ExecuNet LESSONS FROM LEADERS: Building Your Personal Leadership Brand

8/14/2019 ExecuNet LESSONS FROM LEADERS: Building Your Personal Leadership Brand

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LESSONS FROM LEADERS:Building Your Personal Leadership Brand

Executives dont reach the upper echelons of corporations alone they are inuenced and supportedthrough peer networks and interactions with other senior leaders. In this glimpse into the ExecuNetGeneral Management and Human Resources Roundtables, we offer some of the most pertinent advice

from executives on personal branding.


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A personal brand is valuable only if it is positioned correctly. Ifhere is no market, then the brand is worthless or at the veryeast, diminished in value (Who wants the best-made, mostttractive dial phones anymore?)

Executives should focus their efforts to gain maximumxposure to their target market. Determine where theseecision-makers linger and gain presence in their actualnd virtual worlds. The goal is not just to be there but tostablish credibility and develop trust in your abilities inrder to promote a warm personal relationship that mighte taken offline resulting in referrals, recommendations,

mentoring, exchanging ideas, mutual support, access to

oveted leads, etc.This is a process. It doesnt happen overnight. You can

ccelerate the results by starting off in the right placesnd communicating a consistent, focused and compelling

message. Remember that personal branding is intended toifferentiate individuals, to distinguish among competitors,nd demonstrate to employers and colleagues that someone isemarkable. In turn, the benets are generating a memorableositive impression that will be etched on contacts radarcreens and will be recalled at opportune moments, enablinghat branded professional to access appropriate leads and beonnected to potential sources of career and personal progress,

ow and in the future.Debra FelDman, executive talent agent, career management

The following are ve key components on personal brandinghat I learned from reading Sherri Thomas book, Career Smart

5 Steps to a Powerful Personal Brand.Core Values: What drives you the most? (Even from anon-business perspective.)Passions: What really excites you?Personal Characteristics/Differentiators: Are you a leader,follower, creative, analytical, etc?Signature Talents: What are you absolutely great at? (I am

great at event planning; I create great marketing plans; Ianalyze nancials very well; I launch new products well.)Successes: What accomplishments are you most proud of?(They tend to highlight the other things, but also serve asexamples that typify your personal brand and what you bringto the table.)

ranDal gustaFson, managing Director,

strategic marketing consulting

I think personal brands are extremely important. We haveentered the age when a person no longer works for a companfor an extended period. We are more or less contractors to thcompanies for which we work. We provide a service, and theyprovide income and benets. The average tenure is less than years. So you now are your most important product. Ask any person and they will tell you that they use the Internet to ndand validate potential employees.

There are a number of things that can be done to promoyour brand:l Keep a personal blog and/or a personal website.l Get on Facebook, LinkedIn, Naymz and Jigsaw.l Comment on other peoples blogs.l Publish e-articles or an e-book.l Get on the agenda of local industry groups, or a committee

Just like any good marketing program, you need to thinkthrough what you want your brand to represent, and make suyou keep a consistent look and feel. Over time, you want peopto associate a specic thought with who you are. This is the tin the new job market the more recognizable the brand, thehigher the premium.

tomme stevenson, FounDer anD PrinciPal, busi

DeveloPment consul

Your introduction on ExecuNet is your brand. I suggest you swith it, and see if it describes you as a professional. It has a godeal of what you have done; now you need to turn that intofuture tense. Give it a try and post it here.

DaviD Wit, general manager, HosPit

I use several social media platforms (LinkedIn, Facebook, TwiPlaxo) to build my personal brand and nurture my network.However, I have found the combination of a thought-leadersblog on LinkedIn and Twitter to be very effective at increasing

personal searchability on Google.alan see, vice PresiDent oF marketin

I nd that by participating in targeted networking groups,volunteering for committee work and maintaining high visibiamongst your peer group, youll get the name recognitionrequired for branding yourself.

stePHen smitH, PrinciPal, arcHitectural/enginee

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I would like to start to develop my own personal brand and was interested if others have done it and whatesources they used.

Debra santolini, manager oF marketing oPerations, liFe scien


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The best advice is to customize your rsum for each positionou pursue. As a practical matter, it forces you to investigate theompany and the job, so you will be better prepared to have aood interview with a hand-picked rsum. Also, it increases thekelihood that your rsum (if you are qualied) will be picked

p by the keyword search and/or recruiters review since you willave likely added the pertinent keywords from the job posting toour rsum. The key is to be able to show the value you canring to the position in question by putting your qualications inhe context of their need.

