Reflecting on his lifelong career at L'Oreal, Jean-Paul Agon, president and CEO of L'Oreal USA, said that he has never forgotten the "bet" management made when they offered him the position of General Manager as a 24-year-old, just a few years after he had joined the company as a college graduate.

He now takes similar "bets" on his employees. "Our secret at L'Oreal is to give people opportunities very early in their careers," Agon told participants at the Wharton Marketing Conference in October.

He quickly learned that his promotion to general manager of the company's division in Greece was not the plum assignment he had thought. He found out that five other people had turned down the post before he accepted. "After I arrived in Greece, I learned that our business there was very, very tiny and very, very bad." Still, he persisted, learning the language and getting involved in every aspect of the business, from manufacturing to financial reports, human resources, and at the heart of it all, marketing. It was his dedication and enthusiasm, his "guts," that kept him going. Eventually, business in Greece improved, and his career took off.

He has used the broad perspectives he gained there throughout his subsequent career. He now realizes that "since then I have done almost the same job" whether in Asia, France, Germany, or the United States. "The only difference is the size and scale."

At L'Oreal, each marketing team for each brand is independent. This corporate structure helps create a more human-scale atmosphere within the divisions of the 8,000-employee, global company. Employees are so dedicated to their brands that when asked where they work, they often answer by brand name. Agon is the only L'Oreal USA employee who deals with all of the company's brands. Nevertheless, all of the departments — R&D, new product development, marketing, finance, and human resources — share a sense of ownership of their particular brand.

Betting on Passion

What does he now look for when he places his "bets" on new hires? In his remarks and a Q&A with MBA students afterwards, Agon identified several key characteristics:

• Talent and passion: "We believe in talent and passion. When I have to make a decision about promoting someone, I am not interested too much in his or her experience," he said. "I want to understand his or her talent, and whether or not they have the guts and the capacities that will blossom in this new responsibility."
  
  
• Long-term vision: Agon said long-term vision has been important to his success. "L'Oreal always takes a long-term approach and that means it puts money behind its products year after year. We don't go to a new market if it's a short-term ambition," he said. "This is so natural and obvious to me. I will spend an entire afternoon with my general manager of our smallest division if that's what is needed."
  
  
• Broad skills: Agon's broad early experience and ability to communicate and work closely with the various functional areas helped him on his path to the top. Marketing and branding are among these critical skills. Agon estimated that "marketing is 50 percent of the job" of a general manager at L'Oreal.
  
  
• Diversity: Agon said they are striving to create the "United Nations of Beauty" at L'Oreal. "I don't believe in one type of talent. I believe in diversity. If we want to be a global company, we have to be global from within."

Agon knows from his personal experience that sometimes the best way to build the skills of his employees is to give them assignments that are a stretch for them. "I want to take bets on people like they took a bet on me."

• Executive Development Program

• Wharton Executive Education
  
  
• The Wharton School

This month's articles:

• Thought Leaders
  Coca-Cola CMO Javier Benito discusses strategies from the recent launch of C2.
  
  
• In the Classroom
  Wharton Professor David Reibstein looks at ways to link marketing to financial metrics.
  
  
• Career Reflections
  L'Oreal USA President and CEO Jean-Paul Agon remembers the "bet" management took on him early in his career.
  
  
• Wharton Leadership Conferences
  Top executives and other experts explore how to lead with "creativity and conviction."
  
  
• Education à la Carte
  Improve your skills in marketing and other areas through upcoming programs.