional opportunities.  Another layer of complexity arises in at in global organizations where DEI takes on completely different parameters.  Local customs and culture play a huge role in how a company decides to hold this conversation.

The exchange was vibrant and the need to partner on addressing common challenges was echoed throughout the Q & A around a profound theme – THE WORLD IS CHANGING AND WE HAVE TO CONSTANTLY ADAPT.  This includes in the language we use, the gestures we make, the biases we bring to the table.  All is up for review.   The presentation provided a series of useful tools and methodology that are available to those registered for the event.  

Roundtables hosted in this intimate format are truly a gift to those that can take time to attend.   But given busy schedules, the goal here is to sum up some highlights and honor the team that made it happen.    Many thanks to Gallagher and Benson Search for their investment in this event.

 

Takeaways from the 32nd Annual #WSAConf2023 @HarvardBusinessSchool- LEAD TO EMPOWER

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As a Boston area resident, I have been fortunate to grab some local fellow professional colleagues and attend this amazing conference @HBSWomen over the last 10+ years – the last “in person” event having been held in 2019.  In 2019, 2018, I attempted to capture some highlights in my Forward Observer Blog.  Thematically, it’s always uplifting, and the overall spirit is one of learning and sharing thanks to the hard work of the students who organize it and the generous spirit of the panelists and keynotes.   From the start this year, it was evident that everyone was extremely grateful to be meeting in person again.

The day kicked off with the powerful and accomplished @Angela F. Williams, President and CEO of the United Way.  She deftly shared her life’s journey and decision that led her to where she is today – advocating the virtues of being #bivocational a term to which I can personally relate.  She’s been a leader in the military, the for-profit world, the government, and the non-profit sector and on the weekends, an ordained minister.  Her honesty about what it really means to “have it all” was refreshing. 

Among her key points:

  • Know your own value systems and who you are – understand your purpose.  She admits, she tried to keep two separate personae until a mentor called her on it.
  • Embrace the NEW – be willing to see where life takes you
  • As a leader, her goal isn’t to be invited to a seat at someone else’s table – but to set her own and invite others.
  • This is a table with a different value system – one designed to bring people in with unusual backgrounds – creating an opportunity to be one’s authentic self.
  • When you make a mistake or have a difficult situation, don’t internalize it, it’s not always about you.
  • Pointedly, as a female and a Black leader, she is focused on collaboration and supporting her peers – pushing back on anyone or any outside forces that challenge this.

I chose the panel discussion What Doesn’t Kill you makes you Stronger, with

The panel covered a range of topics from the challenges of being a new CEO/Founder and how to home in on your leadership style to dealing with built in biases for fundraising.  Among the key takeaways:

  • Understand the “unwritten” rules. Every environment has them, so inasmuch as you want to be your full, authentic self, make sure you adjust a bit in each situation – #codeswitch when you have to
  • Use humor to engage and soften the room when you can
  • Have a personal Board of directors as well as a professional one
  • Choose the feedback you take
  • Choose your non-negotiables wisely
  • If someone says “I’m crushing it,” look behind the curtain! Don’t expect to be great at everything all the time – it just doesn’t happen
  • Look out for “stoplight” events – things that literally stop you in your tracks and suggest that you should consider changing direction.
  • Work at this level is an elevator ride, so if you are having some tough times, just try not to get out on the basement level.

The second keynote, Natalie Massenet, Co-Founder, Imaginary Ventures, Founder, Net-a-Porte detailed the journey upon which she embarked as a true e-Commerce pioneer in high end retail – already one of the most competitive vertical markets.  She emphasized the importance of a vision and the will do whatever it takes as the most important driving factors in her success.  However, she didn’t really understand it in the beginning.  When faced with a “mutiny” by her inner sanctum of executives, she turned to her key investors and learned that truly it was her vision and ideas that propelled them to invest in the company.  Everything else can be duplicated.   Today, as an investor, she is looking for the same – people that are smart and capable and willing to step out with new ideas and vision.

