CAREERS: Q&A with ... Douglas Brown, Marketing director, Wellcome

<p>Name: Douglas Brown </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>Job title: Marketing director, Wellcome, based in Hong Kong </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>What is your greatest achievement? </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>Personal: I made a conscious decision in university to make a career in </p><p>Asia and feel that I've acted well on that plan. I took a Mandarin </p><p>course and kept with it from 1986-1991 while working in Canada. When the </p><p>opportunity came in 1991 to move to Hong Kong, I jumped and became a 26 </p><p>year-old expat. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>Professional: It was a challenge to take over as marketing director for </p><p>a company which reported gross advertising expenditures of HKdollars 200 </p><p>million last year. We are doing wonderful things with the Wellcome and </p><p>Oliver's brands in Hong Kong. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>Your dream brand to work on? </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>I grew up surrounded by working class, Scottish-heritage relatives who </p><p>were very conscious of their dollars, and I'm sure this influenced me </p><p>because I enjoy businesses that deliver tangibles, like food. Oliver's </p><p>has a personality, it's small and I could spend all day designing ads </p><p>that reinforce the personality. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>What was your big break? </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>I decided to leave ACNielsen in 1995 to work for Central Dept Store in </p><p>Bangkok, which evolved into Tops Supermarkets. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>I eventually became assistant vice-president of buying and </p><p>merchandising. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>There I was running USdollars 200 million in sales with 50 people in the </p><p>department, in the middle of a recession and currency and political </p><p>crisis. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>Who is your mentor? </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>My dad Bud Brown is an innovative, personable and successful </p><p>individual. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>My family was full of working-class Scots who emigrated to Canada around </p><p>WW1. My dad could have easily wound up in the pool hall after the first </p><p>shift, but instead wound up running global businesses for some very </p><p>major US companies. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>What's the secret to your success? </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>This is so simple and every self-help and management book preaches the </p><p>same thing. Set some objectives, dream about hitting them and make it </p><p>happen. It's fine to have incredibly aggressive targets, but if you </p><p>don't have the drive then you're a dreamer . </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>What are you currently reading? </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>"Why We Buy, The Science of Shopping" by Paco Underhill. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>Who do you admire in business? </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>There are two guys that I look up to: Bob Mebruer and Steve Lutz, who </p><p>run ActMedia Asia. These bachelor guys are having the time of their </p><p>lives, starting new businesses and managing the ActMedia business. They </p><p>are close friends and business associates. </p><p><BR><BR> </p>