“tml Partners stands for tomorrow’s marketing leaders, I’ve always admired those who live up to our own acronym by setting the bar incredibly high around what we can expect from the next generation of Marketing Directors and CMOs.
I was delighted to be able to sit down with one such individual, Marinus Maris, who has not only aspired to be in an ex-co role, but has made his vision a reality before the ten-year mark in his Career. Marinus is currently a board member and Director of Sales and Marketing for CEDR, the centre for effective dispute resolution, and one of the fastest growing mediation providers, training and dispute consulting firms globally.
Here’s what Marinus had to say about his career so far alongside some advice for anyone just starting out, as well as the lessons learnt from the past year!”
– David Price, Associate Director of our professional services practice.
What is the best piece of career advice you’ve ever received?
When you find yourself on the side of the majority you know you are doing something wrong
What has had the most influential impact on your leadership career and why?
Curiosity, imagination and a willingness to test. If you follow the same advice & read the same books etc you will get the same results as the herd. Looking for inspiration from all sorts of places is key (knowledge is power etc) but you have to put it into play – if reading was all it took to be successful we would all be billionaires with six-packs.
I truly believe marketers can find great insight from places like Darwin or Eisenstein’s biographies to grow their business, if they apply a little imagination and test, test, test!
What is your biggest takeaway from covid19?
Focus on what matters:
1) Find out what customers want & need and give it to them
2) Who are you offering what ultimate advantage
3) Why should they choose you?
What advice would you give marketing and BD professionals just starting out in their career?
Invest in your skillset early and compound it over time. Particularly your ability to sell. Whether you are in Sales, BD or Marketing you are always selling something to someone e.g. a service to a customer, a budget to a boss or a new plan to a team member.
Be curious – always look for new ideas
Learn to ask better questions. Better questions, better answers.
Learn the difference between strategy & tactics
Find out what you’re learning style is – are you a reader, a listener, a talker etc
Focus on the core responsibility of the function – find out what customers want & need and give it to them.
If you really want to succeed, work hard!
What’s the toughest interview question you’ve ever asked or been asked?
What important truth do very few people agree with you on?
Who is your business hero and why?
Charlie Munger. A learning machine who gives a very contrarian example of how to succeed.
Given knowledge is power, what is your most trusted news source?
Twitter and BBC
What future opportunities do you think marketing and communications will create over the next five years?
Pushing the demand side of the supply v demand equation at the board table. Practically speaking, the opportunity for the customer to be made of utmost importance at the boardroom table. There is after all only one profit centre in business as the great Peter Drucker said – it’s the customer!
A big thanks to Marinus for the conversation!
tml Partners is an international executive marketing recruitment firm specialising in board level appointments across marketing, business development and corporate communications. David Price is currently partnering with leading firms across professional services to support the best in class development of in-house Marketing, Business Development, Communications and Digital expertise.