The personal brand is what makes you unique and desirable;y optimizing each rsum for the job in question you spin yourrand for each individual opportunity.

JonatHan W. coHen, senior consultant, telecommunications

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10 branDing strategiesCatherine Kaputa, the founder of SelfBrand, a New York City-

based brand strategy rm and the author ofU R A BRAND! HowSmart People Brand Themselves for Business Success, outlines 10different branding strategies in this excerpt from an exclusiveExecuNet FastTrackWebinar.

Be the rst and narrow your focus.1. Ask yourself if there isa product, customer segment or service that you were therst to create at your company.Be a leader.2. You could be a leading salesperson in yourcompany, in a product, with a customer segment; or youcould be the leader of your team, department or tradeassociation.Be a maverick, the opposite of being a leader.3. It involves

identifying the leaders in your company or arena anddetermining the opposite of that brand image, point ofview and action plan.Own an attribute.4. Look at the product area or companyand then determine the attributes that are prized withinthe industry and which your brand could own. If youdescribe your brand with one word or attribute, whatwould it be?

Find a new process or magic ingredient.5. Ask if there is anew process or component that could solve a customer

problem in your company.Be the expert.6. Ask if there is an area that you know verywell. What can you do to become an authority or beperceived as an authority? Writing articles, newsletters orbooks are important platforms for people executing thisexpert strategy.Be preferred.7. Determine if there is a customer segmentthat could become the focus of your self-brand identity.Set a high price.8. High price means superiority. Its thewhole idea that a consultant who charges $400 an hourmust be better than one who charges $100 an hour.Know your special heritage.9. This involves determining

what connections you can leverage. These connectionsinclude family, schools, training programs, awards, countryof origin and companies.Owning a cause.10. Is there a cause or issue you arepassionate about?

Branding at its core is really about attaching an idea to a product.

Its the same with people, says Kaputa.

5 stePs to a Personal branDPersonal branding is the image, emotion and thought thatyou invoke in the other person after you have interacted andcommunicated with them. Learn how to stand out from thecrowd and how to build your personal brand in this excerpt

from an exclusive ExecuNet FastTrack webinar featuringexecutive coach Coach Nick Papadopoulos, of Skys The Limit1. Dene your vision and your mission.2. Deneyour value proposition, the unique set of talents

that you offer.3. Identify your target audience.4. State your brand promise.5. Determine how you will execute your brand.


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by marJi mcclure, execunet eDitor

n todays volatile economic climate, only the strongest brandswill survive. This is true for businesses and for the executives whoead them. Just as major consumer packaged goods companiesromote their core products to the marketplace throughxtensive marketing and branding campaigns, executives needo do the same to promote themselves within their company andheir industry.

With increased competition in the job marketplace, itsrucial that executives create a brand for themselves thatccurately depicts who they are as leaders and positions them forontinued success within their current organizations as well asuccess in future endeavors.

WHat Does a Personal branDing camPaign entail?Personal branding involves knowing what your coreompetencies are and being able to leverage them to move yourompany, your department and your initiatives forward, saysahna Barthelmess, president and chief marketing strategistor Connecticut-based Beacon Marketing. It involves shining apotlight on those competencies so that others recognize whatou bring to the table so that those skills can be brought toear over and over again.

Barthelmess stresses that personal branding has to beuthentic. Personal branding is not a cloak you can put onr something to mask aws or deciencies, she says. Your

ersonal brand radiates from within you and represents your corealues and beliefs expressed outwardly by your actions. Puttingp a fake persona is a surere way to be discovered as a phony.

Branding experts agree that executives need to takewnership of their plan because it is such a personal concept,nd one that can make a large impact on an executivesareer management strategy. Everyone has to have a personalareer marketing plan today because individuals have to beesponsible for creating their own opportunities, says Judit Price

of Massachusetts-based Berke and Price Associates. Companno longer look out for an executives best interests executi

need to do this themselves, she adds. The executive should vhimself/herself almost as independent contractors who mustheir own advocates. As we know, old-fashioned loyalty is larggone. The only person executives can count on is themselves,their skill sets and their network, says Price.

Yet, at the same time, executives must be able to self-manage the process in a way that is effectively, but not overlypromotional. Its important that executives are clear with thepersonal marketing objectives and dont alienate others alonthe way. The executive must strike a balance between his orpersonal needs (personal brand) and corporate needs (corporbrand), says Dan Schawbel, a personal branding expert andauthor ofMe 2.0: Build a Powerful Brand to Achieve CareerSuccess.

