In this episode, Tyra Tutor joins On Top of PR host Jason Mudd to discuss career longevity, leadership tips, marketing strategies, and remote work trends.
Tune in to learn more!
Our guest
Our episode guest is Tyra Tutor, president and CEO of TAD PGS, Adecco Group's government solutions subsidiary. Tyra’s Adecco Group career spans 27 years with roles leading investor relations, communications, marketing, mergers and acquisitions, special projects, and more.
Watch the episode here:
Listen to the episode here:
5 things you’ll learn during the full episode:
- Career longevity through adaptability
- Corporate marketing, communication, and development best practices
- Managing multiple brands, niche marketing, and reputations
- Day in the life — tips for aspiring CEOs
- Workplace flexibility and remote work trends
About Tyra Tutor
Tyra’s Adecco Group career spans 27 years with roles leading investor relations, communications, marketing, mergers and acquisitions, special projects, and more.
Quotables
- “I had the great privilege of sitting in boardrooms, and in most of my roles, I was the right-hand person of CEOs. I got to witness a lot of great leaders.” — @Tyra Tutor
- “Have a willingness to learn, a willingness to work hard, and make sure you have a good boss — someone who is willing to give you a chance and to give you new opportunities to make sure you aren’t stagnant in your job.” — @Tyra Tutor
- “When you have a lot of brands, you're probably not going to be a household name, and you have to be okay with that. So your expectation has to be lower.” — @Tyra Tutor
- “Work hard, be there when no one else is, and do the tasks that no one else wants to do. Many times, I held roles and took on tasks that were not in my job description, and sometimes, that got me into a meeting I wouldn't otherwise be in.” — @Tyra Tutor
- “I like to surround myself with people who love to work hard. I'm not saying they don't have balance, but when they're at work, they're working hard. They have a good attitude and are ready to do whatever it takes to finish a job and give ourselves a well-done.” — @Tyra Tutor
- “The most important thing for the CEO was that what we told our client through marketing, what we told the public through PR, and what we reported to the Wall Street analysts with numbers was all consistent, transparent, and accurate. That hit home for me.” — @Tyra Tutor
- “One of the challenges that many companies face is marketing multiple brands for different niches. I see this with a lot of companies — they are going after different audiences, different verticals, and not getting the funding necessary to pull all that off.” — @JasonMudd9
Resources
- Tyra Tutor on LinkedIn
- Adecco Group website
- Put a Cherry on Top: Generosity in Life & Leadership by Joyce Russell
Additional Episode Resources from Axia Public Relations:
- Listen to more episodes of the On Top of PR podcast.
- Find out more about Axia Public Relations.
Disclosure: One or more of the links we shared here might be affiliate links that offer us a referral reward when you buy from them.
Episode highlights
- [03:23] “I had the great privilege of sitting in boardrooms, and in most of my roles, I was the right-hand person of CEOs throughout the years. I got to witness a lot of great leaders.” — @Tyra Tutor
- [04:08] “Have a willingness to learn, a willingness to work hard, and make sure you have a good boss — someone who is willing to give you a chance and to give you new opportunities to make sure you aren’t stagnant in your job.” — @Tyra Tutor
- [12:02] “The most important thing for the CEO was that what we told our client through marketing, what we told the public through PR, and what we reported to the Wall Street analysts with numbers was all consistent, transparent, and accurate. That hit home for me.” — @Tyra Tutor
- [13:59] “I like to surround myself with people who love to work hard. I'm not saying they don't have balance, but when they're at work, they're working hard. They have a good attitude and are ready to do whatever it takes to finish a job and give ourselves a well-done.” — @Tyra Tutor
- [17:28] “One of the challenges that many companies face is marketing multiple brands for different niches. I see this with a lot of companies — they are going after different audiences, different verticals, and not getting the funding necessary to pull all that off.” — @JasonMudd9
- [24:29] “Work hard, be there when no one else is, and do the tasks that no one else wants to do. Many times, I held roles and took on tasks that were not in my job description, and sometimes, that got me into a meeting I wouldn't otherwise be in.” — @Tyra Tutor
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Transcript
00:00:00:00 - 00:00:09:29
Announcer
Welcome to On Top of PR with Jason Mudd, presented by Review Maxer.
00:00:09:29 - 00:00:23:04
Jason
Hello and welcome to On Top of PR. I’m your host, Jason Mudd with Axia Public Relations. Today we're joined by Tyra Tudor of Adecco Group. Tyra is a long time friend and client of mine and one of my favorite people in the world. So, Tyra, welcome to the show.
00:00:23:06 - 00:00:24:17
Tyra
Thank you.
00:00:24:19 - 00:00:52:24
Jason
We're really glad to have you here. Tyra's Adecco Group career spans almost 30 years with roles leading investor relations, communications, marketing, mergers and acquisitions, special projects, and more. She's in her fifth year as president and CEO of Tad PGS, Adecco Group's Government solution subsidiary. Tyra. It's hard to believe that, we are old enough to be doing this for 27 years.
00:00:52:26 - 00:00:58:26
Tyra
Yes, I know going on 28, makes me feel old,
00:00:58:28 - 00:01:20:23
Jason
Well, you know, what's old is new again, right? And one of the things that we want to talk about today is, how do you stick with one company for 30 years, especially a company that has gone through many, evolutions over the years, different acquisitions, leadership changes, but also a company that has a lot of opportunity, throughout the organization.
