Marcy Quinn Samet Of LBRB Collective On How We Can Increase Women’s Engagement in Leadership and Management
An Interview With Vanessa Ogle
Confidence. We need to bring it! We need to be our own advocates. We need to go into fields not known as “woman’s fields”. Become leaders in tech and science. Influence new sectors and contribute to the world at large. The qualities we possess are what the world needs today: empathy, detail-oriented, and focused.
Despite strides towards equality, women remain underrepresented in leadership and management roles across various sectors. In this series, we would like to discuss the barriers to female advancement in these areas and explore actionable strategies for change. We are talking with accomplished women leaders, executives, and pioneers who have navigated these challenges successfully, to hear their experiences, tactics, and advice to inspire and guide the next generation of women toward achieving their full potential in leadership and management roles. As part of this series, we had the pleasure of interviewing Marcy Quinn Samet.
Marcy Quinn Samet, founder and CMO of LBRB Collective, is an award-winning growth executive with three decades of expertise in leading marketing and digital transformation strategies for Fortune 100 companies including: IPG, Cigna, GSK, AB InBev, Converse, GM, Coca-Cola, Bissell among others. Marcy is a trailblazing female leader earning recognition for her remarkable contributions to gender equity and leadership. Notably awarded Trailblazer Woman of the Year by She Runs It, Marcy’s advocacy for a 50% representation of women on public company boards stands as a testament to her pioneering spirit.
Thank you so much for doing this with us! Before we dig in, our readers would like to get to know you a bit more. Can you tell us a bit about your “backstory”? What led you to this particular career path?
Believe it or not, the Mary Tyler Moore show was my earliest inspiration. My mom was a fan and we would watch together. I always wanted to work in a newsroom so I read every book and newspaper that I could. Then I went to a specialty high school, Bronx High School of Science, but instead of falling in love with the science classes, I continued to love English and communications. In college, I got my dream internship and worked at the CBS Affiliate in the New York state capital and my love of the fast-paced life took off. After college, I came to New York City, and a newsroom career was so difficult to get, however, I met someone at a party that was in advertising. To me, a young 22-year-old, it sounded similar to the newsroom: fast paced, creative, and lots of writing. I got in at an entry-level job at Rapp Collins working with the legendary Stan Rapp, and never looked back.
Can you share the most interesting story that happened to you since you began your career?
While there are so many stories, having the opportunity to travel all over the world has always been the most interesting. I love meeting people of all cultures and seeing agencies work on the same piece of business in various markets. Learning new languages, trying new foods, being exposed to new products, and being welcomed into my colleagues’ homes is so very special.
Can you share a pivotal moment in your career that significantly influenced your path to leadership?
One of the biggest defining moments in my career happened when several leaders left the agency where they ran the pharma practice. My CEO called me in and said I was going to run it. I had no pharma experience and it is such a specialty. He said, “I believe in you. You put your heart into everything you do. You will learn it and be a pro in no time.” But he also said, “Don’t forget you have a family — your kids and husband need you so take it easy”. In that moment, I received so many lessons all at once: confidence, balance, and most importantly, you can learn anything if you put your mind to it.
None of us are able to achieve success without some help along the way. Is there a particular person who you are grateful towards who helped get you to where you are? Can you share a story about that?
When I started at Ogilvy the CEO was Shelly Lazarus. She was a female CEO and she came to the holiday party with her baby on her back in a baby pack. When she ran into me, she knew my name and the name of my husband. I was blown away. A woman can be a strong leader, a mom, and still be human and friendly. She embodied everything I dreamed I could be.
Is there a particular book that made a significant impact on you? Can you share a story or explain why it resonated with you so much?
One of my bosses, who I consider myself a disciple of, loved the book “the art of war”. At first, I thought how masculine and aggressive. But after I read it a few times the lessons of strategy became evident. I use so many of these principles everyday in all aspects of my life.
Do you have a favorite “Life Lesson Quote”? Do you have a story about how that was relevant in your life or your work?
I live by the quote of the Grateful Dead, ‘once in a while you get shown the light in the strangest of places if you look at it right”. I always look for the light in all situations. If I look hard enough, I always can find it not only for me but also for my family and especially in business.
How have you used your success to make the world a better place?