If the executive engages in too much self-promotion, thhis constituents will be turned off and the company culture wbe tarnished, adds Schawbel. The executive should promoteother executives and people in various departments as well.Executives should understand their career strategy at that levAre they looking to build their company and then sell it? Are tlooking to become the next CEO? Once the executive realizeswhat his or her next step is, then its about carefully planninghow he or she is going to get there.

Building a brand is an intentional communication effortadds Karen Armon, creator and founder of Colorado-based

MarketOne Executive. It isnt done haphazardly. Therefore, thbest way to protect ones brand is to have a very tight theme,with very specic execution plans, and then measurements tprovide feedback on that plan. I believe building your career abusiness and launching your product (you are the labor servicproduct that you are offering) is what is required.

DeveloPing your branD PlanBarthelmess says that the process of developing a personalbranding plan is similar to writing a marketing plan. Threenecessary components to consider when crafting the plan arestrengths of the individual, target audience and communicatmethods.

Sometimes it can be difcult for executives to recognize true assets. Kathy McAfee, president of Connecticut-based KmBrand Innovation LLC, advises asking for feedback from peopl(from clients to colleagues) who have worked with you. Suchindividuals can provide an objective view of your capabilities

McAfee suggests asking the following questions:l What value did I/do I create for you?l Why is that so important to you?l What do you think I do best?l If you have to describe me to another person in four words

phrases, what would they be?

Building Your Personal Leadership Brand

marketing 101: tHe beneFits oF a Personal

branDing Planl Attract the right kinds of projects.l

Attract the right kinds of companies or clients to work with you.l Clarify what you stand for, what your purpose is.l Help you do things on purpose.l Allow the right people to nd you.l Help you attract opportunities to shine.l Enhance your performance and experience.l Delineate your t within an organization.l Increase your stature within a group.

Source: Rahna Barthelmess, Beacon Marketing


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ra Blumenthal, co-author ofManaging Brand You: 7 Steps toCreating Your Most Successful Self, explains that individualseparate brand identity (what you believe you are or what you

want to be) from brand image (what others believe you are). Heuggests making a list of ve-to-ten words that describe what

ou believe you are (such as trustworthy) and then ask friendsnd associates to list the words that they feel best describe you.

f their words dont make your list, Blumenthal suggests itsime to repair your brand. He notes that such repairs can be asimple as staying at the ofce later if people think that youre notedicated. If they think youre not a team player, volunteer for anxtra assignment. We believe that if executives take a look athemselves and use others visions, they will nd what their awsre, explains Blumenthal.

Overall, an executives main goal is to take his or her ownbservations along with those of colleagues and friends andetermine the kind of brand he or she wants to create forimself or herself and perform activities that will help you

mulate that brand.When everyone knows what you do best, your name and

eputation will be equivalent with your brand, says Price. Forxample, people call me the career lady wherever I go. Theynow I write a biweekly column on careers and employment andappear on local radio and TV regarding career issues. As a result,have the brand as being the career lady of the Merrimack Valley.

Such branding is most effective when it encompasses anxecutives internal (with the company) and external (withinhe industry) presence. Building your brand within theompany means communication and aligning, both throughour position and your inuence, a brand that will help you

meet and exceed business strategies and goals, says Armon,uthor ofMarket Your Potential, Not Your Past. Building yourrand within the industry is about positioning yourself as ahought leader and using your position and inuence to changehe course the industry is headed.

The strategies necessary to build an executives internalrand differ greatly from those used to build an external brand.ut together, they should create an image that will help anxecutive be successful regardless of the venue.

your internal branDing Planhe main concept of an executives internal branding campaign

nvolves ensuring that individuals at all levels within that

xecutives organization are aware of and value the executivesontributions. Visibility is paramount for any leader who wisheso have people following him or her, says McAfee. If you onlypend time with the same people all the time (or project teamr the C-suite), then you are limiting your reach and exposure.y practicing internal networking, you will reap the benetsf establishing more connections many of which can evolve

nto mutually benecial relationships. You want to establish thisefore you need it.

McAfee says that executives can accomplish this by leavingheir desks and visiting other employees. She suggests having

lunch in the company cafeteria instead of in your ofce. Youmust show your face and appear to be approachable andaccessible, advises McAfee. Mix and mingle with differentpeople in the organization. Think of them and yourself as humbeings and learn to relate to each other. It will help to enhanc

your visibility and connection with your colleagues.

your external branDing PlanCreating and building an external brand requires executives tposition themselves as thought leaders and experts within thindustry. Illustrating to all that they are a true authority in theld is vital to an executives external brand.