00:01:20:26 - 00:01:50:29
Tyra
Yeah, I would, I would say if it hadn't been for all the change, I may not have been here for 28 years. Sometimes when I give my tenure and I'm talking to someone who say, 25, I can see the horror in their eyes, wondering how you could have the same job for that long. But the change, the transition, all of that really explained why I was have been at this company so long and and just so many opportunities.
00:01:50:29 - 00:02:02:29
Tyra
I wasn't in one job doing one thing. I got the opportunity to do a lot of different things. And, and I think that's probably the best explanation for how and why.
00:02:03:01 - 00:02:23:12
Jason
Well, I think there's a little bit more to it than that. I think that, obviously you're very loyal, hard working, intelligent, and, you know, have had been in a lot of roles within the organization, which makes you highly valuable. And at this point, the company's, historian, which you were probably already informally doing that for quite a while.
00:02:23:12 - 00:02:25:28
Jason
Is it, is that accurate?
00:02:26:01 - 00:02:47:19
Tyra
Yes. For sure. I mean, to go from PR to running one of the business units, you know, is, is quite a leap. But when I sat back and got this opportunity to be the president of Tad, I realized I had at some point been in every corporate department with the Adecco Group. But I never had my own pal.
00:02:47:21 - 00:02:56:14
Tyra
So this last five years has been very different, than the first day 23. But probably my most rewarding.
00:02:56:16 - 00:03:20:17
Jason
Yeah, yeah. Well, and you've always worked within the organization very closely with those who are either leading the organization at the top or running the divisions. Right. So, you've you've not only, been by their side, but also their trusted advisor, and you've seen what they've done well and maybe where they could improve. And now's your opportunity to demonstrate that.
00:03:20:20 - 00:03:41:25
Tyra
Yes, but that's very fair. I had the great privilege of sitting in boardrooms and most of my roles, was the right hand person of CEOs, throughout the years. And so I got to witness a lot of great leaders, and, and all of that has contributed, to, you know, the last five.
00:03:41:28 - 00:04:08:13
Jason
Sure. Yeah. Yeah. Well, I know I wasn't surprised that your, in the role you're in now and, I'm sure that, your, your stock is still rising within the organization. So congratulations to you. So any any other tips or thoughts on how do you stay with the same organization for 30 years and, and, and continue to, you know, not only be fulfilled, yourself, but also adding, constant value?
00:04:08:15 - 00:04:36:11
Tyra
Yeah. You know, willingness to learn, willingness to work hard and, you know, making sure you have a good boss. And for, for me, a good boss was someone who was willing to give me a chance to give me new opportunities to make sure that I wasn't being stagnant in my job. And, and given the opportunity to do something that I would have probably argued I wasn't qualified to do.
00:04:36:13 - 00:04:54:27
Jason
Yeah, well, and that's a whole nother topic that we've done an episode on is, you know, imposter syndrome. Right? It's so real with so many of us. And I see it even within my own teammates and colleagues, contacts, even clients. And, you know, you need people around you who can tell you that, you know, you can do this.
00:04:55:04 - 00:05:11:02
Jason
You're not only doing this great, but you could do it at the next level. And, and be a, a support, base of, of encouragement. Right. You know, just yesterday I was talking to somebody and they're like, well, I don't know if I can handle this and if I should do that. And I'm like, well, you know, if you don't think you can, then you won't.
00:05:11:02 - 00:05:23:13
Jason
But, I believe in you, or else I wouldn't have given you this opportunity and responsibility. So, I think a lot of times we're our own worst enemy and not as supportive of ourself and telling ourselves all the good things that we do.
00:05:23:13 - 00:05:43:27
Jason
So, Tyra, you've had a unique career journey. You started out in accounting, ended up being senior vice president of marketing, senior vice president, corporate development. Now president, CEO of your own division. Let's time travel back a little bit. Your, bright eyed recent graduate of the University of Florida headed into your marketing career in just a few moments.
00:05:43:27 - 00:06:06:29
Jason
Can you summarize for us your career journey and how you know where you've been in the last 27 years that, you know, the process of transitioning from accounting to your next role? And then how did you find marketing and all that? I think we talked a little bit already about how you got your own division, but let's talk about that journey from accounting graduate to, you know, marketing.
00:06:07:01 - 00:06:35:07
Tyra
Okay. So I got my accounting degree from the university of Florida and, decided I wanted to work big four. So, to date myself, Coopers and Lybrand now, see, and I was a tax accountant. My master's is in tax. And quickly I began to work on one company only. And that company was called AQ staff. And they were buying a lot of companies.
00:06:35:07 - 00:07:06:15
Tyra
They were going public, and it was really the only client that I worked on. And, one day, I got the call from the CEO asking if I would come work for that company. So ironically, I could argue that I've worked for the company I'm at now Inc for 20. No, for 32 years, because those five years were mostly, supporting this company at the time called AQ staff, many name changes.
00:07:06:18 - 00:07:32:03
Tyra
Anyone from Jacksonville will probably recognize the brand modus. We had the name on top of the building for a while, but about 13 years in Adecco Group, purchased, the company, it was called MPs Group at the time. And so it's hard to believe, but about half of my career now with the company was pre Adecco Group and now post Adecco Group about that.
00:07:32:04 - 00:07:33:03
Jason
Yeah.
