She was named worldwide CEO of Ogilvy & Mather in 1996 and Chairman in 1997. She became Chairman Emeritus in July 2012. Shelly started at Ogilvy at a time when the agency's legendary founder David Ogilvy still walked the halls and personally preached that the purpose of advertising was to build great brands. Under Shelly's leadership, that essential mission has remained the centerpiece of the company's philosophy, extending across regions and marketing disciplines, and attracting some of the world's largest and most respected brands, including American Express, BP, Coca-Cola, IBM, and Unilever among many others. Here, she talks about leadership, priorities and being passionate about what you do.

Scaling the ladder How did you master the art of speaking up and having a voice in what was a very male dominated environment?

Making significant career moves takes a little bit of passion and a little bit of not being afraid to speak your mind. I taught myself to think in terms of outcomes, and it dawned on me early on to think, "What was the worst thing that could happen?"

The worst thing that could happen is probably getting fired. Don't even worry about that. They're not going to fire you. Anyone who's talented is not going to be fired. So to speak up, and share what's on your mind. If the reaction to what you said is not as positive as you were hoping, it's fine because the people sitting on either side of you will forget about it in five minutes. Trust me, no one remembers. So speak your mind. I was never afraid to do that.

I was never afraid of talking back either. I'm not confrontational for the sake of being confrontational. I talk back when I think I'm right. That's how I've lived my whole life, and it worked. You can't imagine how many people you can stand up to who will fall apart as soon as you challenge them.

Making significant career moves takes a little bit of passion and a little bit of not being afraid to speak your mind.

The key to career progression is getting the stretch assignments that allow for growth and opportunity. What’s your advice to women who feel stuck in a lane?

I had moments when I was bored to tears. That's a terrible state to be in. So whenever that happened, I immediately sought out a position I would enjoy that was more challenging. That's how I wound up running Ogilvy Direct, which nobody wanted to do. It used to be that direct marketing was the poor sister of advertising, and the only people who ever went to direct marketing were the people in sales and advertising.

I was really interested in direct marketing, so I went to the president of the agency and asked to move. She thought it was startling because no one had ever done that before. I told her I wanted to run something, and there was the opportunity to go there and be the general manager. So again, I landed that leadership role because I got bored, raised my hand and asked for a harder job.

If you think about people's careers, it's not really about managing your career. It's about getting good assignments. If you think about it, that's when your career starts to move. I always kept an eye out for nice, chunky assignments, not because I wanted to advance but because I wanted to learn continuously.

What are your thoughts on the value of mentorship

I don't think mentoring is a program. It's more of a state of being. I always asked all the clients I had and the people I worked with at Ogilvy questions about why they did things and how they thought about things. I never signed up for a mentor. I just had conversations about things I didn't understand in order to understand them better.

It's amazing to me how people respond when you're interested. I have hundreds of mentors. I have clients I haven't worked with in 30 years who I still talk to now because we just started a relationship back then. I consider them all my mentors.

Then there was David Ogilvy, who was a really amazing person. He and I became great friends. I learned a lot from him during the time we had together.

Less than 20% of marketing and ad agencies are run by women. How do we improve the ratio of women in the leadership

To me, the question is, how much do you want it? If a company wants to make gender equality a priority, then when female leadership is lacking and an executive role becomes available, simply seek a woman to fill the position. If three fantastic women and one man interview - any one of whom could do the job - hire one of the women. I don't even understand why a guy would be on the list. If the company is serious about putting more women into visible senior management positions, they have to display that seriousness with their actions.

I had moments when I was bored to tears. That's a terrible state to be in. So whenever that happened, I immediately sought out a position I would enjoy that was more challenging. That's how I wound up running Ogilvy Direct.

What’s the key to navigating teams and corporate cultures successfully?

There are so many people who feel they need to be the smartest person in the room. I've never suffered from that. I never thought I was the smartest person in any room. I'm so grateful that there are people who are smarter than me so that together we can come up with a good answer. Humility is a really good trait to have. Confidence, humility and humor are all great qualities.

As a creative, how do you keep your thinking fresh?

First of all, I always used to work on more than one account because it would just keep my brain fresh. There's only so much time that you can spend thinking about shampoo or motor oil or whatever it is. I always insisted that I have a portfolio of accounts.

It was beneficial because I wasn't just focused on different categories; I was exposed to different sets of clients and creatives as well. I used to get so involved with my clients' businesses that it was like going to another job.

So much of success is about taking risks. What’s your advice to women on making the leap?

You've got to be ready for opportunities. That's the real trick to moving forward. When someone puts something really exciting in front of you, it could bring up a lot of questions. Can I do it? Do I know the industry well enough? Is the organization the right fit? These are all big questions, and they're all good things to make you pause. But at the end of the day, you gotta jump. Every new opportunity is scary. The bigger it is, the scarier it is. You'll never get anywhere if you spend too much time with the pluses and the minuses. When a new opportunity is placed in front of you, the first thing to say is yes. Just say yes.

What is the best advice you’ve ever been given?

David Ogilvy once said it's all about people. The organization with the best people is the most successful. Hire the best people and make sure you're creating an environment where they can be as successful as they can be. Love them, nurture them, reward them.

Hire the best people and make sure you're creating an environment where they can be as successful as they can be. Love them, nurture them, reward them.

What’s the worst advice?

Too many choices to mention.

The quality you love most in an employee

Curiosity and passion.

A characteristic you admire most

Generosity.

Navigating directness as a woman

Being direct does not always mean being confrontational. I always say speak your mind and ask direct questions. You can do that nicely.