Marketing & Creative Jobs in Canada Blog - Part 57

The Art of Leadership Conference Review

I recently had the pleasure of attending The Art of Leadership conference on April 11, 2013. This event was “designed to teach and provide leaders with directly related, easily applied tools and techniques that can be implemented within any corporate culture”.

The speakers were entertaining and informative with each approaching leadership in a very different way. I’ve compiled below a short biography on each speaker and the most interesting ideas I took from them.

(photos copyright of The Art Of)

John314x256

John Mackey

CEO of Whole Foods Market
Author of ‘Conscious Capitalism’

Premise:
• To be most successful, businesses must adopt a model of conscious capitalism.
• This is a framework where all stakeholders – customers, shareholders, suppliers and communities – benefit together.

Notable Quotes:
• Business is inherently good, yet big business is the 2nd least trusted societal institution in the United States (only Congress ranked lower).
• Choose purpose first, then strategy.
• Go from profit maximization to purpose maximization.
• The secret to success in business: build your business around your customers.
• Embrace transparency because in today’s age, you can’t hide anything.

marcus-buckingham

Marcus Buckingham

Author of the New York Times Bestsellers First, Break all the Rules, Now, Discover Your Strengths, and Standout.
Continue reading →

New Canadian Marketing & Creative Jobs This Week

Hot-Gigs-Ap12-2013

 

Marketing Co-ordinator and Copywriter with Aha Moment Media Inc.
Toronto, ON

Account Supervisor with Suburbia Advertising.com
Victoria, BC

Copywriter / Researcher with a Rare diamond business
Vancouver, BC

We365 Adoption Manager with Free The Children
Toronto, ON

Regional Sales Representative with Activa
Greater Toronto Area

Marketing Specialist with NEC Native Education College
Vancouver, BC

Media Coordinator with Kingstar Media
Toronto, ON

Communications Officer with Toronto Foundation for Student Success
Toronto, ON

Mobile/Digital Media Buyer (Remote or Onsite) with Prestige Marketing
Anywhere in Canada

Director of Marketing with Browns Social House
Vancouver, BC

Creative Direction Specialist with Overwaitea Food Group
Langley, BC

When it comes to Social media, whose job is it?

Who-Does-Social-Media

Now that social media has become a critical part of most marketing strategies, who should be at the helm?

In the world of Social media there are many stakeholders involved. Brands work with several different divisions in advertising, marketing, public relations and communications to reach out to their audience through social media. When a brand needs a strong social media though, who do they turn to first and whose responsibility is it to create and own the strategy?

With things changing so fast in the social media space, what you set out to do isn’t always what you end up with.

Many cooks. One kitchen
It may seem like there are many cooks in the kitchen but ask Priyanka Goswami, Account Director at Proximity Canada and she’ll tell you “Social media is everyone’s responsibility – the client, the brand agency, the digital agency, PR, etc.,” she explains.  “Each stakeholder will bring a unique perspective and strength to the table in crafting the overall strategy.” So while several different areas of discipline will be involved in the overall strategy, Priyanka feels that there has to be central ownership or “champion of the strategy at the client level, who can bring the various perspectives together.” Continue reading →

How to Get Hired (And How Not To)

Getting-Hired-Photo

The job seeker and the hirer have common goals. One wants to gain employment; one has the ability to grant employment. In theory, the hiring transaction should go off without a hitch. In reality, however, even though the goals of both parties are the same there can be a disconnect.

Why? In this article, I find the fault mainly in the job seeker. The job seeker is the proactive party; the one expected to polish, approach, and convince the hirer that they’re the right candidate for the job. The hirer is simply expected to entertain and evaluate the job seeker.

Like speed dating or handing out business cards at a typical networking event, a lack of personal attention almost guarantees that a genuine connection won’t be made.

It stands to reason that the job seeker would put in a ton of effort in order to give themselves the best chance to get hired. In practice, however, this isn’t always the case.

The following are some of the most common, yet also most ineffective, approaches job seekers use in their quest to get hired.

Typical Ineffective Job Seeker Strategies

1. Blasting Out Applications in Bulk Continue reading →

5 Reasons to Exercise Before Work

FG-Working-Out-Before-Work

I don’t think I should have to sell you on exercise. Study after study has confirmed the physical and mental benefits regular exercise provides. The human body is not, as I once read of a belief that Donald Trump holds, similar to a battery in that the more you use, the less you have left.