00:07:33:05 - 00:08:01:06
Tyra
But most of my first say ten years was a lot of investor relations use some of my accounting intact background. But then it morphed into marketing and then PR and there's not many accountants that, somehow end up getting to be in charge of PR, and some, may argue, you know, how do you do both, you know, usually you're good at one of the other.
00:08:01:06 - 00:08:20:17
Tyra
And I will admit, I'm good at math and not at writing. But I always knew to surround myself, you know, with people who could write. And I enjoyed that time. And that's when I got to know you. You know, for the first time, we used a PR firm, and, it was a lot of fun. And I learned a ton.
00:08:20:19 - 00:08:46:01
Tyra
And then I started doing mergers and acquisitions and, and helped a lot with the sale of the company to Adecco Group. When Adecco purchased us, most of the task I was working on marketing investor relations was all run out of Zurich, Switzerland, which is where Adecco Group is headquartered. And so I assumed, I would be looking for another career quickly.
00:08:46:03 - 00:09:08:15
Tyra
But I was fortunate enough that they wanted to do some acquisitions and ask if I would stay on to do that, and also, take care of corporate responsibility, corporate social responsibility, community effort, really helping with our culture in the Jacksonville headquarter space. And I got to do a lot of the stuff that I was doing before.
00:09:08:22 - 00:09:20:28
Tyra
That meant a lot to the colleagues in Jacksonville, while also learning a new trade, with buying back franchises and looking for companies for the Adecco Group to purchase.
00:09:21:01 - 00:09:28:08
Jason
Right, right. And I'm sure your new role is very fulfilling, but what parts of the old role do you miss?
00:09:28:22 - 00:09:51:19
Tyra
I probably missed the the travel and the knowledge that you gained digging into companies. You know, when you when you travel and you meet owners, founders of these startups, what made them successful? It's a learning experience every day. And and you're really up on the market, you know, and in my role now, you know, it's sales. It's expensive.
00:09:51:19 - 00:10:02:26
Tyra
It's every day. How do we make our clients happy? And I missed some of that. Just economic market data. That was part of my every day in the overall.
00:10:03:08 - 00:10:23:23
Jason
Yeah. And you know, I, you know, as you mentioned earlier, we worked closely together before, and you said you were the first PR firm you hired. And I thought to myself, first and last, I don't know if that's a good thing or not, but but yeah, the first PR firm. The last PR firm. But you were, always like, you know, well connected within the organization.
00:10:23:25 - 00:10:33:06
Jason
You know, if you didn't know everybody, everybody knew you and you were a, I think, a voice and a, a person of of comfort and nurturing,
00:10:33:06 - 00:10:36:29
Jason
within the organization, but also, you know,
00:10:36:29 - 00:10:47:16
Jason
kind of very clearly understanding the direction, the vision and the next step and had the lack of the word kind of the, the inside information of what was coming up next for the organization.
00:10:47:18 - 00:11:17:03
Jason
Also somebody I learned a lot about from, you know, finance acquisitions and dealmaking, and your connections to, Wall Street and investors and things like that. So it, it almost sounds like, you know, obviously a new challenge, but also one with perhaps and please correct if I'm wrong, because I could very well be wrong, but perhaps, less external forces that are influencing, the changing winds.
00:11:17:03 - 00:11:32:01
Jason
Right. So one thing we've collaborated on before is like, your company might be performing great, but if Wall Street's just unhappy with your vertical or your industry and not even your company, your peers are down there going to give you a hard time as well.
00:11:32:04 - 00:12:02:18
Tyra
Now it's a it's a fair point. And, and in this role I do I have more control of my destiny. Right. I think that's, a a fair observation. I remember when, one of my favorite bosses asked me to take over marketing, and, you know, I had been doing investor relations, and I really didn't have that background, coming without with an accounting degree in school, I think I had one marketing class.
00:12:02:20 - 00:12:37:08
Tyra
But the most important thing for the CEO was that what we told our client through marketing, what we told the public through PR, and what we reported to the Wall Street analysts with numbers that it was all consistent, transparent and accurate. And that part really hit home with me and why I was willing to take on those roles that I wasn't exactly, comfortable with in the beginning, because it did allow us to tell the one story that was consistent.
00:12:37:10 - 00:13:02:29
Tyra
And there's not many companies that set their organization up that way. But I would recommend it. I think that's why I always felt like I was a no no. And people did come to me because I likely knew through one of those channels everything that was going on. And when you do put someone, in a role like that, it's less likely that an external, factor may surprise you.
00:13:03:02 - 00:13:13:07
Tyra
I usually wasn't totally surprised by having my hands in all those different buckets, but but even so, there's just things you can't control.
00:13:13:09 - 00:13:34:26
Jason
Yeah, absolutely. And, you know, there was a lot of value, I think, in what you just said as far as making sure, you know, what you're telling shareholders, what you're telling employees, what you're telling, the street and what you're telling the public, you know how well those worked together, on behalf of of one, organization.
00:13:34:28 - 00:13:53:21
Jason
So just kind of thinking back, you know, about, you know, putting together, a team, what kind of tips do you have for putting together a team? You know, to complement strengths. What do you look for, when you're thinking about kind of PR, marketing communications, what kind of strengths are you looking for?
00:13:53:21 - 00:13:55:22
Jason
And within your organization?
