Nina DiSesa: Seduction and Manipulation in the Workplace | Nina DiSesa | Big Think

Nina DiSesa: Seduction and Manipulation in the Workplace

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Its not about sex, DiSesa says. Its about having people respect rather than dismiss you.

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Nina DiSesa:

Nina DiSesa has worked in the quintessential boys clubs of advertising for almost thirty years. In 1994, she became the first woman EVP, Executive Creative Director for McCann Erickson New York, the flagship office of the largest advertising agency in the world. Under her creative leadership, the New York office enjoyed an unprecedented 5-year growth period adding almost $2.5 billion in billings. In 1998, she was made Chairman as well as Chief Creative Officer of McCann New York. She was the first woman and first creative director to be named chairman in the McCann global network.

In 1999, Nina was chosen by Fortune magazine as one of the “50 Most Powerful Women in American Business.” In 2005, she received the Matrix Award, given each year to a select group of women in communication. In 2007, she was inducted into the Hall of Fame for CEBA (Creative Excellence in Business Advertising).

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TRANSCRIPT:

Nina DiSesa: Well, I talk about several a lot of different layers in the book, but one of the things that everybody go on to is the art of a [Inaudible], because obviously I phrase that into way that would be provocative and what I am really trying to say is that women who are trying to reach man, and get man to help them succeed and whatever level they are at, sometimes we have to do more than just play by the rules and the rules are be smart, be passionate, be work hard, do everything right, don’t have an agenda, get the job done. We do that., women do that, that’s why we are in the business in such great numbers, but in order to get above that middle management level, we have to do some invisible persuasion or manipulation as what I say and then that is to try and get the man too approve your ambition and to give you the advancements that you are looking for in a part of kind of an unorthodox way. I mean people may not wanted use the tactics that I use that work for me and all I am saying to women are when think of your own tactics, everything is not black and white, men are not that hard, they are kind of and they admitted themselves, they are easy, we know how to deal with men in our personal lives. We start with our father, we have brothers, we have husbands, we have boy friends, we have no problem dealing with those men then really going to the workforce and we have men that were in business with, we just kind of loose everything that we know and we become slaves to their set of rules and I am just saying seduction and manipulation, seduction not about sex metaphor, they try manipulate the situation and control the situation you are in the charming way that’s not threatening and in a way that makes people admire you and care about you rather than dismiss you.

Recorded on: 2/29/08