In the afternoon, I chose the Growing the Female Talent Pipeline panel with:

The panel traced their own trajectories while also providing guidance to their peers on how to ensure that women are given the opportunities to apply for roles in which they are interested.    Among the key takeaways:

  • Job Descriptions are tricky. Many are biased and don’t reflect the actual job, so if you are not sure, just go for it.
  • In reviewing ways to be more inclusive, one of the panelists shared that they started with reviewing job descriptions and rewriting to be more appealing to a broader audience. Some were implicitly using the wrong language to attract female candidates.
  • When looking for jobs, pick the managers you want to work for (vs. the positions) and pick people who are growing in their roles (vs. those that have peaked)
  • Grow at the pace of your talent – when that is no longer happening, it’s time to move on
  • We all need a break from the fast pace – try to anticipate when you need to downshift and prepare for it so you don’t crash
  • Internal women’s networks are as important as sponsors and mentors. You need to be part of the conversation across different parts of the company and this is the way to help and support each other across functions.
  • Always be thinking about what you want to LEARN and what you want to TEACH and let that be your guide as to managing your career AND Take into account your entire life and what your goals are at that time

The final keynote enjoyed a fully packed room (we were way up top) – actress Dakota Johnson.  She presented an entirely unexpected point of view on investing and growing a company – using her influence and passion to fund projects that speak to her on an emotional level – advocating for trusting your instincts.

Many thanks to the student organizers, co-chairs,  @Amy Sang and @Martyna Styslo, and professors who invested many months in planning this conference which always surprises and delights the audiences!  Full agenda and bios are linked here.

 

 

What do you know “for sure?” How did your lifetime puzzle pieces fall into place?

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What stands out to me is the strength of human character in this microcosm of society - good over evil, high road over easy street, recovery, resilience, and giving back. Share on XWhat do you know “for sure?”  How did your lifetime puzzle pieces fall into place?

A few month ago, a dear friend and author asked me this question and then challenged me to write up my answer in a 1000 word essay for a book she was about to publish.   At the time, I didn’t know anything about the other essayists and that I would be part of something as powerful and honest as 33 Gems| Wisdom for Living Pieces of Life’s Puzzle.

Having only 24 hours to identify the topic and a few days to complete the essay forced me to quickly think about what has impacted me the most in life.   The author (Dr. Sharon Freeman) wanted me to focus on one of my current businesses, sea glass jewelry design.  By no means is this the primary business by which I make a living, but it’s the story about making something from nothing and just how that is possible that she was after.  So my own story is about all the forms of creativity that have led me to this particular moment in life and effectively, the kernel of “what I know for sure.”  Philosophically speaking, it’s a stretch to say we know anything FOR SURE!  But it’s a thought worth contemplating.  My essay is titled, “This I know for sure| Creative endeavors are much more than hobbies.  They can feed our souls, relationships, & pocketbooks at the same time.”

I can’t give any more away because I really do want you to buy the book. [After all, I am in Marketing!] My essay aside, it’s the other essayists that opened my eyes and quite frankly humbled me in their accomplishments told in the most honest and intimate manner.  As a society we have debated issues of diversity, socio-economic challenges, education, immigration, fiscal responsibility, health care, politics, regional, national, and international cultural issues, immigration, etc.  Through personal storytelling from people of highly diverse backgrounds, these and many other topics are addressed in ways that really hit home.

What stands out to me is the strength of human character in this microcosm of society – good over evil, high road over easy street, recovery, resilience, and giving back.    I do not know any of the people in the book other than the author and one other essayist and her 11 year old son – but I want to meet each of them.   When you read the book, you will feel like you have met each of them and take away a valuable new perspective and potential relationships that will help you with your life,  business,  family, or simply feed your soul.   And of course, the best is saved for last.  11 year old Negash challenges the adult world to think about the future and what will be left to his generation. To learn more, please visit Gems of Wisdom.   To order the book, click here.









Knowing Your Ecosystems| A rich universe of opportunity

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Knowing Your Ecosystems|A rich universe of opportunity

“In the Mix” digital photo by Matt Cegalis

It’s become common to speak about the “connected” world.  Most of the time, this refers to the power of the internet and communications.  In my worlds of BTB consulting and community work, it’s the power of the personal and professional ecosystems at play.  In fact, it’s getting more challenging to separate the personal and professional connections and I believe the ecosystems themselves can overlap in productive ways that enrich all parties involved.I believe the ecosystems themselves can overlap in productive ways that enrich all parties involved. Share on X

Common definitions of an ecosystems include “a group of interconnected elements, formed by the interaction of a community of organisms with their environment” or a  system or network of interconnecting and interacting parts.”

