Lorraine Stewart Interview(s)

Point of View: New Business

In a few words, can you tell us who you are what your job title is?

CEO | Founder of The Rojek Consulting Group, advertising industry subject expert and successful entrepreneur.

For 27 + years The Rojek Consulting Group helps corporate clients find and hire the best advertising agency resources and teams within the industry to build their brands and businesses.

Did you have a dream job as a child, and if so, what was it?

I wanted to be a Journalist, and dabbled in it with a hand-crafted newspaper called The Knollwood News that people actually paid money for.. or they just were mildly entertained by the nosy 12 year old going door to door to gather the "neighborhood news". I graduated onto more ambitious publications like the high school newspaper, then grown up J-School at Northwestern. Missed the act of creating when I learned that reporting was indeed factual ! and winded my way into advertising with a Masters degree as a result.

What are you most proud of recently in your professional life?

Launched an industry changing consulting practice 27 years ago that sustained, grew to a position of national prominence and served many amazing clients. Our pioneering philosophy and competitive point of difference was the insight that cultural alignment or core value systems was a better indicator of successful client-agency teaming and sustaining relationships. We built out the process, tools and cultural database to support this. Today cultural fit is a little like "world peace" .. who would disagree ? But we have been deep into the POV and method for a long time, a key reason our practice sustains...

If there was one aspect of the industry that you would change, what would it be?

Restore the role of agencies in advising clients at the C-suite level of a company, especially on issues of brand strategy ... that precede and inform the most effective in-market advertising & digital communications; this is achieved in business through credibility from results, respect and empathy, and a perfect blend of serving and leading others.

Did you have a mentor at one point in your life and how did that person help guide you?

In my first job in account management at a mid-size Chicago agency, I had a great boss and mentor; a woman who could hold her own in a room full of "mad-men" in the advertising industry, circa 1980's... she did it with intellect, energy and her genuine grace and charm; she was of the early generation of women who paved the way for others to follow. I also grew up as the eldest daughter and fourth generation owner of a ceramic tile manufacturing company, so my grandfather and father influenced me from a very early age, believing in my potential.

What is your outlet outside of work that keeps you motivated?

Well entrepreneurs are always working, thinking, creating and trying new things!

I just invested in my daughter's new idea, concept and now business: www.unboxthedress.com

For fun and inspiration, I enjoy the creation and care of all things beautiful on God's earth. I am a "rosarian" in a northern climate ~ no small feat!

If you had a chance to be President or King for a day and can enact any rule into law, what would it be?

Equal pay for all women, retroactive for well ? I guess forever...

What do you think will be the biggest challenge for brands in reaching consumers in the next five years?

Sharpen the focus on core values, purpose and reason for being. Stand for something bigger and better than the functional value of the product or service .. even it's to associate the brand with a cause that benefits others. This strategy creates the hard won brand affinity and loyalty among consumers that sustains and builds over time.

What word would you use to best describe your office culture?

Relational - with each other, with clients and with agencies.

We are fortunate to be trusted with significant decisions, information and challenges that require high attention to not only the outcome to be achieved but to the ways of working, with each other and clients and agencies, operating with ethical clarity at all times.

What would you say was your biggest challenge in maintaining a successful client relationship?

Hhmmmm...We enjoy so many long standing relationships ~ I am truly blessed.