What do you do if you want to level up from a junior to a senior brand manager?

Moving from a junior to a senior brand manager is a journey of continuous learning and improvement and involves a combination of acquiring in-depth knowledge, honing specific skill sets, demonstrating leadership qualities, and achieving tangible results. Recommended are: (1) deepen your market knowledge, (2) develop the ability to craft and executive effective brand strategies, (3) learn to analyse data and glean insights that can inform brand strategy, (4) showcase your ability to lead projects, (5) build strong communication skills, (6) showcase creative thinking, (7) know how to achieve measurable results, and (8) pursue continuous learning. #yougotthis

Ready to climb the brand management ladder? Here's your ascent strategy: 1. Expand Your Skill Set: Develop expertise in strategic planning, leadership, and brand development. Take on projects that stretch your capabilities and showcase leadership potential. 2. Demonstrate Leadership: Take ownership of initiatives and lead cross-functional teams. Showcase your ability to influence and drive results. 3. Build Relationships: Cultivate relationships with senior leaders and stakeholders. Seek mentorship from seasoned professionals and learn from their experiences. 4. Prove Your Impact: Quantify your contributions and successes as a junior brand manager. Highlight achievements that demonstrate your readiness for a senior role.

A valuable tool that I find people underestimate when gaining a deeper understanding of an industry is Google Scholar. This is a free source where top academics and intellectuals write articles about various topics related to specific industries.

I always recommend being interested in seeing the presentations from investor relations and earnings releases, as this familiarizes a brand manager with the big picture, key concepts, and, more importantly, key strategies. Marketing is always part of these. Even a brand manager has more exceptional things to do; being eager to understand the bigger picture and the company strategy will help understand the business, develop ideas and better understand the weekly discussions, plans and activities. They all connect at the end as the pieces of a puzzle. And consistency is key.

If transparency is not part of your organization's core values, implement it. I believe that when transparency is at the forefront of an organization's operations, cross-departmental collaboration is more likely to occur, and it is also more likely to indirectly motivate employees to communicate across departments. This, in turn, will aid in the holistic understanding of all stakeholders.

Build your personal brand! Show up, speak out, network fiercely, and lead boldly. Your growth path is paved by how visibly and effectively you navigate your role and the broader industry landscape.

There are various networking events, physical and virtual, which one can participate in. In my own experience, I signed up to various industry related talks and conversations through the platform "Meetup". The advice here would be to identify key individuals in these events that resinate with you and reach out to them on platforms such as LinkedIn.

"Self-development" is a broad concept. Where to begin? For me, this is fulfilled by self-development in the following key areas; 1) Product/Service knowledge, 2) Internal business understanding of many departments (especially production and sales) and 3) Client/Market context. A deep understanding of these areas provide a world of context that will help you understand where your brand fits into the greater scheme of things, which informs what you do very much. `

Network, Network, Network - Connect and build relationships with professionals in your field. Attend industry events, join professional associations, and participate in online forums or networking groups related to brand management. Networking can provide valuable insights, opportunities for collaboration, and potential leads for career advancement :)

In addition to all of the above I would recommend networking. A strong marketing network is a great way to learn from others, especially in different roles and other industries. If you're looking for opportunities outside of your organization, join webinars to stay updated on industry trends and insights. Engage with local marketing associations to build connections and gain valuable knowledge. Attend industry events to meet professionals and expand your network. Additionally, it's important to network within your organization. Schedule coffee meetings with colleagues who work in marketing to exchange ideas and learn from their experiences. Building meaningful relationships is essential for success in brand management.

Don't be shy and reach out to that person who inspires you and can be your mentor and ask him to be with you along the journey. Be serious about it, and the connections, advice and support will help you propel your career. Stay connected to the leaders withing your organization and the industry leaders in your field.