The Room Insider: Hayley Nelson

Q: What is a marketing hill you are willing to die on? i.e. what is a topic you are passionate about where people often disagree with you?

Organizations must have a well-articulated, higher-level brand message. The best companies have a clear mission, vision, and values that drive their brand messaging and cascade into everything they do. The results can be magical when clear brand-level themes are coordinated among business groups, brand, policy, and comms teams. Airbnb is an excellent example of a company that does this well, and it’s easier to do in founder-led companies.

Q: How do you stay motivated during a hectic week? What activities or habits energize you throughout the day?

I get outside daily, usually for a walk or run. I love walking and talking with friends or people of interest to help me process issues or run with a great playlist to take my mind off things. If I don’t have time for that, I will at least try to take breaks outside or eat a meal outside. Living in northern California makes that possible!

Q: Imagine you have an unlimited budget for a campaign or PR stunt. What wild idea would you bring to life?

I want to execute a global campaign for the public good that is truly ambitious in scope and scale. Take the public service message: “Smoking Kills.” It was so simple and, at that time, ubiquitous.?

My campaign would be around sustainability and the climate imperative. Something along the lines of “One earth. One moment. The time is now. Lower your carbon footprint.” I’d love to see this played out across a Superbowl ad, across influencers and creators, writers and documentary filmmakers, and then cascade into private-public partnerships to get this funded and disseminated into local governments and grassroots NGOs. This is the kind of work I would love to see big foundations like Emerson Collective or Gates doing more of– and would love to do myself in the future!

Q: What core principles or values have guided your decisions throughout your career?

I appreciate visionary leadership that ties to a higher purpose, so I’ve tried to navigate to places where I see that and move away from places when I don’t. I have always been curious about the “new”— mostly technology and culture and the pace of change and innovation —so I’ve tried to create opportunities to have an inside seat in shaping the direction of change. Mostly, I try to harness my desire to learn and grow by taking on new responsibilities in each successive role.

At the core, family and health come first, friends and community second, and work and career third. Being clear on the order of those priorities is critical to leading a balanced life.

Q: Outside of work, what is a topic you could talk about for hours?

Home design and decor is my secret passion. I like helping friends make their spaces more comfortable and elegant. I could talk about what goes into that for hours—creating a meaningful and intentional space by setting a mood, curating the artifacts, and bringing art, color, plant life, and light into the mix. Maybe something I’ll do more of in the future when I have more time. It’s creative in a very tangible way. Different but perhaps complementary to the kind of creativity I bring to marketing and branding.

Q: Take out your phone and pull up your camera roll. Tell us about the last photo you took.

My daughter and I were hiking on a trail last night, just before sunset. The fog was starting to roll in from the Pacific, and the light was beautiful. My dog was running back and forth on the trail, chasing birds. We stepped over a smooshed lizard. I was appreciative that my 14-year-old would still say yes when I asked her to go with me! My heart was full of gratitude at the close of a busy weekend.

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