What A Strategist At 3M Wishes They Had Known Before Entering The Innovation Industry
Bryanna, a Strategist at 3M, wishes someone had emphasized that a strategist's role is "supportive and not always the primary need for the business," requiring a focus on complementing the work of scientists and innovators to successfully bring products to market, a lesson learned through navigating the initial intimidation of working alongside "amazing people and brilliant" colleagues.
Industry Realities, Workplace Challenges, Overcoming Challenges, Career Development, Teamwork
Advizer Information
Name
Job Title
Company
Undergrad
Grad Programs
Majors
Industries
Job Functions
Traits
Bryanna Brown
Strategist
3M
Georgia State University c/o 2015
Washington University in St Louis - Olin Business School, MBA
Film, Media Arts, Visual Arts
Consumer Packaged Goods (CPG), Engineering
Business Strategy
Honors Student, Scholarship Recipient, Pell Grant Recipient, Worked 20+ Hours in School, Transfer Student
Video Highlights
1. The role of a strategist is supportive and not always the primary need for the business. Strategists play a crucial role in bringing products to market but understanding how to add value outside of the core creation process is important.
2. It can be intimidating working alongside highly innovative and brilliant people; finding your place and contributing effectively requires understanding how to support and complement their work.
3. The value of a strategist lies in supporting scientists and understanding the products they create to facilitate the go-to-market strategy. This involves figuring out how to best complement the work of the creators.
Transcript
What have you learned about this role that you wish someone had told you before you entered the industry?
That's a great question. I wish someone had told me before I entered this industry that my role is supportive and not always the primary need for the business.
By that, I mean that the creators and the innovators are very valuable. The business makes money based on their work. Understanding how to still be an additive employee outside of the scientists at 3M is important.
I feel like I'm now at the point of figuring out how to complement the work that scientists do within the business. I used to wonder where I fit in, given how amazing and brilliant they are.
At this point, I'm just figuring that out by supporting them. It's about really being able to understand the products they're creating to be able to bring them to market.
So there is value in my role. It was just a little intimidating at the onset, seeing how many brilliant people were creating things at 3M.