Polar Bear on Skates: a sneak preview of Scott Sayres’ upcoming PRSA Dallas talk
Posted by admin on Apr. 29, 2022 / Subscribe 0
Scott Sayres is a former award-winning newscaster, agency leader, crisis communicator and, now, VP of Corporate Communications for Fresenius Medical Care. It’s hard to imagine this 6’3”, eloquent, sharply dressed executive – who towers over me – ever feels fear. But he does. And even better – he’s open about it. In this candid Q&A, Sayres tackles imposter syndrome, shares inspiring mentorship memories and gives valuable tips to today’s up-and-coming talent. You can catch Sayres at the PRSA Dallas luncheon event coming up on May 12.
PRSA Dallas: You're incredibly accomplished but your talk will focus on facing fears. What fears have you felt as you approached career transitions? Have you experienced imposter syndrome?
Sayres: There is always some element of fear when you change jobs, careers or even just get promoted. Have you heard the phrase, “ignorance is bliss?” Well, I was very blissful when I left TV to join an agency. I honestly didn’t know any better. And I spent the first six months of my agency career feeling like a polar bear on roller skates.
So, I learned to be a lot more wary when changing careers and spent the first few weeks or months focusing on what I didn’t know. In fact, I’m still going through that now. And I’ve had people I’ve worked with accuse me of being an “imposter,” either implying or directly saying I didn’t know what I was doing, that I wasn’t cut out for a role, that I was out of my depth.
That’s fine. Hey, there were times I wondered if they’re right. But I remind myself of a few things:
- It’s OK not to know everything the minute you walk in the door. Accept that you need to learn, rely on the experts already in place, and move on.
- You might be wrong. That’s OK too. Again, learn and move on.
- You were hired for a reason. Remember your strengths. Lean on them to get through your rough patches.
- Growing can be uncomfortable. That’s good. It means you’re stretching yourself and every experience is worthwhile.
“Imposter syndrome” is all about fear and how it magnifies self-doubt or initial missteps. The key is to not let the fear deter you from your path.
PRSA Dallas: What were your first thoughts when PRSA contacted you to speak? Perhaps you could share a personal story – without revealing too much of your presentation – that makes the subject hit home for you.
Sayres: The thought that immediately popped into my head was “change.” What we’re talking about – really, what everyone is talking about – is the unprecedented amount of change we’re seeing. Whether it’s switching jobs, wanting to work from home, employers struggling to fill roles, people looking for more fulfillment – everyone seems to be seeking something different. With all this change, sometimes, it’s difficult to focus on what we really want and, just as important, craft a compelling story about our journey.
And, well, “personal story” is really what underlines everything I do, and that includes when I was job hunting or contacted about open roles. It’s our stories that set us apart, that attract potential employers and help us define our path. One thing I’d stress is that while all this change is great and there really is so much opportunity right now, it’s not all unicorns and rainbows.
Many people – and that means many companies – are struggling to keep pace or twist themselves into knots trying to hire the “right” person. You see it all the time in ridiculous, protracted interview processes and “screenings.” It can be truly disheartening to go through those. Especially if you come up empty repeatedly.
Let me give you an example. I was asked to apply to a major company – no names to protect the innocent – and the person who I’d be working for said, “You’re perfect for the role, you know our business, the feedback we have on you is great and this should be easy.” Their HR team had other ideas. I had to go through a preliminary screening to tell them what they already knew was on my resume. A week went by. Didn’t hear anything. Called the hiring manager, who was just as confused. They contacted the talent acquisition team, which emailed me that I had what they called an “initial” interview with the HR lead the next day. That was an hour. Next step? Five peer level managers would interview me – none of whom worked with the hiring manager. I had to put a deck together about myself and present it to that group, take a Q&A and then meet with each individual manager for a separate, one hour interview. That was a day-long, nearly nine-hour time suck.
I was told they’d decide within “three to four weeks.” I finally called the hiring manager and said, “Hey, I’ve got two other offers right now, what are we doing?” Hilariously, I’d apparently slipped to the second choice because I made a joke during one of the peer interviews and the interviewer (again, who didn’t work in Comms) told the hiring manager they didn’t feel I took the interview process seriously. So even though the hiring manager felt I was the better choice, they hired someone else. That person lasted three months. They’re now hiring again and reached out to me, and I politely declined.
PRSA Dallas: Let’s talk about the role of mentorship and career sponsors. You’re an active mentor within your professional communities. How did you get into that? I understand you have some key stories from right here in the heart of DFW.