00:13:55:25 - 00:14:22:00
Tyra
Yeah. I'm always looking for someone who has talent that that I do not. And, and but besides that, skills that I would say a work ethic, you know, there's certain things that you can train and you can get better at. But I just like to surround myself with people who love to work hard. And I'm not saying don't have balance, but when they're at work, they're working hard.
00:14:22:00 - 00:14:30:08
Tyra
They have a good attitude and ready to do whatever it takes, you know, to finish a job and and give ourselves a well done.
00:14:30:11 - 00:14:53:09
Jason
Nice. So, one more question we had in the break and that would be, what are some we've kind of alluded to this, but what are some best practices that our audience should know about investor relations, especially those who are either, you know, not doing it today because they've got a strategic partner, that's handling it, whether it's a coworker or an outside, air firm.
00:14:53:11 - 00:15:02:14
Jason
Or maybe they're being asked to take on this new, responsibility that they've never done before. Could you just kind of off the cuff here, share a few recommendations?
00:15:02:16 - 00:15:29:20
Tyra
Yeah. You know, it was probably one of my favorite corporate jobs. And I think the advice would be, you must be in meetings with the CEO, with the CFO in board meetings. You have to be in the know, and then you have to use that information with discretion, because it's the most important thing about investor relations is that no information gets to anyone before it's available to everyone.
00:15:29:23 - 00:15:52:15
Tyra
And so making sure that data is disseminated publicly timely and that, you know, there's no leaks and there's no favoritism, on, sharing information. And, as long as you have that discretion and you are staying in the know, then you know, you're you're going to be great at Investor relations.
00:15:52:18 - 00:16:13:17
Jason
Oh, very nice, very nice. Okay. Well with that we're going to take a quick break. I want to talk to you on the other side about marketing multiple brands, for different niches. Niches. And then talk about kind of, you know, your experience now working as a CEO as well as, you know, the future of remote and, virtual roles, in the, in the workforce.
00:16:13:17 - 00:16:18:18
Jason
So with that, we'll be back on side with more on top of PR with Tyra Tudor.
00:16:18:18 - 00:16:43:06
Announcer
You're listening to On Top of PR with your host, Jason Mudd. Jason is a trusted advisor to some of America's most admired and fastest growing brands. He is the managing partner at Axia Public Relations, a PR agency that guides news, social and web strategies for national companies. And now, back to the show.
00:16:43:06 - 00:17:04:20
Jason
Welcome back to On Top of PR. I’m your host, Jason Mudd, joined by Tyra Tudor of Adecco Group. And now, Tad, p guest. I gotta get used to saying that. Tyra. And, but we're glad to have you here, Tyra. And we were just kind of talking, you know, about your career transition, and you're giving great advice for our audience if they find themselves in similar situations.
00:17:04:22 - 00:17:32:09
Jason
One of the challenges that many companies face is marketing multiple brands for different niches, which we're going to talk about now, you guys called them business units back in the day. And, you know, I see this with a lot of companies that they are going after different audiences, different verticals and not getting, I think the funding necessary to pull all that off, right.
00:17:32:09 - 00:17:57:07
Jason
Whether it's not enough staffing resources or not big enough budgets to use outside, sources or even just, fund, the expenses that go along with that. So I'd be interested to hear your take on not only your approach to how you did that and your strategies and time management, but also resource allocation and maybe anything, you know creatively about how to get more funding and budgets and consideration.
00:17:57:11 - 00:18:02:16
Jason
So that's a loaded question. Let's start with, how do you market multiple brands
00:18:02:16 - 00:18:05:10
Jason
for different, verticals?
00:18:05:12 - 00:18:29:03
Tyra
Yeah. And, you know, I can remember, Jason, when we would bring in an expert, to help us, you know, with marketing, they would always first want to tell us to go ahead and consolidate those brands. No one ever likes the strategy. You were one of the more gracious, advisors, and you're like, tell me more about this.
00:18:29:05 - 00:18:47:22
Tyra
Instead of just like, no, cut some of those brands. This is silly, right? So your expectation has to be lower. When you have a lot of brands, you're probably not going to be a household name and you have to be okay with that. But we at one point, probably at the peak had 75 to 100 brands.
00:18:47:25 - 00:19:14:21
Tyra
That's too many. Wow. Yeah. I'd say when we settled in on about ten brands, it was it was a sweet spot because even though we are staffing, it's very different when you're staffing accountants and lawyers and engineers and doctors and construction workers. And we have brands that spoke to the audience and spoke to the clients who wanted to buy those staffing services.
00:19:14:24 - 00:19:39:09
Tyra
I remember one of the best brands, it's been consolidated out now, but back when we had probably 10 or 15 brands, special counsel and most lawyers knew of that brand. Anyone else out in the business world probably had never heard of that brand. But as long as the attorneys who might work for us, or the firms who might hire us knew that brand, then we were successful.
00:19:39:12 - 00:20:06:15
Tyra
Right. And and so that's how we measured it. And you couldn't spend money the way a big brand would with with one brand that you're trying to blanket across the United States or more. But but that's how we kept our budgets in check, spent the right amount of money just to make sure the right niche knew of our brand, which were very niche brands, and were very specialized.
00:20:06:17 - 00:20:29:18
Tyra
And I think it did help, these days were down to half a dozen brands. Really three primary brands within the Adecco Group. I have an additional brand tag PDS, and we don't, again, spend a lot of money on that brand. We need it to be out there and in the face of, government clients. That's a focus of Tab.
