Strategic marketing consultant and former Hasbro and Vodafone marketing boss Natasa Zunic is on a mission to creative a “collective of confident female leaders” through her participation in the IMAA’s Female Leaders of Tomorrow program. Here, we dive into Zunic’s thoughts and feelings with the program. Last time out, we heard from Clare Starling, co-founder of Inner Sanctum Sports Management.
B&T: How did you get involved and why this program specifically?
Natasa Zunic: A mentor of mine asked and I jumped at the opportunity. I have already met so many wonderfully motivated females in the IMAA network. With my client side background leading large brands, I felt that I could contribute a different perspective, whilst learning from my mentee.
B&T: Why is mentoring women in the industry so important for its future success?
NZ: With women comprising more than half the general population, its critical that women’s smarts, perspectives, styles and aspirations are reflected in industry leadership in the same proportion.
Being a mentor for the IMAA’s Female Leaders of Tomorrow initiative is a privilege to help unlock potential, positively affecting the career experience wherever on the leadership journey a mentee might be.
Through mentoring I hope that we are not just helping to build individual careers, rather we are creating a collective of confident female leaders.
B&T: Who are/were your mentors, and what did you learn from them?
NZ: I have had many mentors throughout my career and continue to do so. Some mentors are people that I get to meet and know one on one while others are in the form of podcasts, books, and people’s written musings that they are willing to share.
A few learnings that I keep front of mind:
Maintain deep curiosity. Ask ‘why’, then ask ‘why’ again
Be the person that gets stuff done
Stop, take a breath and then respond
Proactively ask for a seat at the table
Empathy over efficiency.
I also recommend reading and listening to:
- Mediations by Marcus Aurelius
- 3-2-1 Thursday (newsletter) by James Clear
- The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People by Stephen Covey
- The Ezra Klein Show, New York Times Opinion (podcast)
- Wiser Than Me (podcast)
B&T: If you could offer one piece of advice to all future leaders, what would it be and why?
Know yourself, do the inner work. It takes time, effort, and lots of self reflection.
If you don’t know yourself, how will you truly empathise with the people you lead.
