9 Lessons Learned from Danish CMO’s
For most of us time is of essence, even in these corona-infested stay-at-home kinds of times. This is why I’ve chosen to extract and write down all the great advice Alexander and I have been exposed to throughout producing the first ten episodes of our podcast, CMO After Hours.
As you can see, I’ve chosen to do so in English, even though the podcast itself is in Danish, in hope that my non-Danish connections also can benefit from the obtained insights.
A Brief Clarification
If you're one of those who wondered about the title, and maybe thought it was a bit pompous, here's the explanation (and justification).
David Ogilvy, often referred to as the “the father of advertising”, made a name for himself within the advertising industry in its early days. Throughout his professional career he made a myriad of legendary campaigns, some of which even ran for decades - however, he also came up with a number of even more legendary quotes.
Some of these quotes revolves around what he calls “Immortals” or “Giants” and refers to ‘the best of the best’. In other words; incredible, high performing and driven people producing timeless and astonishing work.
I believe that we’ve met some of these immortals, ten of them to be exact.
Before we begin
Besides learning how awkward it is to hear one's own voice on a loop, and how-to setup, record and edit a podcast, we've heard some great stories of both failures and triumphs and gotten even greater advice along the way within marketing, management & careers.
Even though we have interviewed ten very different immortals from ten very different companies, there are certain common denominators in all of them – something you will come to learn in this article.
Simultaneously, all ten of them obviously work in marketing, and has for the most parts of their careers, but I would still argue that most (if not all) of the insights can be employed in all other functions.
Many of the upcoming aspects may appear trivial to the enlightened few, but I urge you to be self-critical & really think them through.
Now that’s out of the way, let’s get into it.
Lessons learned
Take chances
Too many of us walks around on tiptoes - afraid to make the wrong step and awaken the squeaking floor beneath us.
You have to apply yourself - put yourself out there and state your worth. If you’re applying for a job, do so with style. Signe Julie Valeur (Lunar) advocates that young students should allow themselves to be a little “cocky” and aim for the stars.
She said: “the more research and ideas you demonstrate to the company you are applying for, the better. It’s all about making an impression”.
Ogilvy would agree and probably advice you to be bold and ambitious. Here’s another one: “it’s the lack of ambition that cripples most people”.
Jesper Brok-J?rgensen (Happy Helper) follows: “You have to dare to take chances and possibly miss completely - otherwise you’ll rarely land on something good”
Steffen Fr?lund (Green Mobility) said: ”If there are 27 hierarchies up to the one making the decisions and you feel locked in your position, then start your own business. There might not be as many resources and you might end up failing – but you will gain an invaluable lesson”
Take responsibility
This is a big one.
Actually, so big that all 10 mentioned it in more than one occasion.
Zvi Goldstein (Interflora): “You can’t just sit around and wait for your boss’ invitation to your annual status meeting (or be passive at lectures in school) and expect to become great - you need to be proactive and actively look for new opportunities, both for yourself and for your organization”.
It’s about taking responsibility for your own actions, for your own work and for your own development - whether you are a student or an employee.
Michala Svane (Tivoli): "Take responsibility. When you see a problem, fix it".
Lars Christian Lund (3Shape): “We spend way too much time in sitting in meetings, discussing what others could have done better - you don't gain anything from it. Instead, you need to look inward: what can YOU do, to make a difference?".
Focus on learning
Knowledge is, and has always been, of highest currency.
A typical professional sports team trains about 95% of the time and performs only 5% – a tendency that is completely opposite in business.
If you really think about it, almost all of your working hours is spent on performing – consequently leaving little room for learning. Of course, there are some inevitable learning connected to the work itself, but this is simply not enough – at least not if you want to excel.
This greatly underlines the importance of making learning a permanent part of your everyday life. Fortunately, the rise of digital has made this incredibly easy to do with eBooks, podcasts, digital articles and e-mail newsletters – not to mention my best friends; Google & YouTube.
However, it’s one thing to subscribe to a lot of relevant newsletters from your industry – it’s another thing to actually read, understand and incorporate what you read.
Morten Holst Boye (Carlsberg): "Surround yourself with some talented mentors - people you can mirror, people that can give positive feedback but also have the courage to point out areas of improvement"
We all learn in different ways. Some might prefer an industry-specific podcast on the morning-commute, others might enjoy a book before going to bed or a sparring-session with the person next to them over lunch.
It doesn’t matter how you do it – what matters is that you prioritize and include learning in your daily schedule.
Also, many of the immortals subsequently chose to go back to school - either to undertake an MBA, night-classes or simply an online course - greatly emphasizing the importance of learning.
Learn from your mistakes
Too many in the workplace are, understandably, afraid to make mistakes. They don’t want to appear weak in front of their colleagues or their boss to be disappointed in them.
Playing it safe and keeping mistakes for yourself might seem like the way to go, but I promise you, it’s not.
As Simon Peschcke-K?edt (SofaCompany) said: “It’s completely OK to fail, but you need to figure out why it happened and share the insights with the rest of the organization – that way, your colleagues won’t make the same mistakes”.
Many would deem it incredibly embarrassing and uncomfortable – believing that people will think badly of them, so they try to keep it to themselves – I think this is silly.
On the contrary, I actually believe that the ability to look inward, to be humble and show a desire to strengthen the organization as a whole, and not solely yourself, are incredible character traits that we should all strive for.
