Alyna Haji Omar

The cover lady of today’s Women at Work is someone who is an incredible business-mind and yet celebrates being imperfectly human to the fullest. Alyna Haji Omar is the CEO of Response Marketing, and before you think that’s all about her, let me tell you that she is a very interesting personality who, like me, happens to love her pasta, among other things! She is a qualified marketer and has 17 years of experience in advertising behind her. Response Marketing is part of the Grant Group of companies and they specialise in youth marketing and branding. They lay special emphasis on re-branding. It is an agency rooted in insights and intimate knowledge of the people - especially those living in Sri Lanka. She has surely steered Response to greater heights, as the 14 Effies won over 6 years will evince. It’s enough to say that Alyna has spearheaded teams that came up with 15 years worth of brand strategies which got us thinking and talking, marshalled change, influenced culture, and one or two (which she is humble enough to admit) that did squat! She is one of those people who profess belief in stepping out of comfort zones – not surprisingly, her favourite quote happens to be, ‘And the day came when the risk to remain tight in a bud was more painful than the risk it took to blossom.’ More interesting thoughts from her below!

 

How challenging is the field of marketing for women?
In Sri Lanka we are lucky that our industry embraces strong confident and vibrant women. Our company is headed by a woman, three of the five group companies are headed by women. Looking outside of Response and the Grant Group; Lilamani, Varuni, Renuka and C are just a few examples of the uncompromising significance of women in our business today. In Sri Lanka we have a rich history of magnificent women on top! Is it challenging? Absolutely! We play the role of business tycoons, mothers, grandmothers, drivers, peacemakers, scientists, futurists, alchemists, wives, sisters, fierce friends and formidable foes... We learn to embrace these avatars and balance very early on in the game.  

 

As an extremely successful woman at work, to what would you attribute your success and survival?
Ibelieve it’s the evolving dimensions of support that I have had over the years. Today my success and survival is attributed 100% to my husband! We have a balance that is delicate in our part of the world. Roshan is the rock that I build my dreams on. We have two boys that mean everything to us and we are building a future for them together. We are hopefully teaching them by example that success in life comes through building mutually respectful partnerships. This is true even of the early years. I have always nurtured and relied on key relationships, my mother, my sister, best friends, colleagues, great clients... We build each achievement ground up, together. I thrive off the energy of other people. It fuels me. It keeps me sane, motivates me and I have built myself a life full of people who love and laugh very very very loud.

 

Why is marketing a field of immense worth in today’s world?
Aside from the obvious role of marketing in the growth of the economy it’s because those of us in marketing today have the chance to fix things. Today, the world is battling low self esteem, intolerance, waste, poverty, abuse and ignorance. Brands have the power to reach people and move them beyond the obvious boundaries of the sale – we see incredible examples of brands that are using their reach and their platforms to influence positive change to ensure that we can sustain ourselves as tribes of people more aware of ourselves, each other and our impact on the world. Marketing has evolved into a hybrid industry; Part creator part destroyer. Brands are reinventing a sustainable future by investing in values and community. Our industry can inspire, it can drive change and we can restore and build. What an incredible movement to be a part of!  

 

Tell us about yourself? What inspires and motivates you?
Many years ago I watched a movie called Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind and I had one of those cheesy epiphanies... I am motivated by the imperfections of life. I treasure my scars, especially the ones that aren’t exposed. I have made mistakes, had terrible judgment, showed incredible weakness... But every time I fall I take a deep breath dust myself off and start again. My parents gave us the rich appreciation for perspective. I remember being taught that the exciting bits in life were between the black and white. My mum and dad demonstrated the enduring power of curiosity everyday. Curiosity, spontaneity, imagination and a short memory were the things we learned to value... My mum to this day tells me, ‘Akki you have to learn how to forget’. Life is full of perfect imperfections and these are the things that fuel me.

My work has never for even a day felt like work... I have been lucky to always have the opportunity to do something new, I have been in advertising for almost 18 years but it feels like I’ve been in the airline business, the baby business, the insurance business, the hotel business. And in the last 8 years it feels like I’ve been knee deep in the telecommunication business. I love how all over the map my day can be. In the space of an hour I can talk about baby sleep routines, 3G internet and Eco Luxe holidays! Variety is the key to my survival.

Now, with two young children added to the picture my whole take on the world is changing, I am watching my sons discover everything for the first time.

My job demands that I feel what it feels like to be someone else. To imagine and re-imagine everything from washing your hair to calling home to flying for the first time. It helps to have a child like enthusiasm for life so like my sons, I find myself thinking about all the amazing things I discovered today.

 

Share your views on what makes a professional’s true reward?
Personally I feel really great when I see fresher or junior either on my team or a client team feel confident about themselves and feel confident enough to have a well articulated opinion. Sometimes our industry fakes an interest in youth, we evaluate and criticise and make decisions for youth. It is important to understand your place in the world but it’s also incredibly shortsighted when we don’t have the wisdom to embrace new blood. I feel great when a junior sparkles because I played a role in giving him the confidence to shine.

 

Your views on the role of culture in the life and career of a woman?
Given my roots I am part Indian, part Syrian, part British; I married a man who is part Chinese, part Sinhalese, I am 100% Sri Lankan. I have been influenced by and butted horns with our proud but sometimes eccentric culture from childhood. I have been conflicted on social issues, moral issues and political issues my whole life. As a confident strong Sri Lankan woman I feel it my duty to live in the knowledge that culture is like everything else - an evolving phenomena. We each add a little something to it. If enough of us do something often in time it becomes how things are done.



Text by Nivedha Jeyaseelan