Typical interview questions can include the ubiquitous, “Tell me about yourself” or “How would you describe yourself?” I understand why they ask and I often counter with tell me about the culture, your leadership style and characteristics of successful colleagues.

What I talk about is also related to what I want to hear and that is that the manager, team and organization support continuous learning. I want to know that the organization emphasizes growth, innovation and new ideas.

I push myself to keep learning – that is why I completed my MBA after many years in the industry. I have sought out personal and professional, casual and assessment based learning opportunities. When I managed a team a focus of mine was finding opportunities for learning both internally and externally. As a team we needed to grow and demonstrate our continued relevance to our marketing organization.

Marketing is exciting because there is always a way to test and learn, to try a new medium, find a new partner or identify a new way to market. And at the very least it is about constantly optimizing what you are doing. I wouldn’t want to hear in an interview that the marketing team has been doing the same thing for years. As a friend said to me, corporate (and marketing) innovation is never a straight rinse and repeat effort.

“It’s what you learn after you know it all that counts.”

―John Wooden

As a versatile and innovate marketer I have had success in multiple industries and business models. What I bring to the table are best practices that can be adapted and used in new industries. My curiosity helps me dig deep into new industries and markets to uncover new ways of storytelling, or reaching customers and launching products to name a few. And as I said earlier there is always a new medium, channel or partner to try out. If we seek to understand the customer and their journey we will create omni-channel marketing strategies that bring compelling and relevant content to reach and surpass goals. As a continuous learner I would never say we failed if we missed a goal because we’ve learned what didn’t work and can adjust in the future.

Thank you to my teachers including my professors, mentors, supervisors, peers, colleagues and direct reports. You helped me learn and grow. I look forward to finding new teachers that will continue to inspire me.

Photo by Amy E. Mikel. Austin, Texas. January 2018.