“Your network is your net worth and your health is your wealth. Everything else is a distraction so stay focused on what matters most”, are the wise words of Paige Arnof-Fenn. Shaped by a familial legacy in commercial banking, Paige initially pursued finance, only to realize her true passion lay in marketing. The accidental entrepreneur, Paige founded her marketing firm – Mavens & Moguls, over two decades ago, driven by a commitment to bringing world-class marketing talent to organizations aspiring to make a positive impact.
A firm believer in authenticity, loyalty, and the power of a strong network, Paige Arnof-Fenn’s insights on leadership, navigating the digital landscape, and building lasting brands offer invaluable lessons for aspiring CEOs in today’s dynamic business landscape. Thus we at CIO Business World conducted an interview with Paige to know more about her journey.
Below are the highlights of the interview:
Brief our audience about your journey as a business leader until your current position at your company. What challenges have you had to overcome to reach where you are today?
My dad and both grandfathers were commercial bankers in the South. I was always good with math and numbers and like my dad an Economics major in college. I started my career in NYC on Wall Street in the 80s thinking I would follow the 3 of them in finance albeit a more intense path. I was good at the job and it paid very well but I did not really enjoy it at all so I decided to return to grad school to get an MBA to figure out a better fit. There were really only 3 parts of my investment banking job I truly enjoyed — upon completing a deal, transaction, merger or sale I was responsible for planning the closing dinner, advertising it in the financial trade publications, and buying a gift for the team to commemorate and celebrate its completion. My friend pointed out to me that the parts of the job I most enjoyed were not in fact finance in nature at all they were all under the marketing function—event planning, advertising and promotions. I also got the top grade in my first year required marketing course for my MBA and a great summer internship that lead to a full time offer in marketing post-graduation. My friend was right and very perceptive, I was not meant to be a banker after all but a marketer!
I worked at a series of more main stream corporate jobs for 1-3.5 years at places like Procter & Gamble and Coke then I ran marketing at 3 successful venture backed startups that all had strong exits for 1-2 years each so if you had told me my longest job would be at a company I started I would have said that’s crazy yet here I am running a global branding and digital marketing firm that I started 22 years ago right after 9/11 when the startup I ran marketing for cut their budget so I hung out a shingle and the rest as they say is history. I guess that makes me the accidental entrepreneur.
I joke that now I am screwed if I get sick of my boss this time, after 20+ years of self-employment it would be really hard to work for someone else ever again. The truth is I love running my business and helping my clients find the right words and pictures to tell their stories in relevant and compelling ways. By having a portfolio of organizations I work with across a variety of categories I have more job security now than I ever would working as a hired gun for someone else. Plus I only work on things I enjoy doing with and for people I want to help succeed which is incredibly fulfilling and gratifying.
Tell us something more about your company and its mission and vision.
My company’s mission is to bring world class marketing talent and expertise to organizations that want to make a difference in the world regardless of size or budget. We believe every organization deserves the right words and pictures to tell their story in compelling ways. Your core values and mission statement are intangible assets that are your roadmap to success. It’s important that they evolve as you grow, and that they are reflected in your branding because people choose to do business with companies that align with their own values, so this information needs to be visible to them. Your mission also gives your team a clear objective, which helps them to make decisions that align with the company’s purpose.
Where do you envision yourself to be in the long run, and what are your future goals for your company?
I have no idea where my business will go but I am confident I have built a great foundation with interesting clients and colleagues who value communications and want to use marketing best practices to make a difference in the world. It has been a circuitous route to get here but as Steve Jobs said it is only looking backwards where you can make real sense connecting the dots in life. I believe I am on the right path and am going to follow it and see where it goes. The lessons from the pandemic that will stay with me include my gratitude and appreciation for the simplicity of good food, nature, my inner circle, essential products/services and health. In my experience the sayings are true that your network is your net worth and your health is your wealth. Everything else is a distraction so stay focused on what matters most!
Describe in detail the values and the work culture that drives your organization.
It is important to me to stay true to my core beliefs. Loyalty is one of my core values—loyalty to self and to others whom I respect. It’s important to me to gauge how many colleagues and customers come back and refer us to those who trust them. Being true to the mission of the organization and delivering superior experiences matter to me a lot too. Having the confidence to walk away from a client or colleague who’s diluting the equity in your brand is tough, but it’s necessary sometimes. You must always be authentic to the essence of your brand and surround yourself with people who reinforce your brand and its values–not tarnish it. My biggest mistake early on was not realizing sooner that the people you start with are not always the ones who grow with you. The hardest lesson I learned when I started my company was not getting rid of weak people earlier than I did in the first few years of my business. I spent more time managing them than finding new customers. I knew in my gut they were not up to snuff but out of loyalty to them I let them hang around much longer than they should have. It would have been better for everyone to let them go as soon as the signs were there. They became more insecure and threatened as we grew which was not productive for the team. As soon as I let them go the culture got stronger and the bar higher. “A” team people like to be surrounded by other stars. It is true that you should hire slowly and fire quickly. I did not make that mistake again later on so learned it well the first time. I wish I had known it even earlier though but lesson learned for sure!
Looking ahead, what are your main goals and aspirations for your company’s future?
To keep having fun, solving important communications problems, attracting/working with great people, giving back where I can be helpful, inspiring others and being able to continue to learn/grow personally and professionally.
What inspired the vision that drives your company’s strategies and innovations?
I love helping bring great stories to life and working with and for people I respect. I am very proud that my business has pivoted and survived the deaths of 7 loved ones in a 6 year period, the Great Recession, 2 month long holidays off the grid, Covid and the Great Resignation! We don’t just live to tell the tale, we are better, stronger and more resilient because of it in fact.
What advice do you have for aspiring CEO?
If we learned anything during Covid it is that your online presence is only growing in importance. You do not exist today if you cannot be found online. Being invisible online is a terrible strategy so making sure your site is keyword rich/mobile friendly/loads quickly/produces meaningful content is the price of entry/great foundation for effective SEO. Social media is critical too. Technology is 24/7 so it is easy to get sucked into it but don’t let it drive you crazy, you do not need to be everywhere, it does not matter which platform you choose just pick one or 2 that are authentic to you. In my experience, leaders need to be on LinkedIn so that they can be found. It adds credibility and transparency when you know the people you are meeting or working with know people in common. LinkedIn has become more than an online resume or rolodex, it is the foundation for building trusted relationships in the digital economy. If your target audience doesn’t use Facebook/Twitter/Instagram to find you then you do not need to make them a priority. For professional service businesses like mine, LinkedIn matters most.