Thought leadership is the act of sharpening yourknowledge on a certain narrow subject that you are passionaabout and sharing your insights about it to a larger audience(including inside and outside your company and immediateworld), says McAfee. Thought leadership is not the act of seand marketing your companys product; its about standing fo

something larger (concept, cause or problem) and increasing awareness and advocating for it.

Ways executives can demonstrate thought leadershipinclude writing articles for newspapers and magazine, beingquoted as an expert in those publications, and presenting atindustry-related conferences and events.

The benets of doing all of this work are that you areadding equity in both the short-term and long-term, saysMcAfee. You are enhancing your reputation, your visibility anyour value to more people. You are building your brand, and twill go with you your entire career.

tHe social meDia comPonentReferences to executives online are lasting impressions, andexecutives need to understand the importance of creating (athen monitoring) an online brand that also effectively promotheir capabilities. Social media is becoming an increasinglyimportant component in personal branding, especially asrecruiters and hiring managers use such sites as LinkedIn as aresource to nd and research potential job candidates.

According to 2008 ExecuNet data, 86 percent of recruitersurveyed said they have used search engines to uncoverinformation about executive candidates. If youre not there,you may not be found by the people you most need to positioyourself in front of, says Meg Guiseppe, a New Jersey-based

personal branding strategist and master rsum writer. Shewarns, You could be missing out on golden opportunities.Guiseppe stresses the importance of having a prole

included on LinkedIn, but she adds that an executivesparticipation in this particular networking site shouldnt endthere. You should also make connections and leverage all ofthe available activities (such as Answers; Groups; and givingand asking for recommendations) to build evangelism for youpersonal brand, says Guiseppe. Many experts, including Priceand Armon, suggest avoiding Facebook because it not as strobusiness-focused as other sites, like ExecuNet or LinkedIn.


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Peer interaction that occurs in platforms such as ExecuNetsoundtables also serve as venues in which executives canemonstrate expertise in a particular subject while alsoecoming valued resources for solving business problems.

Blogging, either by creating your own blog or becoming auest blogger on other blogs, can also be an effective way tohare your industry insights with a broad audience. However,efore you start such an endeavor, Barthelmess stresses the

mportance of being clear about your objectives for the blog.Know what you want to accomplish.

Schawbel says that executives need to commit to posting

t least one or more times each week, Be open to criticism andave something interesting to say. He cautions against enlistingghost writer to write blog posts because if that person is

evealed, it will lead to a lot of negative press for the executive.Armon doesnt recommend executives maintain a blog

ecause it is such a huge time commitment. It is labor intensive;t] requires a lot of marketing to get people to notice and

espond to a blog and can often make you feel like you are talkingo an audience of one yourself, she says.

For similar reasons, Twitter a service in which users posthort comments (tweets) might not be the best venue forxecutives to communicate their thought leadership either.I cant recommend that every executive has a Twitter prole

ecause, much like blogging, youll have to send multiple tweetsday for anyone to care, says Schawbel. Most executivesrent on Twitter and instead cling to LinkedIn because of howrofessional it is.

Most importantly, executives must know the audience theywant to reach and pick the social media platform that thosendividuals are most likely to frequent. You must think abouthose whom you are trying to inuence, adds Barthelmess.If they are the type of people who would never follow youn Twitter, then Twitter should not be part of your personalranding plan.

At the same time, when executives identify the mosteffective online platforms for your branding campaign, itscrucial that they ensure that what is revealed about them onInternet doesnt prevent them from making viable connectioand securing new opportunities.

Since not all web references are positive, executives needto closely manage what is being said about them online andcounter with more positive content. Forty-four percent ofexecutive recruiters surveyed by ExecuNet in 2008 said they heliminated a senior-level candidate because of information foon the Internet. [ExecuNet offers a career guide, Dealing with

Your Digital Dirt, with recommendations on how executives cpositively enhance their online reputation. A downloadable cof the full report is accessible via the Career Center tab on thExecuNet website.]

Schawbel says that some executives enlist the help ofa public relations professional to monitor the blogospheretraditional media outlets to ensure the integrity of an executbrand. Either the PR professional or the executive can set upsearch engine alerts, so they are notied when the executivename appears in new content.

