Power_ Why Some People Have Itand Others Don't - Jeffrey Pfeffer [68]
Marcelo built a three-pronged strategy. The first part entailed doing a lot of hard work and, to the best of his ability, delivering good results. The second was to build networks both inside and outside of the company—relationships that could help him be successful. But Marcelo also recognized the importance of creating a positive external image that would attract allies and support. He began to carefully cultivate the media as a way of becoming “better than he actually was” in the eyes of the world and, by so doing, actually be better because of the effect of positive expectations and image on how he would be seen.
Marcelo understood that, particularly in today’s world with media budgets cut and organizations facing financial stress, journalists need and very much appreciate help doing their jobs. So Marcelo began writing articles about finance and management and sending them off to relevant Brazilian publications that wanted interesting content. At first, of course, not all the publications accepted his contributions, but over time, he got some of his writings placed. One of his angles was to play on his young age and offer a different generational perspective on management issues. Once some of his articles had been published, he had more credibility, so it was easier to get still other articles published. Marcelo also volunteered to do interviews about his company with the media. Many of his colleagues felt that this was a waste of time and a distraction from their real jobs. Few wanted to be bothered with drafting press releases and handling media relations. Marcelo was soon doing these tasks not just for his department but for many others in the company, and as his skill and success at these tasks grew, others came to him for help. Through these activities, he was able to connect with many important people in the media in Brazil and also gain considerable stature inside his company.
When at the age of 27, with no top management experience, he was given the job of chief financial officer to guide a turnaround, lead a 100-person team, and be the co-general manager of one of the company’s business units, Marcelo had already learned the importance of the media. He continued writing articles, doing interviews, and building relationships. In 2007, Marcelo, not yet 30 years old, was featured in a leading Brazilian business magazine as one of ten young executives designated “CEOs of the Future,” and was on the cover of another leading Brazilian magazine with an article on how to trade in the stock market. Who knows what will eventually happen to Marcelo, but the odds of his being named a CEO are certainly enhanced by being designated as such by a leading business publication.
The lessons from the Marcelo story are to be persistent and to spend time cultivating media people—not just press, radio, television, and the Internet, but also business writers and thinkers who can help you burnish your image. The best way to build relationships with media people is to be helpful and accessible.
When Nuria Chinchilla completed her doctoral thesis at IESE, the business school of the University of Navarra in Barcelona, and joined the IESE faculty, she became interested in the topic of women in the workplace and building family-friendly workplaces. Although this issue gained prominence over the years as more women joined the labor force in Spain and elsewhere, and work-family conflicts continued to grow, what’s interesting is how Chinchilla built an international reputation for herself as a leading, maybe the leading, speaker, consultant, and writer on this topic. There were, after all, many other professionals and policy analysts working on this topic, but few have had the visibility or influence in multiple countries as had Chinchilla, who has influenced awards and regulations in more than a dozen