Interview with Nysha King, Healthmonix

For this year’s International Women’s Day, our team at Slice is proud to celebrate women across the marketing and communications industry through an interview series. Follow along throughout the week leading up to International Women’s Day to read about these inspiring women and their stories.

This interview is with Nysha King, the VP, Marketing and Communications for Healthmonix, a data analytics platforms that helps thousand of healthcare professionals achieve top 1% level quality reporting.

How do you define your leadership?

I define my leadership as demanding yet motivating. I hire smart people that are driven, hard-working and are the best in their area of expertise. I then give them the freedom to execute on the projects put before them. I will step in if things look like they are going in the wrong direction, but want to motivate team members by showing them how their contributions support the overall company strategy, while also doing my best to remove any challenges that would impede their work output.

How has your leadership changed over the years you’ve been working?

I’ve been influenced by great leaders who have focused on driving results by motivating and engaging their staff. This was accomplished by removing all obstacles that would impede individual team member’s success. So many times, these challenges are easy to solve, like offering a more flexible work schedule, or empowering employees to make decisions because they know they will be supported even if they make mistakes. I’ve learned that micromanaging and bullying of team members is ineffective, and really speaks more to poor leadership skills than it does to an underperforming employee. I agree with Gary V’s sentiments that it is my fault as a manager if I have an underperforming employee. It means that I am not motivating, connecting with, or meeting the needs of the team member in a meaningful way.

Can you share a story that demonstrates a key learning for you in your leadership journey?

I’ve learned through many experiences that it’s not enough to work hard or even demonstrate consistent results. You really need a manager that prioritizes those KPIs, recognizes your potential and is invested in helping you get to the next level. My goal is to be an inspirational leader to everyone that I have the pleasure of managing, and ultimately to be a driving factor in their career development.

What role do you think marketing communications should play in the future of your organization or industry?

In the healthcare analytics arena, especially when you’re talking about smaller firms, there is still a lag in terms of companies adopting a digital marketing approach supported by robust and consistent content marketing, PR and social media engagement. The companies that harness these tools will be more effective in creating a brand identity that is recognized in the marketplace. These efforts also need to work alongside employer branding strategies that position your organization as a great place to work. That’s where Healthmonix will be focusing its marketing communication efforts.

What do you think young women entering the marketing communications field should know? What advice do you have for them?

I think it’s important to work hard and be patient. Pay your dues and don’t feel entitled. You’re not likely to become a manager in a year or even two. If you spend your time learning as much as you can by getting involved in career-enhancing projects and demonstrating excellent results, you’ll naturally draw the attention of someone on the team who will sponsor you for career advancement. Also find a great mentor within the industry who will motivate you and hold you accountable. These individuals can help you avoid many career blunders while also providing tips for advancement. Finally, as women, we often make the mistake of thinking we have to know everything that is required for a more senior position. As a result, we fail to raise our hands for those roles. Meanwhile our male counterparts are making a move for those roles and are being supported through mentorship and upskilling. Ultimately, we need to do the same.

Interested in more? Check out the full interview series here.

UPDATE: For Mother’s Day

For Mother’s Day, our team at Slice wanted to reconnect and share some more experiences of moms who work across the marketing and communications industry.

How are you managing working from home, being a mom, and maintaining your marketing leadership role? What tips or hacks do you have for others?

I think every mom comes to a point when she realizes she can’t do it all. Even behind every “supermom” is a team of people helping her along. It truly does takes a village to raise a child. COVID-19 has reminded me of that, because like many moms, I am now working from home, while trying to make sure my children are staying on top of school work and maintaining a healthy balance of screen time and family time.

My tips for other marketing moms is to leverage your networks and your resources, just as you would professionally. If you’re finding it hard to balance things, leverage your spouse or significant other to help as needed. If these individuals are not available in your life, perhaps ask one of your older children to help occupy younger children, check homework, etc. Stay in contact with teachers to help mitigate any missing assignments or issues with online educational technology.

When you finally do have time to spend with family, find ways to utilize your marketing tech savvy. I’ve seen everything from Zoom birthday celebrations to Goosechase, a scavenger hunt app that provides families with fun outdoor games.

During these times it is truly about pulling out all available resources to continue some semblance of life as we’ve known it.