Watch: ING’s Melissa Kanter on how to become a strategic advisor

Ragan’s Council Career Conversations, a recurring video series from Ragan’s Communications Leadership Council, allows members to share the strategies that made them leaders and the lessons they’ve learned about their careers.

Melissa Kanter, head of communications and brand experience at ING, told Ragan that aspiring comms leaders need to develop the relationships and skills that enable trusting connections with the rest of the organization.

“Without trust, you can’t be the strategic advisor you know you can be,” Kanter said. “The ability to build that trust and deep, meaningful relationships is really important.”

Kanter also discussed what newer communications need to remember as they advance through the field.

“Advocate for yourself,” she said. “We tend to promote other people and other companies but we often lay low. We tend not to share what we accomplish and achieve. If you advocate for yourself, you’ll be build trust and be seen as a valuable advisor.”

Check out more from our conversation with Kanter below.

Sean Devlin is an editor at Ragan Communications. In his spare time he enjoys Philly sports and hosting trivia.