Howard Breen – Personal Branding Advice From a CEO

Toronto – Canada

As a student you spend your academic career hitting the books and crunching  numbers, if you ever get some some spare time you might even start to think about the job you want after school.   That is why when the program coordinator at Humber College said that Howard Breen, former CEO of MacLaren McCann, was coming to have a very personal pow-wow many business students eyes lit up.

Howard Breen’s intro was lengthier than your average college professor, in fact he was credited with running numerous advertising agencies in North America-including MacLaren McCann in our fair city of Toronto, Ontario.  His experience in business ranges over 30 years, and is one of the sources for his refreshing and introspective insights for freshman business students and  veteran business men.

My top pick, Howard Breen's second book "The Toothpick Factory"

The class was meant to motivate students to step out of their shells and go the extra mile to achieve their career goals.  Howard Breen’s main messages were how to achieve effective personal branding and how to navigate the generational minefield.

Working in the Ad business for 30 years no doubt had an effect on Breen’s philosophy of personal branding, which he sees as an individuals quest to build  an authentic reputation that fits personal life goals. The idea of the “personal brand” is a fancy way of describing how the world perceives you and how it is possible to promote yourself in a way that is in-line with your “brand” or reputation.

To draw a more distinct parallel Breen discussed some of the most recognizable brands in our world right now; Tim Hortons, Coca Cola and especially Apple. He discussed how successful branding is hard work, if you have an unknown product, for example your resume, how do you make make people take notice? For Breen it is simple, you take the same approach any marketer would. Market Research.  You need to know what your product is, and who you are selling it to. You must know the companies you are targeting and how to position yourself into a product or “brand” that they need.  This involves constant innovation and research to stay current.  Once you are hired in the industry and have some “market share” it is up to you to maintain your personal brand in a way that has a respectable reputation and stays in demand.

Classic baby boomer stance Howard Breen - en vogue, photo from the back cover of "The Toothpick Factory"

Another key part of his speech was for younger students of the Millenial Generation and others to be aware of the “generation gap”.  Simply said by Breen himself- Baby Boomers (Breen) are CEOs of big companies, they have different values then younger generations, they communicate differently and are very old school (my words-not his).   Younger generations are not aware of how to work with this model, and need to learn how to communicate with their older cohorts   This information is self evident to anyone that has ever met a baby boomer, but the message was for young’uns to be aware of these discrepancies and it would help move their career forward and make their company better.

All in all, Breen was a great speaker with an endearing propensity for self-deprecation- besides his obvious success.  To ever hear a CEO speak is a great opportunity, this was an eye opening experience, delivered in a genuine charismatic fashion.  He told it straight how it is, there are not many opportunities out there but there are many for those that know how to look – and hey, I even got a free book!

Whats up World !?!

Dear Readers,

At this point I’m not sure if I have any readers- or if I ever will, but I would like to welcome you to my very own and personal blog!  The main goal of this blog is to focus on recent trends and issues in business and economics, and also to track my personal progress in the business world as I transition from student to professional

Recently as a result of “hard economic times” I decided I would hit the books…again.  That’s right, I finished my undergrad in political science after which I did some English teaching and writing in Brazil, and then worked at a law office for a year.  Needless to say, both were great learning experiences but I enjoyed one much more than the other, and I don’t think it takes a genius to figure out which one.

I decided that I didn’t have enough work experience under my belt for an MBA and thought I should get a practical post-graduate degree in marketing.  When I began my program I was struck by the amount of students that were in a position similar to mine; recently graduated, dis-enchanted by their first job, or simply out of work because of the struggling economy. I always thought I was the only one!

This blog was created for a number of reasons. I thought it would be interesting to write about current events in the business world to see if I could offer a perspective that people found interesting and also as a barometer for new entrants to the business world.  As I eluded to earlier, there are a number of people in a similar position to me, seeking a better career in a business climate that is more competitive and uncertain.  I thought it would be interesting to keep track of my progress so those in a similar position could relate, offer tips or…perhaps…maybe even learn something.

Now that I got that out of the way, I would like to thank you for taking the time to read my blog and pay a visit. I look forward to putting some ink on the paper and some words on the screen for those who got the time and the patience.

Cheers for now,

Martin Kay