“Leadership is a privilege,” Aruna Natarajan from EssenceMediacom

Meet Aruna Natarajan, the Chief Client Officer at EssenceMediacom, where she oversees client relationships across the agency's portfolio and drives the overall organic growth strategy for the agency. Aruna’s extensive agency experience in complex local markets has helped her hone category expertise across industries including healthcare, CPG, automotive, luxury, retail, and financial services. She is passionate about building a dynamic and inclusive culture within the workplace, and she actively participates in the 4As Vanguard mentorship program and the SheRunsIt mentorship program. 

Aruna sat down with Jocelyn Hudak, Senior Director, Content and Digital Marketing at SiriusXM Media in our Pass the Mic booth at CES. There, they discussed what it takes to be a real leader. From developing a clear vision, to working well with others, to leading by example, Aruna shared a lot about the privileges of leadership.  

Ready to hear how Aruna is passing the mic to the next generation? Press play on the full interview below. 

Lead by example.

Highlight: “Leadership is a privilege. I think we should always remember that. You can't lead if nobody wants to follow. That's something I learned early in my career. My style toward leadership has been to lead by example. People pay a lot more attention to what you do and how you act, rather than what you say. And that's something we should never forget.” - Aruna Natarajan

Develop a clear vision.

Highlight: “It really starts with developing a clear vision, which has to be an articulation of a future state of success. Then it continues with support and empowerment. Laying out a clear roadmap of how we're going to get there, being open to feedback, being open to pivots and changing course along the way, because things will happen. But the North Star doesn't change.” - Aruna Natarajan

Become a functional expert. 

Highlight: “The ability to lead cross-functional teams, where you may not be the expert in any of those areas, is what distinguishes great leaders. We need to surround ourselves with functional experts. The ability to build a shared common vision and roadmap for a cross-functional team with expertise in their spaces and your ability to add value to that, is what distinguishes a great leader today.” - Aruna Natarajan

Be a leader with balance. 

Highlight: “Be a leader with balance. We talk a lot about agility, and I think that's absolutely important, but I also firmly believe that agility and consistency can coexist. As a leader, your teams want to know that there's a sense of consistency. Your team wants to know that they can count on you for certain things; There's a consistent way in which you will show up for them. And I think we often forget how important that is.” - Aruna Natarajan

Being a leader is about more than calling the shots. It’s about fostering inclusivity, working well with others, and showing up for people when they need it. For more inspirational content like this, check out the Pass the Mic page.