One Take with Regina Smit

👉 The Scoop – At 21 she was already an advertising veteran and successful agency owner, with accounts such as Entemann’s. Ginny, as she’s known, just doesn’t back down from a challenge.

👉 Decisive Moment #1 – At 21, married and pregnant and still in college, she got fired. Her dad, the owner of a successful steel company naturally told her to come work for him. Pipes and fittings did not attract Ginny, but advertising did. So, with a $500 loan from her dad, she started Smitco.

👉 Unexpected change or event – Two huge changes. First, the internet, which changed the media sales industry forever. Second, the fragmentation of the advertising agency industry, which went from full-service agencies to the highly-specialized ones we have today.

👉 What did she do? – For the internet, it was simple: she took her work from being 100% manual to 100% computerized. Fragmentation did lead Ginny into other directions, specifically sales. After all, owning an ad agency for 14 years teaches you the importance of relationships, customer or client experience and selling, skills that she is successfully using in her job.

👉 About older workers – Advice to a hiring CEO or CMO – Older people add value. But my advice is directed at older people: You need to show the interviewer how you will add value to the team.