Press "Enter" to skip to content

Spotlight on Women in Business: Ann Moore6 min read

Anne Gregory, MBA Class of 2017

Ann Moore was and still is a tour de force in the world of journalism. Joining Time, Inc. in 1978, she quickly rose through the ranks to become publisher of Sports Illustrated for Kids (1989), President of People (1993), and ultimately CEO and Chairwoman of Time, Inc. (2002) until her retirement in 2011. Ann has always been willing to take risks, a philosophy she held for her 30+ years with the company, and embrace her work with passion! It is pretty safe to say that she knows a thing or two about owning a business. She was one of the first at Time, Inc. to target women by focusing on beauty & fashion content, which led to the explosive growth of People (outpacing the performance of its sister magazine: Time) and paved the way for a diversity of new publications: In Style, People en Español, Teen People, and Real Simple.

In the following Oppy exclusive (and first installment of the “Spotlight on Women in Business” column), Ann talks about her most recent project – an art gallery in Chelsea that connects emerging and mid-career artists to novice investors – and shares some advice for all of us as we approach the coming months of recruitment and career decisions post-Stern…

I addressed the first-year students at Stern in May 2013 in an off-the record-speech followed by Q&A. I talked that day about getting my MBS in 1978 and starting immediately at Time Incorporated. I was surprised by the question, “Why did you stay? Why did you stay with one employer for 33 years?” Very few of you will do that.

AnnMooreIt honestly didn’t feel like 33 years. And it didn’t feel like work, much of the time. I was lucky enough to find an employer who valued their employees as one of the most important assets in their business. On top of this, they always looked at employee surveys examples to find new questions to ask to ensure we were happy with our roles and this allowed them to keep morale high. The changes they made following these surveys were always positive and it was because of this that I felt like I was hardly working a day in my life. An old Harvard Business Review article, “What Brain Science Tells Us About How to Excel” says that play at work is not an oxymoron. People perform best when they are at play! What you should be searching for is FLOW: the state in which a person is so caught up in what they are doing that they lose self-consciousness.

McKinsey published a report a while back that said MEANING is the motivation that drives leaders, particularly women. “With meaning, any job can become a calling.” For thirty-plus years, the chance to work with really clever people, on extraordinary brands, getting paid to read magazines, debating the issues of our times and making a real difference in our world had been a joy. I found my calling at Time Inc. I was in the flow! I wish the same for all of you at Stern, too. It’s not too soon, even in your summer internships, to start searching for flow.

In January 2011, when I retired as Chairman and CEO of Time Inc., I followed the advice of my good friends Shelley Lazarus and Rose Marie Bravo. They told me that when the phone started ringing, I should just say no to everyone! “Take some time off, you’ve earned it,” they said. They were basically telling me to start “preparing your emotions for retirement” which is the most important thing for anyone to do when it’s time to enter their golden years. Speaking of retirement, if you know of anyone who is ready to take this next big step, why not get them something to help them celebrate this occasion? They would probably like anything here, so be sure to do some research into finding a gift for them. Anyway, I took a year off enjoying my morning coffee, reading an actual newspaper myself, and reconnecting with my husband, family, and friends. And it was while visiting my thirty-year-old Data Scientist son in Silicon Valley that I saw my next challenge. With their bank accounts over-flowing, why were the walls of my son’s and his friends’ homes as empty as their refrigerators? So I started organizing open studio walks to introduce the tech kids who have too many resources to their artist counterparts who have too little. And they started buying art. Lots of art.

I decided I could do this at home – be the matchmaker to help level out the alarming income inequality between the haves and have-nots. I opened The Curator Gallery, right at the entrance to the High Line in Chelsea, working with Guest Curators to showcase hardworking, affordable artists and to educate and expand the pool of serious collectors. In my first year and a half, we’ve had 12 exhibitions, hosted more than 60 parties and sold more than 300 works of art.

I believe there are skills you can develop to increase your chances at happiness. Researchers at Cornell when studying what people regret found “it’s the things people fail to do that nag them to the grave.” Failure to act outnumbers other regrets two to one. I can pretty much guarantee you that you will be surprised at your 25th reunion as to who the real leaders in your class will be.

You might not be reading profiles of the smartest and most confident from your first or second-year classes. Rather, I predict it will be the life-long learners, best multi-taskers and biggest risk-takers among you who will be your class standouts. The most successful will be the ones who have the most self-awareness. Research has shown unequivocally those leaders who know their strengths and weaknesses outperform those who do not. So know what’s important to you and what you stand for: values are critical to success and happiness.

I really do hate to tell you that the pressure and stress you may feel here at Stern – the balancing act of taking on more than seems possible – really never ends. But you are all champions and, like my friend Billie Jean King says, “pressure is a privilege”.

I turned 65 this year and now have a Medicare card. Life seems to go faster and faster as we age. So I have two pieces of advice to all of you over-scheduled MBAs. First, I learned from Nelson Mandela and Shelley and Rose Marie that, “NO is a complete sentence.” And second, make sure you leave 20 years at the end of your career to do something unconventional…just for fun. You will have earned it.

Mission News Theme by Compete Themes.