00:20:29:18 - 00:20:38:04
Tyra
BGF. And we don't spend a lot of time outside of that trying to get anyone else to know about the brand.
00:20:38:07 - 00:21:01:14
Jason
Now, one strategy behind that, too, I recall, is really just like having it. So if need be, you could be, spinning off the different divisions or allowing them to, you know, also compete in different niches, within that same space. What are some other reasons why you think it's valuable to have that approach?
00:21:01:16 - 00:21:09:06
Tyra
It in, in our business where we were trying to attract, let's say, accountants. I'm a educated accountant.
00:21:09:08 - 00:21:09:18
Jason
Right.
00:21:09:25 - 00:21:43:02
Tyra
Working for a staffing company wasn't a goal of mine. You know, I've wanted to work for the big four, and and I would have never considered working for a generic staffing company, but I would have considered a job with accounting principles because it was known to be the leader in accounting, staffing. And most of the people hired in that brand were accountants, so they could attract a talent that typically would not have considered a staffing company.
00:21:43:04 - 00:22:02:06
Tyra
And same with clients. You know, if you think about big four, they're not typically the ones that are looking for temporary workers. But we had a chance with accounting principles to get the attention of the biggest firms to say, well, we're a little different than the generic staffing company.
00:22:02:09 - 00:22:25:28
Jason
Yeah, that makes a lot of sense. You know, thinking back, you had, health care, I.T., engineering, and accounting law, legal. You know, I wonder if you could find a, you know, for each of them, someone who studied that in college, had that career experience and then decided to transition into marketing. That could probably be pretty powerful, especially under the right leader.
00:22:26:00 - 00:22:27:00
Tyra
Yeah.
00:22:27:02 - 00:22:39:14
Jason
Yeah. So, let's talk about a day in the life of the CEO and staffing. I know that was one of our talking points here. Tell us more about that.
00:22:39:16 - 00:23:16:29
Tyra
Well, it's never what you expect. I think, most CEOs, you know, probably have inventory and product, that's moving around, in, trucks and ships, or a service, that can be delivered from a desktop. We are delivering an inventory of people. So that creates a lot of unexpected turns each and every day. For example, if we have a project that needs 20 people, you know, we probably need about 25, who say they are ready and going to be at that client on time.
00:23:17:01 - 00:23:38:07
Tyra
So I get caught up in some of the day to day, a lot of fire drills. But I do try to not let my day be consumed with that, which is pretty easy to do, because as CEO, I need to be thinking bigger. I need to be thinking about the future. I need to think of how we maybe won't have as many emergencies.
00:23:38:09 - 00:23:49:29
Tyra
But in this line of business, no two days look alike. Because of our client needs and having, people as our product.
00:23:50:01 - 00:24:07:23
Jason
Yeah, I can say the same thing about at least my my position and my colleagues feel the same way. At least working at a, at Axia that no two days feel the same. And I think that's very rewarding. I would hate to wake up every day and just, you know, edit another spreadsheet, for lack of a better example.
00:24:07:25 - 00:24:29:06
Jason
But I do find myself, spending more time in spreadsheets than I have in any other role, you know, that I've worked in, in PR, and is there any advice you would give to someone who perhaps is an audience member currently working in communication, PR or marketing who aspires to be in that CEO suite?
00:24:29:09 - 00:24:53:12
Tyra
Yeah. Work hard, be there when no one else is. There. Do the tasks that no one else wants to do. I a lot of times held roles, took on task that was not in my job description, and sometimes that would get me in a meeting I wouldn't otherwise be in.
00:24:53:12 - 00:25:00:23
Tyra
And that could have been the difference where I got noticed and got, an opportunity to do something else.
00:25:01:09 - 00:25:06:20
Tyra
So never feel like you're tied to your job description. Do whatever might
00:25:06:20 - 00:25:27:17
Tyra
get you exposure, if nothing else, exposure that your hard worker and willing to do anything. Be a good communicator. I knew a lot of things going on and and never told anyone. Oh it's, it's to use discretion. If you have information, hold it, use it for good indirectly if you can.
00:25:27:17 - 00:25:50:11
Tyra
But you, you have to get knowledge and not share and just always be positive. When I guess there's times where I wasn't positive, but but try to use information for the good, of the organization. If someone says something that, you know they wouldn't want the CEO to know, then then don't share it with the CEO. If it's not going to be helpful.
00:25:50:13 - 00:26:11:29
Tyra
And at the end of the day, all parties respect you because they know that you are trustworthy. I had a reputation for being the vault and I think that took a long time to get a reputation that people knew they could trust me and that I wouldn't share information, unless it was for the for the good.
00:26:12:01 - 00:26:32:16
Jason
Yeah, that's really good advice. I've talked about that on this podcast before about, you know, just putting in the work and never turning down an opportunity to learn a new skill or have exposure to a new, division or department. You know, when I was an intern, I worked late and stayed late and got exposure and opportunities on other projects.
00:26:32:16 - 00:26:51:16
Jason
And, you know, sometimes people just took advantage of you for that. And other times you really got to build a reputation for what you could do. One story I remember I tell people this one, when I was an intern, I was sent to go get food. You know, somebody was hungry. And so they're like, hey, go downstairs and get me some breakfast.
00:26:51:16 - 00:27:07:01
Jason
And, you know, I had my own deadlines and they were all tight. And I had stuff to do, too, and, you know, but I did it. And, you know, as I'm walking out the door, other people are giving me orders, will get me a cup of coffee and get me this, donut while you're there. And I was like, oh, brother, you know?
