When we heard 30 of Canada's most successful executives were coming together to dole out advice on how to climb the corporate ladder, we jotted down as much wisdom as we could. Here are our biggest takeaways.
Last Thursday night’s Revolving Tables dinner, held in the Queen’s Park Ballroom of Yorkville’s posh Park Hyatt hotel, was billed as “Toronto’s Premiere Networking Event.” A fundraiser for the Israel Cancer Research Fund, the event gave attendees the chance to pick the brains of more than 30 of Canada’s top executives to find out exactly how they got to be so successful.
The list of execs included Postmedia boss Paul Godfrey, Mt. Sinai Hospital Foundation President and CEO Mark Gryfe, and Sun TV anchor and political provocateur Ezra Levant. Over a three-course dinner, the executives answered questions about their career path, and led thought-provoking discussions about the best ways to combine personal happiness with upward mobility at the office.
After downing some delicious butternut squash soup and joining in the liberal sharing of business cards, we took away five significant pieces of wisdom from the festivities:
1. Organize your goals with a series of 5-year plans.
This was the first piece of advice handed down by Second Cup President and CEO Stacey Mowbray, who said that setting goals for your career five years at a time is the most effective way to end up at your desired destination. This goal-oriented approach guided her through 12 years as a marketing executive at Pepsi and a stint as Chief Marketing Officer at Molson Canada.
According to Mowbray, formulating these plans requires some serious soul-searching: “Take a lot of time to think about what you’re good at, what you’re not so good at, your values, your strengths, and where you want to be.” Once you get the plan on paper, she recommends vetting it with people who know you well, your mentors, and people who are established in your industry of choice.
2. Once you have a plan, stick to it.
As the longtime President and CEO of the Toronto Blue Jays, Paul Beeston knows a thing or two about formulating a clear vision and watching it blossom into massive rewards. He’s also currently in the midst of overseeing a long-term youth movement that he believes will make the Jays successful for a decade to come. He says that while it’s easy to deviate from your stated plan, you can’t let short term gain prevent you from focusing on the long run.
“Once you have a plan, you have to make sure you execute it right,” says Beeston. “Breaking the plan so you can fast forward it is probably a recipe for making a mistake. Don’t give yourself the opportunity to make a mistake—stick with the plan, execute well, and you’ll be successful.”
3. Successful employees act entrepreneurially within their organizations.
Julian Brass, the event’s host and the founder of Notable.ca, dropped this piece of wisdom during his welcome speech. Given that his website recently published this detailed guide to landing your dream promotion, we’re inclined to believe he knows what he’s talking about.
Brass elaborated on this point to suggest that sometimes, going above and beyond the call of duty is the best way to get ahead: “Looking at your corporate culture and what your job description entails and thinking, ‘How do I create something that isn’t part of my job description to progress this company?’ The more you progress and the better job you do within your company, there’s a direct correlation with how fast you move up the corporate ladder.”
4. Maybe you don’t need a career path after all.
Facebook Canada’s managing director Jordan Banks provided this piece of contrarian wisdom, using his own career as an example. Banks spoke at length about his own career path, having spent time at Goodmans LLP, the NHLPA, and eBay Canada before becoming Mark Zuckerberg’s go-to guy north of the border. But he’s also balanced his work life with painting sabbaticals in Italy and an 18-month stretch where his only full-time job was stay-at-home dad.
He says the key to a happy and successful existence is embracing the randomness of life: ”Paths are fairly boring, and the serindipity and beauty of life is that you don’t really know what’s going to happen. You want to be open to opportunities and experiences, and by not following a path, your life becomes a lot richer, a lot more fun, and you can satisfy your curiosity.”
5. Hire smart people and you’ll look like a genius.
When asked what exactly it takes to excel in business, Beeston came forth with a detailed list of qualities that culminated in what was the evening’s most valuable insight. ”It takes opportunity,” he said, “hard work, passion, the ability to laugh at yourself, the ability to understand your mistakes and not make them too many times, and it takes the ability to hire a lot of smart people who will make you look smart.”
Anyone familiar with baseball will note that in suggesting we place great stock in those working for us, Beeston subtly dispensed another piece of career wisdom: practice what you preach.
CORRECTION: An earlier version of this article stated that Mark Gryfe was President and CEO of Mt. Sinai Hospital. He is in fact the President and CEO of the Mt. Sinai Hospital Foundation. The Grid regrets this error.