Be proactive
We’ve heard this again and again, so perhaps there’s something to it?
Employers simply love proactive “go-getters” with a can-do attitude, someone who rolls up their sleeves and goes to work - and does so with a smile.
You need to be hungry and show the people around you that you have a solution-oriented mindset and an effective approach to your work.
Don’t wait to take action until your boss show up at your desk one day. Instead, show everyone that you are able to work independently and think ahead.
When asked about job search Jacob Weinreich (TV2) said: “Prepare, prepare, prepare. You can say a whole lot about a person about the way they prepare for an interview. Be curious, be proactive”.
Our youngest podcast participant, Rasmus Serup (Hair Lust), encourages students to be proactive and do something out of the ordinary while still studying.
He said: “It’s a perfect time to try out new things without risking too much, but you need to be prepared to miss a few nights out and expect not to be top of the class – but it’s worth it!”
Steffen Fr?lund (Green Mobility): “You need to be proactive and get some relevant hands-on experience in the industry you’re pursuing. If you find it difficult to find a job, take an internship - it's great for the company to get some ambitious manpower, and you are often allowed to do some cool assignments that you wouldn’t normally be allowed to do if there was money involved”.
Be curious
The willingness and ability to test out different approaches is named to be among the most important aspects in marketing, and I would argue it’s the same case in many other aspects.
Rasmus Serup (Hair Lust) & Signe Julie Valeur (Lunar) talked much about this, as they’ve both taken their marketing teams through extensive testing with influencer marketing, snapchat, PR-events and merchandise – some with more success than others.
I hate to bring up such a cliché, but the ability to think outside the box is essential. Don’t just go for the obvious solution. Ogilvy said it best; “I hate rules”.
Jesper Brok-J?rgensen (Happy Helper) is a curious unconventional that loves trying out new approaches - something I must accredit him for, for he has ‘walked the walk’.
He said: “We once rented 30 busses for a marketing campaign and made printed advertisement on them. Afterwards, we took pictures of the advertisements on the buses and edited the messages in the ads in Photoshop and targeted the different messages at different audiences using Facebook Advertising. A highly unorthodox approach, but it performed incredibly well”
Curiosity, being able to think outside the box and test out new approaches is key to constant progress.
With that being said, don’t just run out into the ether every time you hear a new buzzword, platform or supposed opportunity – you don’t want to be the dog that barks at every car it sees.
Instead, you should focus on your business’ “why” and make sure the new approach or channel is still true to your brand. Zvi Goldstein (Interflora) said it best; “We don’t chase buzzwords”.
Focus on broad experience
This was especially touched upon by Morten Holst Boye (Carlsberg) and Lars Christian Lund (3Shape).
Morten: “Aim for broad experience, you need to learn and understand the entire value chain - it will give you a great foundation to help you make sensible decisions”.
Lars: “Get a broad experience - don't get yourself locked in as a specialist - it gives you more perspectives to work with”.
Most of the CMO’s we’ve talked to actually started in sales, prior moving to marketing. Many say it helped them to understand how the two different “worlds” interconnect - greatly underlining the importance of gaining broad knowledge.
Signe Julie Valeur (Lunar): ”What has been great for me in my marketing-career, is that I started out with sales. It has given me a great advantage in all my campaigns, all creatives – everything”
Michala Svane (Tivoli): “People should show interest for the business in its entirety, and not just their small area of responsibility. It gives you a better understanding of your roles’ impact on the organization and a distinct advantage in your work”
Simon Peschcke-K?edt (SofaCompany): “If you want to work in marketing and communication, then agencies are a great place to start. You get the opportunity to interact with a lot of different clients, work with businesses in a lot of different industries, and you also learn what you yourself find most exciting”
Gain early exposure to management & International experience
Another common denominator among the immortals, is that the vast majority of them have been exposed to management early in their careers and has spent time abroad, either in connection with work or education.
Rasmus Serup (Hair Lust): ”The best thing you can do is start something on your own. Managing people at an early age and putting out fires on a daily basis gives you an amazing understanding of how everything ties together”
Lars Christian Lund (3Shape): “Denmark is a small country. Travel and seek inspiration - take a semester abroad, take a position abroad - international experience is incredibly rewarding”.
Love what you do
It’s no coincidence that I chose to end with this one.
One of the things we’ve experienced when conversing with immortals, is that they are all genuinely passionate about their jobs and their companies.
Jacob Weinreich (TV2) said: “What makes you good at your job isn’t the number of hours you put in. It’s about you showing a true passion and a genuine interest in your work”.
Being enthusiastic about your job and role will also help you to persevere when times are tough and push you to keep learning.
If you don’t like what you do, find something else – simple as that.
Summing up
Alexander and I have really enjoyed making this podcast and can’t wait to continue with many more interesting conversations.
Once again, a big thanks to the 10 immortals for participating.
- Jacob Weinreich - TV2
- Jesper Brok-J?rgensen - Happy Helper
- Lars Christian Lund - 3Shape
- Michala Svane - Tivoli
- Morten Holst Boye - Carlsberg
- Rasmus Serup - Hair Lust
- Signe Julie Valeur - Lunar
- Simon Peschcke-K?edt - SofaCompany
- Steffen Fr?lund - Green Mobility
- Zvi Goldstein - Interflora