Human on the Inside with BCF’s Dani West
Human on the Inside. We’re big believers in the power of human skills. But don’t just take our word for it - the evidence for excellence powered by human (‘soft’) skills is everywhere! In this engaging, ever-enlightening series, we speak with industry leaders, innovators and game-changers to learn a little about their personal career journeys, and how human-led strategies, philosophies and cultures are proving a force for good in their working worlds …
Maxme: Welcome Dani, and thanks for stepping into the #SuccessIsHuman Spotlight.
You’re General Manager eCommerce and Marketing for the Boating, Camping, Fishing (BCF). In 1 sentence (ok, we’ll give you 3), what does this kind of work entail?
Dani West: My focus is threefold; team development and support, strategic execution of the brand marketing & eComm plan in addition to collaborating and developing the future group and brand strategies.
M: A highly experienced sales & marketing executive, you’ve been with BCF for a touch over three years now, but your impressive career is of course much deeper.
It all kicked off as a Human Resource Coordinator for Baker’s Delight, where you stayed for a couple of years before joining leading high performance sports brand 2XU in early 2008. For almost four years you played a leading role in the retailer’s global expansion in the capacity of International Sales & Marketing.
At the start of 2012 you headed to the USA, joining OnWAX Media as a Marketing Director (8 months), before returning to the world of high performance Lycra - this time for SKINS - in early 2013. For three years you were Senior Marketing Manager for the brand, stepping up as Marketing Director for its North America market in the final year or so of your tenure.
In early 2016 you returned to Australia, consulting in the digital marketing space for a couple of years before joining Springfree Trampoline a global leader in outdoor play equipment - initially as Marketing Manager before a promotion to Head of Sales & Marketing.
In mid 2021 you joined BCF as Head of Marketing, and have progressed steadily through the business in a total of three roles since that time.
How does all this speak to your personal purpose and what drives you as an individual?
DW: My personal values and professional goals have definitely changed over the course of my career.
In more recent times, I’ve embraced the opportunity to develop through lateral roles. Gone are the days when your next job is your boss’s. I’m a big advocate of cross functional learning that offers critical experiences to round you out as a professional, and indeed candidate, for that next “big opportunity” that comes your way.
Coaching my team and being a part of their development journey is a large part of my job that fills my cup - it drives me to be a better leader every day.
I’m also very intentional about where I want to be in the next 12-18 months, both professionally and personally. This gives me purpose and keeps me focused on the big picture. It also means I’m crystal clear on the development areas and experiences I want to collect, and the roles that are going to be energy-enhancing versus depleting for me.
M: Tell us a little about your personal education pathway/s - what led you to where you are now? How closely do your formal qualifications match your current career?
DW: Broadly speaking, my formal training - a university degree - is inline with my current career. However my biggest personal growth and shifts have recently come from psychometric aptitude testing, team feedback/listening sessions, and some formal voice coaching to help me nail my key messages in boardroom meetings and big presentations.
M: If you could share one piece of career advice to your 21 year old self it would be ...
DW: Embrace imperfection and be a curious learner. Be ruthless in seeking constructive feedback, reiterating and growing.
Know your value, don’t take yourself too seriously, and enjoy the ride.
M: Maximising the potential of individuals, communities and businesses through the power of human skills is the reason Maxme exists. Can you tell us a little about the role and / or value of human skills in your industry right now?
DW: Developing high performing, engaged teams that are deliberately developmental is ever so important in an industry like retail. This industry evolves on a dime and is different from one day to the next.
The more effectively our teams interact, connect and embed strong ways of working, the better our engagement, ultimately business results, will be.
M: Self Awareness sets the critical foundation for all Maxme learning experiences. With that said … What's your strongest trait / personal superpower?
DW: Empathy and people-first leadership.
M: And on the flip side, what’s one human / ‘soft’ skill you’ve had to really work on improving over the course of your career?
DW: I'm a driver - I like to make things happen. Whilst this is a strength, I sometimes need to go slow to go fast. This can mean taking into consideration more diverse perspectives, before arriving at a final outcome. Always a work in progress.
M: If you could share one piece of career advice with recent Uni graduates or candidates keen to work in the field of eCommerce &/or Marketing, what would it be?
DW: Chat to your peers or people within your network that are working in marketing/ecomm. Get under the hood of what “it’s really like” and seek out those businesses that have a strong reputation for good culture, development of their people, and truly support flexible working arrangements.
Just give it a go, if it’s not right for you, no harm gained. Life is an infinite learning journey.
M: You’ve been granted approval to add one University graduate to your business, but have 100 applicants, all with outstanding academic results. How do you find your perfect candidate - what are you looking for?
DW: Well there’s no such thing as perfect. However I would approach the selection with a balanced approach of looking at all their skill - hard and soft, along with a view on their future potential and often undervalued but ever so important team fit.
If you were to plot these three views and score accordingly, you’d have a really clear picture about your top candidate.
M: In the words of John Dewey, “education is not preparation for life, education is life itself.”
What’s next on your #learning agenda?
DW: Professionally, I’m looking forward to digging into some areas outside of my functional area of expertise. I’ve recently invested more time getting under the hood of the operational financials within the business.Personally, I’d love to learn a second language. The problem is I just can’t pick one!
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