Today we recognize the latest addition to the MCCI team, our new Senior Vice President of Client Relations, Jennette Smith Kotila. Jennette joined our team in February and has jumped in on leading a variety of projects. With her expertise, she has already become a great asset to MCCI and is always willing to lend a hand. Jennette is personable, professional and always ready for anything. Find out what Jennette has to say about MCCI below!
- What do you love most about your position at MCCI? The first 20 years of my career as a communicator were in journalism, so what I love most about my new role is that the fast-paced agency environment feels very much like “home” after spending so many years working within the intensity of a newsroom. It’s also an exciting new challenge to educate clients and prospective clients about the changes to the media landscape, the many channels we can use to help them tell their stories -- and how to stay on the cutting edge of integrated marketing.
- Explain your role as a part of the MCCI family. It’s a terrific mix of client relations, operations management and business development. I thrive when I have variety and when I have the opportunity to work with teams. This position includes internal and external leadership and managing complex projects and relationships. I am blessed to have a position that matches so well with my strengths.
- What's the most challenging part of your position? Most rewarding? The biggest challenge? Honestly? Time sheets! I have always prided myself on extremely efficient time management and also using techniques like block time and strategic planning...but in my previous positions, time sheets were never part of the equation. We all have to get used to new tasks, software and other things when we change careers or industries. This is that “awkward thing” for me. The most rewarding part of the position is that I am able to work with such a diverse and talented team. I learn from my new coworkers every day. It is very gratifying to know you are part of an “A Team!”
- How do you spend your time outside the office? In my personal life, I am a modern day “Mrs. Brady.” My husband Mike and I have six kids in a blended family.. We are ridiculously busy, but it is also a joy to put our project management and communications skills to work to keep the household flowing. (Hubby is also great at keeping the trains on time!!) In terms of recreation, I enjoy yoga, bike-riding and as much travel as we can fit in.
- If you could travel back in time, what time period would you go back to and why? That’s a great question. I don’t think I’d want to go too far back because modern technology and health advancements make the current era one of the most exciting times to be alive. But, perhaps the 1960s. The book “Once in a Great City” by David Maraniss really captured my interest and I know Detroit is again experiencing the kind of transformational period it was going through then. It would be amazing to see the last rise and fall first-hand. Political cycles and power are always shifting around...but hopefully we all remember to look for the lessons when we study history.
