Interview with John Sharkey, CEO of the SECC

We interviewed John Sharkey, our speaker at the May Albion Dinner, and here's what he had to say:

What does a bold marketing leader look like?

They’re business driven first, brand focused next and brilliant executioners.

Describe your job in 10 words or less.

I help people do their job and clear the road.

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

Make a career out of what you enjoy – you’ll be good at it (and stay fit and healthy, a component of which is good red wine)

What's the biggest mistake you've ever made and what did you learn from it?

Taking too long to swither about a move into industry from my professional role. I learned that you need to make decisions based on the facts and knowledge available at the time and then don’t look back but deal with the consequences. It will be the best decision at the time and it will also be better than indecision.

Which book has proved invaluable for business?

Churchill’s biography, Running with the Kenyans and Into Thin Air are three I would choose rather than 1. None of them are “business books” but all have transferable lessons to business.

What's your guilty pleasure?

Food – I sometimes get into the kitchen but my ingredients would put you in the morgue very quickly and that’s the reason it’s sometimes rather than often.

Tell us a secret.

In 2008 when Liza Minnelli played the SECC her management had a last minute panic when she ran out of hairspray. Box office staff rallied round and found a can for her. It was only later that they realised it was glitter hairspray…