Culture, strategy, leadership
Ellie Hearne (MA 2007) is the founder of Pencil or Ink – a New York City-based consultancy helping business leaders to make culture and strategy work together. After accidentally stepping on Patrick Hamilton’s initials outside St Salvator’s as a student, she proves that – superstitions aside – it can all work out in the end.
A universities fair at my high school first put St Andrews – and international relations as a field of study – on my radar. In particular, I was curious about the global connections the University offered, including the opportunities to study abroad.
I was born in Dublin, grew up in Scotland – in Fife and Angus – and have settled in New York City, with a few months in New Delhi and a few more in London along the way.
While at St Andrews I enjoyed connecting with other students, learning new things, and being challenged in an environment that fostered autonomy. It sounds funny now, but all this took me somewhat by surprise. My older siblings had gone to university, and I just thought that was what you did after leaving school. I hadn’t really considered what it would mean in practice.
Like a lot of St Andrews alumni, I rank the student experience as a highlight. I made friends as a student who remain close to me today, despite the thousands of miles now between us.
I studied abroad in the US as an exchange student during my third year, which was another enriching experience. It’s a cliché that travel expands our horizons, but that spell in a different country made living and working abroad further down the line feel much less outlandish.
Moving to New York
I really appreciate the doors that St Andrews opened for me, and how my experience at the University prepared me for an entrepreneurial career path.
Having attended state schools prior to matriculating at St Andrews, I believe the University gave me an element of the quiet confidence that independent school alumni often model. The somewhat self-directed approach to learning was also excellent preparation for starting a business of my own.
Initially after graduating I put my degree in international relations to use. I applied to non-governmental organisations, think-tanks, foundations, and any international organisation I thought might give me a chance. I had my heart set on living in New York City, and so I applied to a number of roles there, all the way from my student flat on Abbey Street.
I was fortunate to land an editorial assistant role at a think-tank in New York City, which was affiliated with the United Nations and sponsored my work visa.
It was a rewarding experience but after a few years there, I had the impulse to travel more. I worked as a researcher/visiting fellow at a New Delhi think-tank for a few months, and as a communications consultant in London for a few more, before I realised how much I missed New York and decided to return about a year after I’d left.
At this point I’d decided to transition to a private-sector role and, with a lot of networking, interviewing, and more than a few near misses, I secured a role in leadership communication consulting that proved consequential.
Founding Pencil or Ink
Nearly ten years ago, I built on that experience by starting Pencil or Ink, a consultancy via which I work with leaders on organisational culture and strategy. My clients include large and small businesses, Fortune 500s, and teams in most industry verticals.
A typical month will see me facilitate a leadership retreat, lead a handful of workshops (on communication, team effectiveness, and the like), and coach several leaders. I enjoy my work a great deal – as well as the degree of flexibility that self-employment provides.
About five years ago I decided to return to university – this time to Oxford – to study organisational leadership. It was another pivotal moment in my career. It bolstered my credentials, of course, but also provided the unexpected and unusual opportunity to teach alongside my job. I now serve as Head Instructor on the Oxford Strategic Innovation Programme, which is interesting, rewarding work, and which I am fortunate to be able to do from my beloved New York.
Success over superstition
When I was accepted to St Andrews, I could not have dreamt up the career path it propelled me on. That path did not always feel smooth or clear, particularly at key moments like graduation, early forks in the road, and the arrival of my first child. Not to mention one morning in fourth year when I was late for a tutorial and – quite flustered – stepped out of a taxi directly onto the Patrick Hamilton cobblestones. Students and alumni will be aware of the superstition that warns if you do this, you won’t graduate.
Each choice has – for the most part – been the right one for me. Thanks to my academic studies, supportive parents, and later my spouse and three children, hard work and a good dose of luck, I am one of those people who loves what they do.
I like having a role in which I can help others to do what they do but better, and help organisations succeed in their work, too.
So, if any current students happen to stand on the ‘PH’ cobblestones, please take it from me that it might just work out well in the end.