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Amy Smith
Amy Smith  Amy was an integral part of a small team behind publishing two books in Australia on behalf of the movement, Change the World for Ten Bucks (1 in 66 Australians has a copy and in 2006 it won the Prime Minister’s Award for the best example of a charity and business working together for positive change) and more recently in 2007, Change the World 9 to 5, which addresses how we can work happier and healthier, bringing her creativity and passion for this movement. Amy’s love for Australia and the birth of her second child saw her return to become the CEO of JWT Australia/NZ where she once again became the custodian of the world’s biggest brands, including Ford, Nestlé’s Kit Kat, Kimberly-Clark Kleenex, Unilever’s Lipton and Kraft, for whom she created the Little Vegemites Aussie Reader program, supported by the Government’s Little Big Book Club, whose role is to encourage literacy in schools all over Australia for under six-year-olds. She has contributed numerous articles and columns to trade and marketing press on topics such as risk-taking in business, how to connect with consumers, building magic brands that stick and, more recently, the use of magic and logic in business to grow revenue. She has appeared on 60 Minutes to present the challenges faced by working mums and has done a number of television appearances to support her two books. She speaks regularly on the subject of change, how to build businesses through creativity and marketing to women. Now, sixteen months into her role as the MD of Jenny Craig Australia, she is on a mission to lead Jenny Craig into the future with confidence. She is a passionate supporter of women and as a single mother of two children aged five and six, is in touch with the realities of juggling the demands of a career and family. Amy is on the board of The Australian Childhood Foundation, working to prevent child abuse in Australian communities. What was your first significant business experience and what did you learn from it? I was in my last year at Uni and I took a job with a consultancy called Image Dynamics, working for an amazing woman named Nancy Kazdan. The main thing I learned was the importance of making a great first impression. I was taught to think of yourself as a brand – the way you look, the way you behave, and how to project yourself. It’s all about playing to your strengths and displaying authenticity, reliability and consistency. If you could start your corporate journey again, what key business skills would you make sure you had in hand to ensure your success? I recognised early on that I am a ‘creative corporate’ person rather than a straight, more traditional corporate person. I found it hard to balance the commercial and creative agendas – there is always going to be a natural tension there. Through trial and error – and don’t be afraid to try - I learned how important it is to have key commercial skills, particularly in a financial sense. So if there’s one thing I could change, it would be to be more financially literate in the early stages of my career. What got you through the ‘tough’ times? I consider myself very fortunate to have bundles of energy, tenacity and determination. I decided I wanted to get into advertising but I simply couldn’t land a job in Australia. No one wanted to hire me. So I took myself off to London which I considered at the time to have the leading advertising industry in the world, mainly because the UK had a very sophisticated consumer market, with the likes of SKY TV for example. I was lucky enough to get a job working at one of the world’s most awarded agencies (Wieden + Kennedy) working on accounts like Nike and Honda. The lesson here is to prove the knockers wrong. I got fired up and I beat them! What do you think holds women back from becoming successful in the corporate environment? Firstly, confidence; if a job requires four key skills and you’ve only got three, then a woman is unlikely to apply, whereas a man would probably push it. Another good example of lack of confidence is in a pay rise situation. Women tend to sit back and wait for it. But if you really want a pay rise then make a business case and ask for one. The second big thing is the conflict with work-life balance. It is extremely difficult to balance kids, family and a career and this is why there are relatively few women at senior levels. What’s the best thing about being a business leader? Jenny Craig is a cause for good – we help people - and I find that extremely motivating. Every year we work with thousands of people who want to change their lives for the better. I’ve often been labelled a change agent but that doesn’t sit well with me. I prefer ‘thrive agent’ and the best thing about leading Jenny Craig is that we help people achieve a positive transformation in their lives. How do you find the balance between your entrepreneurial spirit and having to be accountable in your corporate role? In my position I’m very clear that my job is to lead, not to manage. I set a vision for the future and make a plan to get there. As a leader you constantly hear about obstacles and reasons why things can’t be done so you have to work hard to stay entrepreneurial, you have to try things and be fearless – but not be foolhardy. It’s also really important to have a strong number two behind you to bring the balance and realism to your entrepreneurial style, and to turn your vision and plans into action. Once a company becomes profitable, in which areas do you recommend reinvesting in to grow your business? Becoming profitable is great but you can’t put your feet up! You need to keep innovating and look for the next opportunities, for example customer retention and repeat sales. What were some of the core values you built successful companies on? Have these changed over time? I always stayed true to my values. First, be real, open and transparent. Second, you have to care for your business, have conviction and believe in it. Third, I believe in a meritocracy: always take will over skill. Do you have a motto or saying by which you live your life? I have two favourite sayings: 1. Once bitten, twice determined 2. Life is an occasion so rise to it Are there any books/publications that have helped you in your career? ‘Sex in business’ by Sherie Hite – taught me about power games in the office environment and I think really reframed the male versus female debate. ‘Don’t fence me in’ by Wendy McCarthy – all about the importance of courage and confidence, and refusing to be defined by others. ‘A room of one’s own’ by Virginia Woolf – I go back to this book time and time again. It’s about the importance of nurturing your inner self. While in the UK I was lucky to be involved in the founding of the global ‘We are what we do’ movement (refer www.wearewhatwedo.org ). Our book called “Change the world for a fiver” was the result of gathering together a group of writers and illustrators - who gave their time for free- to develop 50 small actions (ranging from parenting advice to improving the environment) which, when performed by many people, help create big positive change in the world. Subsequently we’ve published two books in Australia called Change the word for ten bucks and Change the World 9 to 5, which addresses how we can work happier and healthier. What advice would you give to a woman who wants to start climbing the corporate ladder? My advice is to find your passion (and that also includes being prepared to find out what isn’t your passion), and work bloody hard to be the best at it. How has new technology made a difference to your company? It’s been huge. I’ve learned that if you create something that connects people under a common cause, then they will want to be there. The internet has really helped Jenny Craig give people the ability to be part of a community and to share experiences about losing weight with others. There are many people on our online forums who are not Jenny Craig clients, and that’s great! It’s also been a real brand enabler. I see our brand as a door, not a wall. The internet enables people to walk into your brand, comment on it and scrutinize their experience with you. There’s a saying that you should listen to the river if you want to catch a fish, and the internet is a fantastic way of listening. What are the different forms of publicity and how do they compare to advertising? To me marketing is not about creating ads, it’s about creating a phenomenon. Our goal is to inspire people to join Jenny Craig by immersing them in our brand and lighting them up! We use a combination of channels, such as advertising, forums and webisodes but the most important channel to me is PR. It gives you credibility, allows a deeper exploration of the important issues and in turn creates trust in your brand. To me marketing is a classic case of 1 + 1 = 3 . The sum of the channels working together is much more than their individual value. |