00:27:07:03 - 00:27:24:29
Jason
And, so I went down there, place the order, and I'm sitting at the counter waiting, and some guy just starts a conversation up with me and, you know, things progressed and he's asked me questions. And I, in that moment, he was like, hey, you should come apply for a job with our company, you know? And I didn't explore it because it just wasn't something that excited me.
00:27:24:29 - 00:27:33:25
Jason
But that's an example of I was dragging my feet to go get food for somebody. And meanwhile there was a networking opportunity that I didn't realize, you know.
00:27:33:27 - 00:28:01:16
Tyra
Yeah, I have a man's not exactly the same, but when I started at Coopers and Lybrand, I was always the last one to leave intentionally. And I remember, one night there was a tax return that needed to make the midnight, drop off at the downtown post office, and, you know, it got finished and they needed to figure out how to find this tax return.
00:28:01:16 - 00:28:16:17
Tyra
It was, you know, two inches thick. No one there knew how to use the binding machine except for me. And so when I heard the ruckus, I'm like, oh, I know how to use that machine. And I was the hero. And no one, no one even knew I was the hero. After a few years, I'd have to say no.
00:28:16:17 - 00:28:38:28
Tyra
That's because of the poor lighting. You know that I have. And I think I drove that tax return to the post office. But, one of the tax partners, who knew I was always the last one there? He was the one that hired me to this, to the job at Acme staff, now Adecco Group. Okay.
00:28:39:00 - 00:29:00:02
Tyra
And when he left the company to go work for Acme staff, we did all the executive returns there, and it was a special request that I worked on those returns, because, you know, they knew I would be there till it got finished. And even if you came in on the 15th of April, you would get your tax return finished.
00:29:00:05 - 00:29:11:26
Tyra
And so you just never know what sacrifice you may make where someone notices, and then you can. Yeah, contribute your 28 years to that.
00:29:11:28 - 00:29:31:27
Jason
Yeah. There you go. I like that I like that somebody recently I've well over the years I've heard the expression that you're only as good as your worst project or your worst delivery. Right. And and that can seem harsh in some cases. But, you know, that's what people tend to remember. One but then two, you know, there's, there's a lot of attitude, especially in the current marketplace.
00:29:31:27 - 00:29:57:24
Jason
Like, you know, I want to get paid for the job you're asking me to do or that I aspire to before I start doing it. And the truth is, you have to show that you're one able to do it, are willing to do it before you get even, recognized. And, you know, I recently read an, a book where somebody was describing that as well, like, you know, so many people want to get paid, now for the work they want to have later, and then they never get that later opportunity.
00:29:57:24 - 00:30:08:12
Jason
So, you know, it does take is you're describing sacrifice. And so many people aren't necessarily willing to do that today. But I think that is a very key differentiator.
00:30:08:15 - 00:30:09:09
Tyra
Yeah.
00:30:09:12 - 00:30:38:13
Jason
Yeah. So let's talk about kind of you know, in the current environment, we're recording this on October 23rd of 2024. And, you know, post-pandemic, work from home became much more in vogue than it was before, much more, normalized. Now there's, you know, RTW return to work or auto return to office, mandates coming from companies, especially the companies who, you know, really make money in the tech space for people working from home.
00:30:38:13 - 00:31:02:18
Jason
Ironically, you're currently working from home. A lot of your people are working from home. There's some pros and cons to working from home, especially if you're on a career track or, trajectory where you're trying to get advanced. Would you share some advice as a staffing industry professional and somebody who has worked in this space for a long time, hired people and recruited people and promoted people and been recruited and promoted over your career as well.
00:31:02:18 - 00:31:14:20
Jason
Like, how should people look at this either, you know, entry level, mid-level and senior level about working from home and how do they compare that to other opportunities? And lastly, if I could, where do you see the future going? Tyra.
00:31:14:22 - 00:31:39:06
Tyra
Okay. Well, you know, there's no right answer. I've I've determined that it depends. And it does depend on I believe. Are you entry level mid or executive? The lower you are down the org chart, I would say the more helpful it is for you to be in the office. But just in general, it depends on the company.
00:31:39:06 - 00:32:04:06
Tyra
It depends on the company culture. If your company has an office and people are going in, you need to find yourself there. Because if you are at home, you are missing out. You're not being seen. You're not getting the special projects. You're not going to be there to collect the tax return. I get my job done effectively at work, which is how I believe.
00:32:04:06 - 00:32:33:10
Tyra
But when I do go to the office, I find that I am more tired. I do think you get more production, not to mention the commute, everything that goes with it when you're at the office. Right. But I do think companies that are providing common sense flexibility will lose good workers. And some examples we hired a lot of people outside of the market, during Covid because we weren't all going to the to the office.
00:32:33:13 - 00:32:59:27
Tyra
And so now we have managers that don't sit in the same city as the workers who may have been here long before the pandemic. And if if we make those workers go into an office to get on a team call with their boss, we're going to have disgruntled employees, because that doesn't make sense, right? So it's really looking at your situation as a as the one making this decision.
00:33:00:02 - 00:33:15:23
Tyra
Can everyone get in? And if they can't, can you still be effective when part of the people aren't there? And Tad PGS the unit that I run, we were remote before Covid happened, right?
