What A Director Of Marketing At Hedley And Bennett Wishes They Had Known Before Entering Marketing
Alice, Hedley & Bennett's Director of Marketing, learned that the "wearing a lot of hats" reality of startups requires a constant balancing act between strategic thinking and daily execution. The insightful takeaway is the need to prioritize effectively and understand that perfect execution in both areas is impossible, necessitating a constant trade-off to avoid burnout and maintain forward momentum.
Strategic Thinking, Prioritization, Execution, Work-Life Balance, Leadership
Advizer Information
Name
Job Title
Company
Undergrad
Grad Programs
Majors
Industries
Job Functions
Traits
Alice Khabituyeva
Director of Marketing
Hedley & Bennett
Trinity College (Hartford, CT) and 2017
UCLA Anderson
Economics
Consumer Packaged Goods (CPG)
Communication and Marketing
Took Out Loans, Immigrant
Video Highlights
1. You will wear many hats, requiring a balance of strategic thinking and daily execution.
2. Prioritization and setting boundaries are crucial for success.
3. There's a constant trade-off between strategic thinking and daily execution; strive for balance, not perfection.
Transcript
What have you learned about this role that you wish someone had told you before entering it?
When startup companies say you'll be wearing a lot of hats, they mean it. You have to be really prepared to know how to balance being strategic and executing.
It's important to take prioritizing for yourself seriously and set boundaries and goalposts. If I knew I'd still love this job, I might have navigated it a little differently.
I would have anticipated challenges, like realizing that if I focus too much on day-to-day execution, I lose strategic thinking. Conversely, relying too much on strategy can let things slip through the cracks.
It's a helpful reminder that if you set the bar too high to do both perfectly, you'll falter. You can never do both strategy and execution at 100%. There's a constant trade-off you have to learn to balance.