As you exit
I live in Madison … Georgia, not Wisconsin. I tell audiences it is 50 miles and 50 years east of Atlanta. Too far outside the ATL for its residents to be considered suburbanites. A good thing.
Among Madison’s distinctions are being named the best small town in America a few years back. And, from many years back, another point of pride is that Madison was not burned by Sherman, even though he encamped here on his ruinous march to the sea. Thanks to the general’s kindness, Madison has a large, mostly intact historic district with a lot of lovely pre-Civil War houses. Appreciated by residents and the tourists alike.
We also have a pretty cemetery. Graves date way back to before the general ‘s time. When I am not traveling on business, I take the dogs for a walk in the cemetery every day. They love the shady, hilly pathways. I get my priorities reset.
I have read all the headstones and one of my favorites is that of a woman who died in 1925 and whose life crossed two centuries. “She planted a flower wherever a flower would grow”, her stone reads. It sounds so like something her family probably said about her when she was living. And, the reader can interpret it in his or her own context.
When I was at IBM, they taught me a lot about how to conduct myself. If we ever lost a customer, which was rare, we made sure we left with respect going in both directions and the long term relationship protected. We were as fanatical about leaving well as we were about starting off well.
If you were to resign from your job today, or be laid off, or if you were to lose your best customer, or breakup with your signifcant other ……. what would the people left behind say about you? It’s the ultimate test of your personal brand.
Technographics: the American Consumer has left the building
Connie - the 2011 grandmother
Always On
The term “always on” has taken on new meaning in the digital, connected age. Years ago we used the term to refer to someone who was never down, always in character, so to speak. And it wasn’t a term of flattery. It was more like, ‘Holy cow, she is always on. Doesn’t she ever give it a rest?”
Now “always on” is all about our electronic entourage. Our hardware: tablets, smartphones, netbooks, the “i” guys (pods and pads), Xboxes ,Wiis e-readers, laptops, Flips, and so on. And the places we go with our entourage like Foursquare, Facebook, Twitter, You Tube, LinkedIn and Google, to name a few of the more popular destinations. Or the things we do with our entourage: shop, surf, exercise, watch video and webisodes, text, email, learn, apply for jobs and even occasionally actually talk. Full disclosure: most of these are part of my everyday existence. 
“Always on” is also about the expectation we have for bloggers, tweeters, and marketers to continually put new and engaging content out there for us 24/7 if they want to influence us. But that is another topic for another time.
I saw three NYU students interviewed on television the other day and they all said they would rather text than talk, even though they acknowledged that a lot of meaning can get lost because of the absence of nuance, body language, and tone. However, as one of them said, “I am just more comfortable texting than actually talking with someone.”
And, the state of Georgia, admittedly near the bottom of the 50 states when it comes to educational rankings, has recently said that it is considering dropping the teaching of cursive from the curriculum. After all, it reasons, students today never need to write anything by hand. Hmmm, I guess anything written by hand in the future will look like a ransom note.
So pretty soon we won’t need to talk or write. Are you in? Think of all the time we’ll have to friend, fan and follow.
Thoughts from one of the world’s top executive recruiters – and some surprising advice
Jerry Noonan of Spencer Stuart is a member of the firm’s Consumer Goods & Services Practice as well as the Board Services Practice. Jerry leads searches at the board, CEO, general management and senior leadership level across all functions. His clients range from startups to Fortune 100 companies across the globe. Additionally, Jerry manages Spencer Stuart’s Boston office. Jerry is a four-time winner of Spencer Stuart’s Lou Rieger Award for the quality of his work on behalf of the firm’s clients.
I have known Jerry for a number of years and he recently took time to talk with me about his views on careers, leadership and his own secret to success.
What’s the best career move you have made?
Going into search because it allowed me to get to the heart of what I like. I was successful in senior marketing roles in several top companies but I always considered my best skill to be people leadership. When the opportunity to go into search came to me unexpectedly, my wife said to me, “you are all about people and relationships – if that is what will make you successful in search, then do it.” And, she was right.
My advice to others considering a major career move is to be very judicious and really be honest with yourself about what you like to do before you make a move.
What’s a good career move for a mid-career person today?
This may sound strange coming from me but I would advise mid-career people to pursue opportunities within their companies first. Especially if your current company provides opportunities for strong learning and development – take full advantage of it. And, you often have more latitude within a company to get the role you want because you are known and know the business. Don’t leave without thinking through the long term implications of leaving a good company.
What are companies looking for in leaders today that may be different from a few years ago?
Companies will always still want relevant experience and a depth of knowledge in the role and the business model.
One attribute that is emerging as important is the need to be agile, to adapt, to learn and grow quickly. We encourage our clients to look for this in people they are considering – to look for evidence that the person started a new businesses within their company or took a risk of some kind—-that demonstrates their willingness to continue to adapt and grow. Once people stop learning, the rapidly changing world we live in will leave them behind.
Another attribute that has become more sought after is global, multi-cultural experience.
What is fun about you?
I love my work. I have a great family. I am avid, but not so good at, lots of things like sailing, running, biking tennis and skiing, and other sports. Most of my fun is in doing things with my family.
What’s the best place you have ever visited?
Sneem, the small village in County Kerry Ireland where my grandparents came from. Going there together with all our family was a powerful lesson in where we had come from. And the people were great and the countryside beautiful.
What would you change in your career?
Nothing. I had 20 successful years working for many terrific leaders and some of the world’s finest brands and then in mid-career I was able to go in a completely different direction that I love. People often ask me if I wish I had gone into search earlier. But, when I look back, I think having two careers was exactly right for me.
What is your superpower?
I don’t sleep much. Maybe 5 hours a night. If I could make a wish and have it come true, it would be that I never have to sleep again. I could do so many things – things I haven’t even thought about – if I could have 5 more hours a day.
What does your Facebook photo say about you?
I get that Facebook is about my social life and LinkedIn is about my work life.
Yes, I know that big time companies have big time Facebook pages – which are really more dynamic than their websites. And, that in the future their consumer websites may actually give way to their Facebook sites.
I know that I ultimately will need a Facebook page for my business. I used to have one. But for now, my website is my business site because Facebook is just not that friendly for a small business owner to use.
So for me Facebook really is about my friends – my real friends – not my pretend friends who “friend” me to rachet up their own friend count.
I ditched Facebook a while back because I just could not keep up – a gabillion photos of children, grandchildren, parties, vacations, you name it. As a good Southern girl, I felt it would be impolite if I didn’t check it all out and post affirming commentary.
But I recently jumped back in. Now in Facbook redux I still don’t check my wall too often – and isn’t “wall” a funny term for a site that is supposed to be about breaking down barriers?- but I have resolved to be a better online friend.
Here’s something I have noticed – the profile photos people post on their main page say something about how they see themselves – or how they want to be seen. Many people put the whole family up there kind of like a perpetual holiday card. Others put photos of themselves only and the snapshots are all over the place – studio head shots, or photos of them in their sexy party clothes, or playing golf, playing tennis, etc. Many are husband and wife only – kids, after all, have their own walls. Some put their childhood or baby photos on their wall as their profile photo.
I recently put my professionally done photo on my profile page – I like it – I look better in it than I actully look in person. Now, what does that say?!
Does your Facebook photo say what you want it to say?
