In my career I have been fortunate to work with great marketing teams. Sometimes you come into a job and inherit a marketing team and other
times you get to hire and add new talent. Occasionally you get to start from
scratch and build from the ground up.
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Marketing Teams |
An online friend asked me recently how I
hire marketing people and what are the best ways to bring the right person on
board? Do I hire from within the industry or outside?
The following nine filters work for me and have served me
well. I’m happy to share them with you.
1. ARE THEY
INQUISITIVE? I like to work with people who are always challenging
me, the brand, the company and their work. I want active minds that keep asking why? I want new team members to have unquenchable curiosity.
2. CAN I LEARN FROM
THEM? I don’t want clones of me or
talent similar to what we already have. I prefer to find people who bring something fresh and
new to the group. Maybe they worked in another industry or possibly have
expertise in an area that brings new energy and thinking to the group.
3. ARE THEY
TRUSTWORTHY? I don’t like to micro
manage people and want to know that the new colleague is focused on the right
things and I can trust them to make good decisions. I don’t mind them making mistakes but can
they be trusted to always do things with the best intention of the brand and
the company?
4. DO THEY UNDERSTAND
PRIORITIES? This is quite important since we all can end up going down our
own path with our laundry list of things to do. But when a colleague shows they
get the importance of focus, of alignment and fitting the company need- it
benefits everyone. And I really appreciate people asking me for help to make
sure they are focused on the important stuff.
5. ARE THEY
COMPASSIONATE, CARING PEOPLE? People, who tend to be selfish and
disengaged, don’t make the best marketers. And I don’t want to be around people
who are heartless and without a real human face. I like to see the real person come
to work and bring their humanity, experiences and personality. I always find
working with people who can be themselves produces better work.
6. ARE THEY WILLING
TO LEARN AND GROW? None of us is perfect at anything. Can I find people who
hunger to learn and to improve professionally? Can they absorb constructive
criticism and demonstrate growth or are they stuck running in the same circle?
Great workers learn, grow and lean forward.
7. DO THEY DEMONSTRATE
INITIATIVE? I want new marketing talent to try a few new things- to free-lance
and play with a new idea and not be afraid to explore new areas. I encourage
this within a framework that it fits with our overall strategy. Trying new tactics
and exercising some creative risk taking is a plus in my book.
8. BRING PEOPLE IN
FROM OUTSIDE THE INDUSTRY. I like to
bring people together from an assortment of industries- not just the one we are
working in since I want fresh perspectives. When you work in an industry, it is
easy to move toward a collective view of a category. Fresh blood brings new
thinking.
9. DO I LIKE THEM?
We all spend a lot of time at work. I don’t want to spend time with people I
don’t like. With 50 plus hour work weeks, it is important to find colleagues
who you enjoy spending time with and who demonstrate that they are well-balanced individuals.
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Attracting the right marketing team |
There are lots of criteria for hiring folks to be part of
your marketing team. Perhaps the most important of all is that I never hire
people who don’t like Indian food.
Sorry, but I have to draw the line somewhere.
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Labels: essence of teams, hiring marketing talent, Marketing Moments, marketing teams