Unfortunately for Donald, studies say he’s got this one backwards. The more you exercise, the more energy you will have. This is no secret and has, in recent history, been realized by employers. Exercising before (and during) work has a positive effect on productivity, employee mood, and even absenteeism rates.

If we, as a society, need a stimulant to get us through the mornings, the healthier choice would be exercise.

It’s too bad that all employers haven’t yet embraced the exercise philosophy. We all know we should exercise, but time is scarce and exercise doesn’t often top the list of priorities. I’m sure the day will come when exercise is an encouraged activity across all industry’s, but until that day, we have the responsibility of motivating ourselves to exercise instead of our boss doing it for us.

So why exercise before work? Continue reading →

Job Loss: How to Prepare Before It Happens

Job-Loss-Blog

I landed my first real job in Kalamazoo, Michigan. Yes, there really is a Kalamazoo. (And yes, that really is the tagline used by the Kalamazoo Regional Chamber of Commerce.)

I took the job in Kalamazoo because jobs were scarce in Toronto when I graduated. After leaving behind a depressing and fruitless job search to make the trek across the border, I was finally excited and filled with thoughts of possibility. And possibility soon became reality.

Knowing what your reality looks like leads you to the question: If you lose your job, what are you going to do to survive?

My husband and I were newlyweds on an adventure. Life in Michigan at that time was cheap, too. Rent was about $450 for a 900 sq. foot apartment. Gas was $10 to fill up our ’98 Chevy Cavalier. We had our first child. Life was grand.

And here’s my favourite part of the story whenever I talk to Vancouverites and Torontonians with their sky-high housing prices: we bought our first house—a brand new 3-bedroom rancher, with a full basement—for $99,900. Can you believe we actually thought it was “expensive”?

When life rolls along nicely, you tend to forget how vulnerable you really are.

Then, while driving to work one morning, the radio newscaster announced that my company was just acquired by a larger corporation.

On the radio.

On the way to work.

I wondered whether I should just turn around and go home!

But curiosity got the better of me and I went on to work to find out… wtf?!

Thankfully we were still relatively young when my first layoff happened, so we weren’t as hard hit as the mid-western Americans who had known nothing other than the “job for life” mentality that sustained families in towns like Kalamazoo for many generations. We may not have been 50 before losing the only way of life we’ve ever known, but it was no less devastating and stressful.

What I witnessed and experienced in Kalamazoo back in 2003 has shaped the way I view the world of work ever since. In fact, the story of being blind-sided by a layoff has been so often repeated, and then amplified with the recession in 2008, that now everyone knows the lessons learned by thousands of workers before them: always have a plan B.

Making Your Plan B (and C and D)

Continue reading →

Where to Find a Mentor and Why to Have One

Mentoring-Canada

Advertising professional seeks brilliant, fun-loving, casual mentor to meet once a month for in-depth chats about life, work, goals, and accomplishments. Must be an excellent listener and provide insights and council. Knowledge of – and a taste for scotch is a bonus.

What exactly is a mentor? It can be a coworker, a boss, a friend or even a family member. A mentor is someone who listens to you, and advises you on work, life, relationships, or anything else for which you might need direction.

Mentors are there when you need them, to help direct you in situations that you may not have faced in your career.

Mentors teach, encourage, and support you. They can guide you along a path to success. They’re like your own personal Yoda.

“For me it was all about guidance and sharing invaluable experience in the same industry.” Says Bogdan Grygorenko, cofounder of Ticket Creative in Toronto, about his mentor. Continue reading →

What Does Financial Security Really Mean?

Financial-Security-Canada

Financial security is a particularly hot topic these days. Since the recession of 2008 many people have been forced to take a good hard look at their finances. Assets that used to be considered ‘safe’ have lost a significant portion of their value. Workers have become job seekers. Pensions have shrunk. Seniors are leaving retirement for the workplace.

And so on and so on.

It’s also about being able to take advantage of opportunities and lead a rewarding life.

Financial security is not a concept that we’re taught in school. The only way the media seems to portray financial security is in the form of ‘hot’ stock tips, celebrities and business moguls. This has resulted in many people defining financial security as having millions of dollars in the bank.

How the Canadian Government Defines Financial Security

According to Human Resources and Skills Development Canada, “financial security is about achieving material well-being. It’s about having an adequate income to meet basic needs such as housing, food, and clothing. It’s also about being able to take advantage of opportunities and lead a rewarding life.” Continue reading →