Georgina Reid, agency sales partner, reflects on our recent discussion with Linda Grant, Chair of Virgin StartUp
To mark this week’s International Women’s Day, we were incredibly lucky to have a special guest at our regular town hall. We were joined by Linda Grant, the Chair of Virgin StartUp, who as well as running her own strategic consultancy Goldpollen, is also a Trustee and Council Member for the RSPB.
Linda’s perspective is doubly valuable for everyone at Ozone, as she previously had a very successful career in media and advertising, working for major media businesses like DMGT - where she ultimately held the position of Managing Director for Metro - and Capital Radio. Not only did Linda hold senior roles in these organisations, but she did so at a time of transformation in each - something highly relevant for us Ozoners as we focus our attention on building a better future for digital advertising.
Talking with Dora, our Chief Strategy Officer, Linda gave a personal account of her own career and the impact of being a senior woman in the media industry, highlighting that in her early career the idea of being held back due to her gender was something that hadn’t really crossed her mind - in many ways she was (gladly) oblivious to it. Yet the reality of the situation became more stark as Linda moved into more senior roles, and found herself very outnumbered in the gender stakes at leadership events. What perhaps didn’t seem to impact Linda’s career on a day-to-day basis took a different perspective when the reality was laid out visibly for her, and provided us a timely reminder to continue to keep our own unconscious bias in check.
Linda also shared some tactics with us all for advancing our own careers. Firstly, that it is important to aim to be the very best versions of ourselves that we can be, and to be clear on the value that each of us brings to the organisation. Secondly, to play to our strengths - most people don’t as the very nature of our strengths mean that we potentially undervalue them as they’re something we do more naturally.
As part of her story, Linda drew on her own experience of working with entrepreneurs at Virgin StartUp. And as Ozone moves from start-up to scale-up and beyond, here are my six key reflections from Linda’s talk that are most relevant for both the journey our business is on and individual personal growth:
Nothing beats a solid (or proven) business strategy: Referring to her early role as the launch marketing director of Metro, Linda highlighted that success lay in identifying a market gap, the opportunity, the audience and then designing a product around it. While an abundance of creativity went into the launch, there was also great advantage in seeing the model of the Stockholm-based, free newspaper Metro International and deciding how to build and improve on it.
Start up success comes through solving an issue: In her role with Virgin StartUp, Linda sees greatest success for those founders who have an absolute sense of purpose, are driven by solving a real issue, and have the capability to react and adapt accordingly - all while ensuring they never take their eye off that end purpose.
You need to be equally aware of the risk as you are the opportunity: Linda reminded us that while we might remember and be drawn to the visionary part of an entrepreneur’s story, the most successful will be those who combine this with an awareness of risk, while being fully on top of their business plan and finances.
Values and principles are critical: Customers of all types are increasingly responding and respecting companies with clear values and principles - and it’s important to hold onto these as you scale. As Linda said, “they’re who you are, your character… and your principles and values provide a platform to scale from, while ensuring you retain what makes you special.”
Be prepared to carve your own path: Reminding us that in the world of entrepreneurialism you have to be willing to step into the unknown, Linda highlighted that while there might not necessarily be anyone to follow as you’re creating your journey, there’s certainly opportunities to learn from others - and be supported by others - along the way.
Learn to unleash your own curiosity: Linda got her first job in display advertising after overhearing a conversation in a sunbed salon in Edinburgh - so intrigued she applied for the job almost immediately. Fast forward to today and Linda’s curiosity about nature and conservation led her to becoming a member of the RSPB, where she was so impressed with their onboarding as one of over a million members, that she dug a little deeper, connected with a few individuals at the RSPB and eventually became a Trustee. Linda’s parting advice? It doesn’t have to be all or nothing, follow your own curiosities bit by bit and see where they take you.