Sayres: While still at SMU, I was lucky enough to get an internship at WFAA-TV and got to work with the incomparable Nann Goplerud, former News8 reporter and now UNT professor. She made you work a story just like you were actually going to be on air. While Nann may have kicked my butt, she took the time to critique my work and make me better, setting the foundation for my reporting career. I’m forever grateful to her. When I was leaving WFAA for my first full-time reporting job, I thanked Nann and she simply said, “Thank me by helping someone in the same way when you can.”
Mentorship can take many forms. I was hired full-time in a behind-the-scenes role at WFAA where I worked weekends with John McCaa (long before he became a nightly fixture in DFW homes). John was incredible to work with: funny, smart, insightful. One weekend, I stumbled into a huge story with national implications. It was clear this was going to be the lead story that night. I wrote two versions for different shows and gave them to John to voice over, knowing there was no way WFAA would let someone as green as me be the “talent” for it. I’m not sure John knows I know this, but John called our news director at home to try and convince him to allow me to be the voice, name and face on the story. John didn’t have to do that. It wasn’t his job to go to bat for me. But he did it anyway. The story did air with another reporter’s voice and even made it onto the network news as well. About three weeks later, WFAA put me on camera for the first time, which then became a regular occurrence and started my on-air career. And John was the reason.
Because of Nann, John, and the amazing photojournalist John Gudjohnsen (who worked with me constantly to show how video and natural sound could “write” a story for you), I was able to realize my dream of being a TV reporter. I owe them to help others the way they helped me.
PRSA Dallas: Why do you think your luncheon topic is particularly relevant for the DFW marketplace today?
Sayres: I think it’s relevant for every market and everyone because we’re talking about a fundamental shift in people’s attitudes about work itself, how they work, where they work and what’s important to them. It’s affecting how companies operate. They’re struggling to find candidates, looking for more employee engagement, and trying to understand their market spaces better. And it’s the same for PR/marketing/media companies as well. Retaining good people is tough and trying to foster that “culture” most comms/marketing firms thrive on is becoming more difficult. Agility for the behemoths in the industry has never exactly been a strong point.
Our industry is replete with bright, creative people who want to feel valued, challenged, and like they’re doing something that matters. More than ever, if they’re not getting that, they should want to move on… and many are.
The changes we’re living through also highlight major issues with talent acquisition, corporate and agency culture and underscore the value of good people managers.
PRSA Dallas: Making time on a lunch break to come see a talk can be hard for some folks. Why is your talk particularly compelling?
Sayres: OK, wow, no pressure on this one. Well, I would never try to compete with good food, but there will be a box lunch served, so you will get at least that out of it!
While we only have a short amount of time, I promise I will try to cut through the clutter and get to the issues that impact anyone even remotely thinking about making a job change – and especially those contemplating switching careers. Anyone who knows me understands when I say, “candid conversation,” it’s a blunt, no BS discussion. I’ll be absolutely transparent about what I effed up – I don’t pretend to have all the answers. But I’m happy to share what I’ve taken from my experiences and the guidance I’ve been fortunate to receive from some incredible people. If it makes the decision or process easier for even one person, then I count that as a win.
PRSA Dallas: And for those who can’t make it out on May 12, what advice would you offer or resources would you suggest?
Sayres: You know, I’m not trying to sell anything. I don’t have a book coming out or a website to subscribe to, so I’m not going to recommend a particular reference source. What I will suggest is spend time each day reading/viewing/listening to posts, about your current industry, the ones you’re interested in and work trends overall. And read them critically. Ask questions, such as, “Does this apply to me? Have I seen this in my field? What would that mean for me for the long-term? Is this an opportunity?”
When I say “critically” I also mean read with a jaundiced eye. If you see pieces entitled “The Death of Corporate Culture,” or “Pining for the Buzz of the Office,” make sure you go beyond the words and see where the content came from and who the writer is. Especially on some of the “news” posts you see on LinkedIn. There’s been an interesting guerilla war on some social platforms between companies/groups/people who have vested interests in employees returning to an office setting and those advocating for remote/hybrid work. We’ll get into that a bit in my presentation.
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Ready to take your career to the next level? Don’t miss our future PRSA Dallas events! Join us on Thursday, May 12 for Retool for Resilience; Win Top Talent--our first live and in-person luncheon of 2022 featuring distinguished newscaster, PR agency leader, Fortune 100 crisis communications guru and Fresenius Medical Care VP of Corporate Communications Scott Sayres. Seating is limited, so grab your ticket today.
Authored by Lauren Williamson, PRSA Dallas Programs Co-Chair and VP Commercial Product, Argus Media.
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