00:33:15:24 - 00:33:15:28
Jason
Yeah.
00:33:15:29 - 00:33:39:25
Tyra
Right. We had two hubs where about half of the people sat, and there was a lot of scores on our surveys of unfairness. You know, the ones that were working remote thought it was unfair that we had birthday parties in the office, and the ones in the office thought it was unfair that the remote workers didn't have to commute, and that was hard to deal with.
00:33:39:27 - 00:33:44:01
Tyra
Now we are 100% remote and my fairness scores are better.
00:33:44:03 - 00:33:44:26
Jason
Right?
00:33:44:28 - 00:34:03:10
Tyra
So I think you have to look at your situation and you have to listen. If you're the decision maker to listen to the to the people. Yeah. And and try to do whatever makes the most sense. And if you are the one that being told whether you're working at the office or not, try to be reasonable with your request.
00:34:03:13 - 00:34:23:15
Tyra
And there is definitely collaboration that's better in person. These videos make it a lot better than pre-pandemic, right? You know, that you get 80% of it, you know, on these videos, but sometimes you need 100% and you need people together.
00:34:23:18 - 00:34:42:01
Jason
Yeah, that's good advice. I really agree with that. We were we started working remote in fourth quarter 2014. Let's see, three days a week. And then a couple years later, we moved to four days a week. Then the pandemic hit. So it was a really easy and natural transition for us, at least at our company.
00:34:42:04 - 00:35:03:01
Jason
And, you know, I don't ever want to go back, but, you know, for other people, I know it can be really difficult. And I think your advice is good. On demonstrating flexibility both ways. And your story was reminding me that we would have people who are working remote who are very jealous of parties and lunches and, you know, team activities.
00:35:03:01 - 00:35:25:12
Jason
And for me, as, you know, the leader, it's much easier now when everybody's remote. And the we're, you know, it's very unique and strange when two of our colleagues are meeting up in the same city on the same business trip, or having lunch because somebody is in town or something like that. And I like it better this way, because you're right, the fairness.
00:35:25:12 - 00:35:45:17
Jason
We didn't do fairness scores, but the fairness sentiment was clear that there was this, you know, kind of, a double edged sword. We were working through some, Tara, one more thing I want to just say with, as we're wrapping up here, and certainly I'll give you an opportunity to share any closing thoughts or recommendations or even a tip of a book or something that you highly recommend.
00:35:45:17 - 00:36:17:29
Jason
But one thing I remember about working with you is that, and I use the story quite a bit, you were always willing to help, and, the example I will give is you understood the importance of investing in relationships. And so several times I know, like you were working at a publicly traded company and a beat writer would contact, you know, me or you and say, hey, can you help me understand this earnings report from some other company or why this company would be making these types of moves as a publicly traded company or just something like that?
00:36:18:01 - 00:36:42:09
Jason
And you are always willing to help. And I know you already know this, but I want our audience to know how beneficial that played out over the long term. Right? So in the short term, you were busy. You had other stuff to do, but spending an hour guiding a reporter on how to read, a financial statement or how to understand an earnings report or, you know, kind of what questions they should be asking behind, you know, an announce, a, say, a press release.
00:36:42:09 - 00:36:58:29
Jason
They got they're trying to say, okay, but what what should I be asking to get to the real story here. And you are always willing to pay that forward. And I know that came back, you know, multiple multiple fold for us with that same contact and just kind of building the relationship. So, you know, in my mind you're like the role model for doing that.
00:36:58:29 - 00:37:14:14
Jason
Well, and, you know, so many, other people I think are like, you know, well, I did all this work. What do I get? You know, like, you know, one chief strategy officer said, well, I was helping all these, you know, before they hired us, helping all these reporters out and I finally put my foot down.
00:37:14:14 - 00:37:37:16
Jason
I said, I'm never going to help you again unless you write. The next story you write is about our company. And and guess what that reporter said? Well, thank you all. Have a nice day, you know, and never talk to them again. Which is why he had to bring us in to fix that. Because he had, you know, and not only did he stop with the first person, but then he just kept doing that consistently to where these people were like, hey, I don't need you like this.
00:37:37:16 - 00:37:56:23
Jason
I appreciate the help. And I told him, I said, if you would have just stayed the nice guy, you probably would have gotten what you wanted eventually and in the near term. But now, you know, you were a jerk about it and he was the first to admit it, which is why he called for help. But my point is, is that, you know, take that high road and don't always expect, you know, something in return.
00:37:56:23 - 00:38:00:09
Jason
You are the masterclass, I think, Tara, on how to do that. Well.
00:38:00:11 - 00:38:22:11
Tyra
Well, I appreciate that. And and I think I do sort of have a nature of, of being nice. But I'll give you an example of how that paid off. We were doing a town hall. We were moving locations, and we were about to tell all of our local colleagues that we were moving. So, you know, this is a change.
00:38:22:11 - 00:38:58:23
Tyra
And we'd worked really hard to get the messaging right. Make sure that everyone knew what it meant for them. And the reporter at one of the large papers found out about it a few hours before the town hall and called. And I think that that goodwill that we had built kept them from putting that story out until after the town hall, which made a huge difference in how the college found out about it, how they could digest it, because if that would have hit the paper and spouses and kids were calling their parents and right and say, what happened?