Certainly I am not alone in honing in on this trend.  Gartner ties it into the “Platform Economy” specifically honing in on API’s and their integration.  These cloud-based technologies have accelerated the interest in the topic and put a business model into play that is essential in the software world.

Last October McKinsey published an article challenging companies to take on the “next frontier” of the “ecosystem economy.”  Says McKinsey, “The emergence of ecosystems marks a shift in the landscape as unexpected alliances are forged, sector boundaries blur, and long-standing strengths count for less.  It also marks a shift in how business leaders manage relationships within an ecosystem.”   But the article leaves a chunk of ecosystem opportunity on the table and that’s what I plan to address because I am passionate about building them in all my personal and professional endeavors.  From my earliest assignments in the corporate environment to nearly every marketing consulting assignment I have undertaken, ecosystem building plays a key role.

Get personal| It all starts with Relationships:

Before LinkedIn was conceived, the PowerSkills relationship management framework (Masciarelli, 2000) and companion book laid out the essentials for strategically identifying and cultivating key relationships.

The biggest myth going is the one that says relationships are all about ‘clicking’ or are the result of some vague form of chemistry or due to just plain luck….Relationships can be constructed, grown, fashioned, championed, fabricated, turned around, re-built, reborn, and materialized.[1]

Masciarelli’s formula for achieving this is:  Relationships= Trust + Value +Dialogue [ “R=T+V+D”].   My thesis is that having a strong base of diverse relationships is the foundation for  Ecosystem building.   Coupled with today’s electronic tools and the institutionalization of “partner” and “channel” programs, the sky is the limit for cross-fertilizing and growing healthy Ecosystems – but they still need to be managed with effective communications and mutual respect.

PowerSkills and its many case studies do any excellent job of outlining what form these take.    Point of fact, a shared philosophy about relationships led me to working relationships and long friendship with Jim, who is now joining a new ecosystem.  I defer to his book, PowerSkills and associated thought leadership for this essential jumping off point for Ecosystem building.

Yours, Mine, and Ours| Helping build Ecosystems

New Market Development has been a core part of my advisory practice.  By its very nature, that means the client does not have a foot-hold in the market that is on the horizon.  Therefore, identifying new entry points via relationships is a critical success factor.  The first step is often helping clients sort, prioritize, and reach out to their own networks to check on their status and see if they can be a jumping off point to the new ones.  It’s also an opportunity to reach out to others in the organization and do the same.  Here are a few use cases that speak to the new market development aspect of ecosystem building.

The first is from an assignment in the educational technology market where the client was seeking to sell a new line of products that were not in the purview of the existing buyer/persona, the Director of IT.   The new target was the university provost.  To understand the market, research with these academic persona required outreach to an entirely new group of individuals and these relationships were scattered throughout the organization and current partners.

The second – a very robust case involved work on behalf of a Venture fund on an industry collaboration.    The target contacts were in the marketing organizations of the technology companies.  However, the client’s contacts were often with the CIO’s, founders, CEO’s or investors.  The programs required us to create an entirely new ecosystem of marketing contacts.  By doing so, we woke up many relationships that were dormant and created entirely new lines of communication with companies large and small.

The third involved a concierge services company.  My client needed to understand if the hospitality and travel markets were going to be target “vertical markets” yet they didn’t have the resources to hire someone to call on this market. The solution was to tap a friend who is a travel industry expert, working as a senior product executive on the wholesale side of the business.   In a ½ day, she downloaded an in depth FTF review of the industry, its challenges, and other insights that sent us in the right direction.  Effectively, we borrowed her from her day job.   I don’t work in travel and neither did the client, but by crossing over into a personal ecosystem I was able to help.

Ecosystem Value Added| Bridging your worlds

“Gold Still” by Matt Cegalis – a collaboration with an art colleague to showcase digital photography on my business website.

Strategically adding my own relationships to the clients’ is a win-win scenario I call this simply 1+1=3.   My diverse interests ranging from technology trends to golf to art (and everything in between) allows me to cross over many personal and professional networks.  There always had been a perceived “boundary” between the personal and professional that seems to now be challenged in our newly connected universe.  Finding the right cross over is where it can get really interesting since each relationship brings its own “ecosystem” into the framework.