The idea here is that you want to interact with peoplewho are talking about your personal brand, just like a prodor corporate brand, because that is how you put out fires a

establish new connections, says Schawbel. Executives sh[search] their name daily to see how they are represented their results and then react by signing up for social networor creating content so they can push bad press down if thefind it.

The large majority (79 percent) of executives reported toExecuNet that they had searched for their own names onlinebut not as frequently as Schawbel suggests. Just 11 percentconducted this activity more than once per month while 29percent searched just once per year or even less frequently.

WHere to FinD tHe rigHt blogsPersonal marketing and branding experts agree that blogging either creating your own blog or contributing to others is agreat way to help bolster your online brand and further position you as a leader within your industry and the business communias a whole.

Personal branding strategist and rsum writer Meg Guiseppi offers the following suggestions for executives who are lookin

for blogs that can help them accomplish their career branding objectives:l Visit Alltop.com and Technorati.com and source relevant blogs by category. Also, look for recruiter blogs.l Set up Google Alerts for relevant keyword phrases that will lead you to the right blogs.l Enter the names of industry thought leaders and experts into a search engine to see where theyre blogging.l Search relevant keywords for your industry or eld and your areas of expertise.l Look at the blogrolls on any of the relevant blogs you uncover to nd other blogs of interest.

When posting comments, keep these ideas in mind, advises Guiseppi:l Keep your comments brief (one to two paragraphs) and on-topic.l Add value to the conversation and position yourself as a niche expert.l Although bloggers love to read Terric post!, offer more than just kudos.l Link back to your LinkedIn prole as your website (unless you have a website or blog).


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branDing as a DiFFerentiatorxperts agree that the demonstration of your personal brand canlso help improve the productivity of your job search activitiesnd make you a more appealing candidate. When executivesuild their brand, the exercise requires clear denition of what

he executives have to offer, what they do best, and who theyre, says Price. Armed with this information, communication

with the intended audience is clear and condent. The executivean prepare for the job search better because the candidate haslready thought through and dened his or her vision, values,assions, purpose and goals.

Price adds that it is equally important to understandhe competition for positions; to know what skills sets otherxecutives who are seeking the same jobs possess. This can helpou further pinpoint how you should position your brand to helpou stand out from among that competition. Armed with thatnformation, the executive should be able to create some uniqueifferentiators that separate the competition from the executive.

t is also vitally important to know who the target audience is inrder to be condent that the skill set is relevant to the targetrganizations needs, says Price.

Remember, you are more than just what you do or haveone on the job, adds McAfee. Dare to express your personalitynd passions during the job search and watch your results grow.et them see and experience your personal brand, and remember,n todays economy, your experience and knowledge may not benough. Your success will be determined largely by your attitudend willingness to put yourself out there and to help others.

When organizations seek new talent, they will be moreattracted to those with a strong brand, those able to effectivedemonstrate their thought leadership. Companies that hireexecutives expect them to be at the top of their game, and inthis economic environment, that is the key strategy for talent

acquisition to rotate out lesser talent for greater talent, whincludes thought leadership, says Armon. Branding builds ythought leadership gravitas, which is exciting for recruiters ahiring leaders alike. Thought leadership is the key that positioyou as a top talent and puts [you] in the sights of CEOs who wto build the best team around him or her as possible.n

ublished ByxecuNet, Inc.95 Westport Avenue

Norwalk, CT 06851800) 637-3126 or (203) [email protected]

www.execunet.com2009 Exec-U-Net Inc. All Rights Reserved

ounded in 1988, ExecuNet brings C-level executives together online and in face-to-face meetings to discuss business challenges, solutions andpportunities, and share job leads. A recognized authority in executive recruiting and human capital, ExecuNet also provides members access toondential six-gure jobs listings, proprietary research, and pragmatic advice.

exPert resources:l Karen Armon, MarketOne Executive

(MarketOneExecutive.com)l Rahna Barthelmess, Beacon Marketing

(Beacon-Marketing.com)l Ira Blumenthal, Co-OPPORTUNITIES (Iraspeak.com)l Meg Guiseppi, Executive Resume Branding

(ExecutiveResumeBranding.com)l Kathy McAfee, Kmc Brand Innovation LLC

(MarketingMotivator.net )l Judit Price, Berke and Price Associates (CareerCampaign.col Dan Schawbel, Personal Branding Magazine

(PersonalBrandingMag.com)

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ExecuNet LESSONS FROM LEADERS: Building Your Personal Leadership Brand