There are many causes close to my heart. I sit on a few boards to use my marketing, communications and advertising skills. As well as providing food and clothing to children in need.
Ok, thank you for that. Let’s now jump to the primary focus of our interview. According to this report, only about 31.7% of top executive positions across industries are held by women. This reflects great historical progress, but it also shows that more work still has to be done to empower women. In your opinion and experience what is currently holding back women from leadership and management?
Childcare and Equal Opportunities. The hardest two jobs in the world are taking care of a family and taking care of your team. Imagine doing both at the same time while managing the dollars it takes to do both well and feeling your strongest doing it. I was lucky to have a wonderful leader who paid me for maternity leave when I had my first child (a first for him running an independent agency) and for my second, he set up an office for me in my house so I could come back hybrid — which was UNHEARD of at the time. He valued my role at the company but also understood what I needed to do as a mom.
This might be intuitive to you but I think it will be helpful to spell this out. Can you share a few reasons why more women should become leaders and managers?
Oh yes, for sure. Women have such wonderful qualities that are critical to the success of an organization and the people they lead. First, and not valued enough is empathy. Having empathy for your team and your clients will go leaps and bounds in furthering success. Second is the ability to multi-task better and be willing to do so. And third, when it comes to client service, I believe that humility drives success.
Can you please share “5 Things We Need To Increase Women’s Engagement in Leadership and Management?”
1 . First and foremost, we need better childcare options. That is by far the biggest challenge. The most stressful periods in my career were focused on how my kids were taken care of . Can I afford a nanny? Where is daycare? What are their hours? What if I need to travel? Can my husband be involved? Everyone must do what works for them. I was fortunate to have wonderful childcare. Hopefully, the new acceptance of hybrid work models will ease the burden.
2 . Let women have their own style, We are not men. We address challenges differently. We make our points differently. I was told once that I make my points with stories. Ok, so? It helped my teams understand the situations better. When we are bold, we are perceived as bitchy and bossy. If we need to take off for our kids, we are a burden and the reason why you don’t hire women. Of course, if a man takes off for kids, he is a great Dad! But at the end of the day, we can get it done. Let us have our own way of doing things. And sometimes we have to go to the bathroom and cry. It’s ok. Our bodies are different (those nasty hormones!)
3. Better Mentors. Both Men and Women. At each stage of my career, I’ve had different mentors that were both men and women. Each lifted me up and gave me confidence. Each taught me how to deal with situations that were very tricky and difficult and had my back. This support allowed me to soar.
4. Human Connections. Some of my closest friendships have been made at work. Why? Because we traveled together. We’re in the trenches together. We spend 40–60 hours a week learning about each other as humans. It is like war, who can you count on when you are in the trenches? With remote only work, it is immeadureably harder to build the trust needed to succeed when leading teams. Culture is created human to human.
5. Confidence. We need to bring it! We need to be our own advocates. We need to go into fields not known as “woman’s fields”. Become leaders in tech and science. Influence new sectors and contribute to the world at large. The qualities we possess are what the world needs today: empathy, detail-oriented, and focused.
Thank you for these fantastic insights. We greatly appreciate the time you spent on this.
About The Interviewer: Vanessa Ogle is a mom, entrepreneur, inventor, writer, and singer/songwriter. Vanessa’s talent in building world-class leadership teams focused on diversity, a culture of service, and innovation through inclusion allowed her to be one of the most acclaimed Latina CEO’s in the last 30 years. She collaborated with the world’s leading technology and content companies such as Netflix, Amazon, HBO, and Broadcom to bring innovative solutions to travelers and hotels around the world. Vanessa is the lead inventor on 120+ U.S. Patents. Accolades include: FAST 100, Entrepreneur 360 Best Companies, Inc. 500 and then another six times on the Inc. 5000. Vanessa was personally honored with Inc. 100 Female Founder’s Award, Ernst and Young’s Entrepreneur of the Year Award, and Enterprising Women of the Year among others. Vanessa now spends her time sharing stories to inspire and give hope through articles, speaking engagements and music. In her spare time she writes and plays music in the Amazon best selling new band HigherHill, teaches surfing clinics, trains dogs, and cheers on her children.
Please connect with Vanessa here on linkedin and subscribe to her newsletter Unplugged as well as follow her on Substack, Instagram, Facebook, and X and of course on her website VanessaOgle.
