NANCY POLEON, OWNER & FOUNDER BRANDEDU

Nancy Poleon, owner of BrandedU, helps career women in high positions to be more visible, because according to Poleon it is sometimes lonely at the top and has made business life much more feminine leadership necessary. But when it is lonely at the top, MASTERS EXPO wonders: who helped Nancy to that top? Text: Mical Joseph
Image: Nancy Poleon

What kept you busy as a teenager?

“My mother didn't allow me to work during high school. She felt that if I worked, my schoolwork would suffer. And since my mother had not yet obtained any diplomas at the time, my high school diploma was very important to her. Ultimately, I was allowed to work at Hema during the summer holidays in my last year of high school. I had proven that I had done my best during my training.

I was a huge Janet Jackson fan and often took part in singing competitions like the Soundmix show after school. At the time, my two girlfriends and I danced to Janet Jackson songs. I was always busy with music and knew from an early age that I wanted to end up in the music world later. As a 14-year-old I went to Prince's concert alone Sign O' The Times TourMy father had managed to get one ticket. I experienced the light show, his performance and the energy… It was amazing!

After high school I had several part-time jobs, one of which was at The Grand hotel in Amsterdam. I remember very well that I was standing in that beautiful hall of The Grand and that I said to myself: 'Later I will also be standing here for work'.”

And then?

“I started studying as a young adult European Business Administration. For this study, I spent six months in England and six months in the Netherlands. After obtaining my diploma, I started working at ING for three months Management Trainees, but this position did not suit me. At one point I saw a vacancy in the Telegraaf: the music publisher Promotone BV was looking for an administrative employee. I got the job and we arranged all the finances for The Rolling Stones, U2 and some other artists.

The manager of The Rolling Stones, Prince Rupert of Loewenstein, organized a New Year's dinner. The guest list was full of prominent people from the music industry. I was placed next to Dick Stolk, the director of the Virgin record label. I took the plunge and asked if he was still looking for people, he said no, but also indicated that I had to be in Hilversum. I applied for a job at the record company BMG and was accepted into the marketing department. It was really fantastic there: music sounded from every room. There were gold and platinum records everywhere. It felt like coming home and I thought: 'I've arrived"I'm not leaving here anymore".  

A reward was offered to whoever had the best marketing plan for Pink's second album missundaztood wrote. I had the best plan and won a Bose headset, I was as proud as a peacock. My visibility increased and I was known for my courage. The international team also knew that if I said we were going to sell 50.000 records, we would do it. At the age of 28 I became Head of International Marketing and a year later I moved to London for BMG.”

How did BrandedU come about?

“At some point, due to reorganization, I left the company and ended up at a new company where I became general manager for five years. In the fourth year I won a music prize in the Netherlands and was voted Best Dutch Music Manager by colleagues from all over the country. I noticed that receiving that prize made me think of two things: I was actually no longer happy with what I was doing and secondly, I discovered that there were many more women at the top than I initially thought. I came to that conclusion because I was nominated for the VIVA400. Women working in the arts, sciences, business et cetera sat came together. This gave me so much energy.

In 2011 I started my own business. I first started managing artists, but also advised others with their branding. I helped various industries and at the same time I was also on the team of TEDx Amsterdam Women. Every year I saw how inspiring it was to listen to the stories of successful and ambitious women.

That's actually how BrandedU came about: I wanted to start an event where women learn in a very targeted way to make themselves visible, but inspired by women who have already done it.”

Who was your mentor in this?

“During my career in the music world, my mentors were always men, but later in my career it was women who inspired me. One of my mentors was Merwyn Lyn, he was the one who gave me the job in London. Merwyn often gave me advice about the industry and we would have long conversations about anything and everything. In London I had a number of women who coached me, so to speak. One of them was a lady from Australia, so when she was in Europe I would always see her to answer my questions about the business to set.”

What is your greatest passion in your current profession?

“The reason I do what I do is that the more I deal with the subject of women women empowerment busy, the more I realize the need to pay attention to the subject. With music there was so much excitement: the express train went on and on and there was always so much to do.

There are so many women who still feel alone at the top and in many industries women's emancipation is still a long way off. This scares me, because the Netherlands is far from where it needs to be. Men still have a higher salary and there are many women who are still too modest and do not have the courage to make themselves and their talents visible. My passion is to show strong women that there are many more women at the top.”

What has been the biggest learning moment in your career?

“A turning point in my life was the VIVA400 moment in 2010. I always felt lonely at the top, but during that event I thought: 'here are all these great women and here I feel sisterhood'. Many of these women have become very close friends of mine with whom I talk about entrepreneurship, goals and ambitions. We are always honest with each other and really say what works and what doesn't work for each other business. I learned that such women actually exist, but I just had to look hard.”

What advice would you give to your 18 year old self?

“What you pay attention to grows. So focus on what you do want, instead of what you don't want. I would also say to my younger self: 'Don't be so strict on yourself'. Because I was hard on myself, I was also hard on others. I have learned that I can achieve a lot with softness and this moment of realization came after years of trial and error, ultimately reaching the 'final station' when I started my own business.”

Have you been a wheelbarrow for someone?

“I have been a mentor or inspiration to many. These are both women I do not know personally, as well as women from my top-level network who call me for advice. What matters most is how they achieve their goals. I like that they come to me and that I can also contact them.”