Here are 10 lessons I learnt from 10 years with Coca-Cola

A while ago, I completed nearly 10 years at Coca-Cola Company, and I was told that it was a milestone in today’s world. While it didn’t feel like an achievement personally, it did make me look back on my journey (rather fondly) and I started a series of #10LessonswithCoke on LinkedIn, reflecting on the time gone by.

I have since then quit and moved to Toronto. Still, I thought that it might prove to be a good weekend reading, if the entire thing is accessible as a singular article.

So, here it is. 10 Lessons from my 10 years with The Coca-Cola Company

And ‘learnings’ rarely have an order of importance, so each of these are deliberately numbered as #1

#1 Involve the misfits

Every team has people that don’t seem to fit-in with the ‘regulars’. Their background is a bit different so they generally seem tangential in their inputs. I had one such a key account executive in my team of 6 direct reports when I was heading sales and marketing back in 2009. Five of these guys had strong sales and distribution backgrounds and took up most of my time on daily basis. But when it came for a new premium product launch in the region, it was the key account manager who stepped up and not only outperformed everyone, but also gave them out of the box ideas to manage the new product.

Years later, when I was a newbie in the domain of content development, sitting among the best creative minds of the country, I was taught by my then manager to not ignore my gut simply because it didn’t match with others in the room.

So, if you have any misfits in your team, make sure that you encourage them to participate and acknowledge their inputs. They are most likely to provide a breakthrough when you need one.

#1 You, and Only You, are responsible for your career

Early in my career, I lived with the notion that your manager / mentor OR human resources are responsible to provide you guidance and opportunity for your career growth. Even to this day, I see youngsters and early managers complain that they are being held back by their immediate manager, or Human resources is not providing them enough resources (ironical) to advance their careers. What made it simpler for me was this mantra from a senior manager: “You, and Only You, are responsible for the direction that your career takes”. It was a difficult pill to swallow since we are used to being guided by our parents, teachers or seniors throughout our early life. But once I absorbed this like a medicine, it liberated my thought process about managing my career.

You have to make your own way. You can hope to be guided by the stars, be warned by the light-house and be powered by the wind, but only you hold the line of the sail to your career boat.

#1 Think Consumer First

As a young marketer, remember that when it comes to importance of a ‘point of view’, the Consumer comes first in the order of priority. S/he is closely followed by the Customer and then the Stakeholders. Your point-of-view comes last (only if there is any space left).

So, learn about your consumer, understand your customers and listen to your stakeholders. You will know the difference when your inputs stop beginning with “I think” and instead share facts about what your consumers / customers think. And only fools argue against facts.

#1 Take a chance on someone

Twice in my career, I was fortunate to be hired despite the obvious lack of direct experience in the role. Twice, the hiring managers took a chance, purely going by the softer skills and attitude. This fuelled me to give my best, since I now felt someone else’s hopes riding on me. I think I gave my best performance in those years because I wanted to prove them right in hiring me for the role. It was a huge learning experience as well, wherein I had to quickly understand a new domain and perform at the same time.

So, if you find yourself in a deciding position, take a leap of faith on someone who is keen to do well. There is a high chance that you will not be let down.

#takeachance

#1 Bosses come in all shapes, sizes and temperaments

People asked me how I have spent such a long time with a company. They found it strange in today’s corporate world (where high-turnover is more of a norm than exception) to find someone still working for the same company that they joined 10 years ago as an intern. There was even a running joke that the only day I will leave that building will be my retirement day :)

But, it never felt strange to me. In fact the longer I spent with the company, the more I got to work with some of the best marketing minds in the country. Of course there were times when I got stuck with a ‘bad manager’. But I couldn’t let that stop me from learning from the best marketing company (and agencies) in the world.

In hind-sight, I see that Bosses come in all shapes and sizes. They come with different temperaments; have their own priorities and varying levels of interest in your goodwill. What we need to remember is that Bosses COME and Bosses GO. Some will teach you what to do, while others will teach you what NOT to do.

So if you don’t like your work OR your company; leave and find something else. But don’t let a bad manager be the reason to interrupt a great learning experience.

#1 Be Transparent

As a people manager, if you are smart enough to look through their “Under-Commit and Over-Deliver” strategy, please be aware that your team is smart enough to look through the “Your target is a buffer higher than the real target that I have committed to the senior management” strategy.

Let us be more transparent in our communication. That way, everyone would have a sharper focus on the business rather than playing detective with each-others’ real motives. It always worked for me.

#1 Being nice to people is not a choice. It is compulsory.

Self explanatory, isn’t it ? Irrespective of your personal equations with someone, or a difference of opinion; professional courtesy dictates for us to be nice to people.

#1 Take risks. But measure the risk first.

Sometime, somewhere in your professional life, you will need to take risks. What I have learned is that taking risks is OKAY. In fact, I think, taking risks is GREAT. They can often lead to the biggest rewards.

However, jumping into a risky decision without weighing your options is foolhardy.

Take risks. But measure the risk first.

#1 Look Ahead. You cannot drive looking into the rear view mirrors.

Our monthly review meetings used to start with a quick recap of the last month’s performance, before we looked at the next month’s plans. This worked smoothly till the business was growing strongly. However, as the business slowed down, the discussions around past performance started to take longer. Till they took up majority of time and we were left with little time to just slide through the next month’s plans. It continued to be horrible till our Vice President flipped the structure of the meeting in its entirety, and taught us this lesson:

While, it is okay to check your rear view mirrors once in a while, your primary attention needs to be on the road ahead. So, if too much of your time is spent on analyzing what went wrong in the journey so far, you will lose sight of where you are going.

Look Ahead. You cannot drive looking into the rear view mirrors

#1 Life is much more than work

I have always enjoyed the concept of a ‘side dish’. In school it was the extra-curricular, in college it was the clubs and societies and in office I found committees. I anchored annual conferences, led our move to a new-office building, joined the sports committee, ran a half marathon, took colleagues to free cross-fit sessions, played in the cricket team and organized farewells and welcome parties. It didn’t add to my professional goals, but it pumped life into the office network i.e. people with whom we spend the biggest part of our waking day. The conversations flowed easier as we had more things to connect about.

It made me realize that in a corporate meal while the ‘main dish’ is your work (which needs to be spot-on) there are other dishes on the table. Enjoy the side dishes. They complete your meal. 

So there it is. If you enjoyed reading this, let me know in the comments. And if it made you reflect on your journey, I urge you to share your lessons. Thanks.