00:38:58:23 - 00:39:28:18
Tyra
What does this mean for you? It could have been a disaster. And, you know, I basically just said, please, please hold that for three hours. Yeah. And it was a risk because what if someone else would have found out about it and published it and they wouldn't have gotten, you know, the story at first, right. And and that probably helped lead in to what I'd like to say, about just being nice, paying it forward, giving back, and, and it would be mentoring.
00:39:28:21 - 00:39:58:00
Tyra
So, you know, I've been in staffing, but I've never been a recruiter. Technically, I guess I have recruited, but sure, I get a lot of title, a lot of calls from people who want help finding a job. Friends, kids of friends, parents of friends, siblings of friends. And I usually I always say, yes, I will at least get one phone call and give them any advice I have, because I've been in staffing for 28
00:39:58:00 - 00:39:58:10
Tyra
years.
00:39:58:10 - 00:39:59:25
Tyra
So I do know a lot
00:39:59:25 - 00:40:20:03
Tyra
about how to get a job. And and so I want to share that. But when someone's really motivated because I'll say, you know, you should follow up with me in three weeks. You should do all these things. The ones that do, I will stay with them as long as they would like me to stay, and continue to give them whatever advice I have.
00:40:20:05 - 00:40:43:29
Tyra
I feel like at the end of the day, I've learned as much as they have, if not more. And so another example of how it felt like I was giving. But in the end, I am receiving. And I'm learning. Especially my friend's kids. I'm learning from the next generation. I'm learning how they think. I'm learning a lot that I can apply.
00:40:44:01 - 00:40:53:06
Tyra
And so I would encourage you, whatever your specialty is, pay that forward because they will come back.
00:40:53:09 - 00:41:07:18
Jason
I completely agree. And I'll just put the cherry on top of that and say that, you know, you've been at the same company for 27 years, but because of what you've done, you have a huge safety net. If you should ever not have that opportunity,
00:41:07:18 - 00:41:10:26
Jason
you know how many dozens of people would hire you in a heartbeat.
00:41:10:26 - 00:41:36:21
Jason
And I'm sure you've had offers over the years, right? But because of your good work, your faithfulness, and your willingness to pay it forward and be a good corporate citizen yourself, right? That gives you that safeguard that you can really feel good about. And some of the people I know that have the hardest time finding a job are those that lost their job and were not kind to other people and, you know, maybe weren't as talented as other people either.
00:41:36:24 - 00:41:52:24
Jason
And they sit on the sidelines for a really long time. And, you know, you feel for them. But at the same time, you're not surprised because, you know, they don't have anybody that they were kind to, to return the favor kind of thing. And it's funny you always hear from those people later, you know, when they're like, hey, you got a job, can you help me out?
00:41:52:26 - 00:42:11:13
Jason
And you think, you know, gosh, I could, but I remember how you treated other people, you know? And I think that's just so important. And, you know, we can work all day long and, you know, and not have a personal life, but at some point. Right, there's more to work in life. And it's about friendships, relationships and, you know, family.
00:42:11:16 - 00:42:20:26
Jason
And so, you know, we always talk on this show about the importance of self-care. And this is another way of self-care, right? Being nice to others actually makes you feel better, and it doesn't cost you anything.
00:42:21:05 - 00:42:41:04
Tyra
Hey, Jason. You know, you just said put a cherry on top, which reminds me of a book that you need to read. I'm going to send it to you. So put a Cherry on Top was written by Joyce Russell. She was in the is in the staffing industry, but she ran a business unit for Adecco Group, the Adecco brand, for many, many years.
00:42:41:06 - 00:42:57:09
Tyra
And a few years ago transitioned to the foundation. And as part of that, she wrote a book, a She Lives By, put it cherry on top. She's always trying to make a difference. And then she put the cherry on top. And, it's a great a great book that I'm going to, I'm going to sell out to you.
00:42:57:11 - 00:43:16:19
Jason
Awesome. Thank you. I look forward to getting that. Tara, thank you for being a great guest. It's always great to reconnect with you. And I just really appreciate you and our friendship over the years and, you know, look forward to, continuing to, and monitor your growth and success, at the company. And as always, is there anything I can do for you?
00:43:16:19 - 00:43:18:04
Jason
Please let me know.
00:43:18:06 - 00:43:20:03
Tyra
I will. Thank you so much.
00:43:20:05 - 00:43:20:26
Jason
Yeah.
00:43:20:26 - 00:43:35:17
Jason
So, in the episode notes, we'll put a link to that book. We'll also put a link to Tara's, LinkedIn profile so you can get more familiar with her. And if you found value in this episode today, do us a favor and share it with a friend or colleague. I'm sure they will.
00:43:35:17 - 00:43:38:12
Jason
Thank you for that. And with that, this is Jason Mudd with Axia Public Relations, helping you stay on top of PR and signing off.
00:43:38:12 - 00:44:34:03
Unknown
This has been On Top of PR with Jason Mudd presented by Review Maxer. Be sure to subscribe so you don't miss an episode and check out past episodes at ontopofpr.com.
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About your host Jason Mudd
On Top of PR host, Jason Mudd, is a trusted adviser and dynamic strategist for some of America’s most admired brands and fastest-growing companies. Since 1994, he’s worked with American Airlines, Budweiser, Dave & Buster’s, H&R Block, Hilton, HP, Miller Lite, New York Life, Pizza Hut, Southern Comfort, and Verizon. He founded Axia Public Relations in July 2002. Forbes named Axia as one of America’s Best PR Agencies.
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