“Common ground” is a long-developed notion.  What’s new is all the ways to identify and amplify that common ground in our uber-connected ecosystems and platforms.  What does it take to build our personal and professional ecosystems? How can they help us in business and personally?  Where can I begin to find and better understand them?  In the coming months, this series will present some ways of looking at various ecosystems that we already may have activated with an eye toward how they can be better utilized and cross-fertilized.  I will address my experience with the various ecosystems with some client examples where appropriate.

For now, I will offer this notion before we meet again.  Do you apply the same set of ecosystem principles to all your relationships – business colleagues, friends, family, acquaintances, and mentors?   Do you or others put up barriers – real or perceived?  Perhaps crossing this bridge will be the first step in opening up new opportunities – both personally and professionally.

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[1] James Masciarelli, PowerSkills, Nimbus Press, 2000









Work Smart with a little “assist” in 2016 & grow BIG

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SAM_0512 (800x600)For nearly twenty years, I have worked with diverse private companies to lead and support growth initiatives. Often the engagements began with an immediate need for a critical project and evolved into longer term, strategic initiatives. Regardless, there are fundamental principles that have made these engagements rich and productive. Reflecting on this, I see these as top priorities to consider when bringing in an outside advisor to work on new market development and business growth initiatives.
Trust: An advisor plays many roles – among to be your advocate and help manage many important internal and external relationships. You have to trust them on all fronts with your contacts, personal and company information to get the most out of the experience.
Understanding internal & external Eco-systems: It’s easy to lose track of relationships. A good advisor will help you reconnect with people that you should be in contact with for your initiatives.
Relationship Extension: For my long term clients, one of the best services I can provide is extension of my network for their benefit. Connections come from industry, education, social activities, and non-profit boards. Combining the best of my world with my clients has deepened our collaboration.
Minimize duplication of efforts: As an advisor, my goal is to expand your resources, so it’s important to have key roles defined with other team members and avoid duplication of efforts.
Employ actionable research & strategy: Use research, but use it strategically to move quickly into action, taking an “educated” path and testing things along the way.
Help coach your team: Maybe not so obvious, but there is an opportunity to pair up your outside advisors with your up and coming team members to help them better their skills and knowledge. For young team members that do not have the discipline of longer term planning or more experienced team members who have functional, but not cross disciplinary expertise, it’s a great opportunity to expand their horizons and give them a sounding board.
Using this approach, here are ways I can support you to grow SMART and BIG in 2016. These are BTB programs that are easily led and enhanced by outside expert support.

  1. Value Proposition Testing: Don’t try to guess how your customers will react to your product launch; get their feedback early and first hand, in advance of the first sale or beta.
  2. Partner Eco-System Design & Tune-up: Is the eco-system up to date and performing; are you actively engaged with your partners? Is this part of the growth strategy? It may be time for a review and realignment or consider a Partner Advisory Board.
  3. VIP Relationship Management/Keep in Touch: Have you segmented top customers, partners, and influencers?  It may be time to touch base and create a program to reach out to them and regularly ask for their feedback.
  4. Customer References & Case Studies: Have you created Case Studies & References for all your verticals & use cases? These are critical BTB tools for customer acquisition and many new formats are available. It may be time to take an inventory and start a Reference Program.
  5. Industry Collaboration Programs: Here’s an innovative way to raise the bar on thought leadership and maximize your relationships and stand out in your industry. Read this Handy eBook to learn more!









Collaboration for Strategic Advantage: Extend Relationships, Build Community & Grow Your Business

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Collab4StratAdvantageCoverCropWorking “collaboratively” with fellow marketing expert and dear friend Jacqueline Franklin, the TWO Jacqueline’s are pleased to introduce this new eBook – the first that brings their collective thinking together.   This eBook is for sales, marketing, business development executives and leaders in both profit and non-profit organizations seeking to unlock revenue growth, market influence, and scale without killing themselves.   It is about the power of collaboration as a high potency marketing tool a “how to” guide to evaluate and leverage your important business relationships.

We invite you to open up this new marketing door and see what’s in store!   This is our experience! We’d like to hear about yours too.   Follow us on LinkedIn, Twitter, and SlideShare and please comment on what you have learned or share a story you would like us to post in the future. See a collaboration opportunity? We’d like to help you make it happen.  Contact me directly:  jackie(at)marketingrecon(dotcom).