Having relevant credentials and the right attitude may qualify you for a job, but knowing how to present yourself professionally can get you hired, promoted and eventually ascend the corporate ladder. But this skill goes beyond looking presentable and deeper than power dressing. It’s called executive presence.
Myrza Sison, a certified executive coach, dove deep into the topic of executive presence in the “Career Glow-Up” workshop she co-organized with her fellow speaker Pola del Monte, a marketing and communications professional. The workshop was held on 3 February at the Odd Café in Makati City.
Quoting the Harvard Business Review’s interview with senior corporate leaders, Sison said executive presence is a requirement to rising to the C-suite, or the executive-level managers within a company. It’s defined as “a combination of self-confidence, poise and authenticity.” But it has eight traits: confidence, charisma, trustworthiness, relatability, composure, conciseness, style and transparency/authenticity.
Sison exuded self-confidence, poise and authenticity while giving a talk, but she pointed out that she continually works on achieving executive presence. In fact, she felt suffering from imposter syndrome during the time she worked in the publishing industry because her background was really in technology before she set out to becoming a fashion model and eventually heading Summit Media’s magazines, Preview and Cosmopolitan Philippines. She later took on a top post as editorial director until she left in 2019 after 25 years in the company.
During a lull at the workshop, Sison spoke to DAILY TRIBUNE on how important for women to gain executive presence, especially in male-dominated industries. “Because there’s already a bias towards women, whether intentional or not…So, you need to have a really strong presence, so that you are considered to be a worthy player in the competitive playing field.”
She added, “Sad to say a lot of our childhood conditioning is not very positive, especially for girls. Like boys are allowed to be free, wild. As a girl, you are raised to be quiet and not speak up and conform to the group. In the workplace, it’s the opposite of how you should be. Speak up, say your opinion. So, there’s a lot of relearning. You have to learn assertiveness and executive presence.”
Self-improvement, empowerment
Sison’s goal of empowering especially the Filipino women through her podcast, “You Can Do This,” led to her collaborating with Pola del Monte, a former journalist who’s known to give writing tips through her Instagram handler, Misschief Editor. Together, they put up the “Career Glow-Up” workshop focusing on gaining executive presence and improving resume-writing skills. Del Monte has, in fact, “edited hundreds of CVs to win million-dollar contracts” in her corporate roles in marketing and communication. She also writes her own winning resumes that have resulted in scholarships and more work opportunities.
Del Monte said her primary advice in writing a standout resume is to tailor-fit it for the job or position you’re applying for. She also suggested to write an introduction statement with three win-themes, followed by a career summary then an overview of the role in the company and finally, a list of achievements, lessons learned and other relevant details.
Sison, on the other hand, gave some tips to help ace a job interview: “Find out as much as you can about the job, the position, the company, the person who will interview you. Speak just like how the CV is specifically tailored towards the position and what you can do for them. You answer towards them hiring you. Para kang nagse-sales talk (It’s like giving a sales talk) about yourself, but not hard sell.
“You want to be memorable. Maybe it’s an interesting color or accessories or kung ano man na (whatever that’s) physical, be sure there’s no distracting anything that will be a point against you. It’s good to show that you took the time on how to present yourself.”
She pointed out, though: “There are no specific rules, but be interesting, depending on the industry, of course. Try to stand out in a positive, good way.” (Visit their respective websites, www.myrza.com and www.misschiefeditor.com, and social media accounts for inquiries.)