asianculturalfestival.org

By DENNIS NISHI

Richard Kegler has Marcel Duchamp to thank for a career in typeface design. In graduate school, Mr. Kegler did an art installation based on Mr. Duchamp’s work and used some of the late artist’s handwriting; it inspired him to design a typeface. Today, Mr. Kegler owns a small Buffalo, N.Y., company called P22 that designs and distributes typefaces online. The fonts have been used for books, magazines and album covers, as well as the walls of Starbucks coffee shops.

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Q: What inspired your first font?

A: The Duchamp font began as a part of my thesis installation on Marcel Duchamp’s “Large Glass.” He’s a French artist known for his wicked sense of humor. I wanted his text to be part of the installation and planned to project it on the wall. He’s known for using found objects in his art, so I created a readymade [a found object] of his handwriting.

Q: You started your firm in 1994. When did you start seeing your fonts being used?

A: From early on, we started seeing them popping up on books, billboards, ads and CD covers. One also ran on the titles for a short-lived NBC sitcom called “The Single Guy.” We were just having fun with it while building a name for ourselves in the typography world. It didn’t sink in until a few years later. We started going to design conferences and people were saying, “Man, you guys are everywhere.”

Q: How did you transition to selling online only?

A: By 2000, our fonts were being sold by the Book of the Month Club and the Discovery Channel catalog, and we had to warehouse all these boxes. That’s when we decided to try an experiment by offering them online. Nobody seemed to miss the packaging.

Q: How has P22 grown?

A: We’re five employees now, and we have a partnership of designers and freelancers. We also took over collections from other foundries.

Q: What are you working on these days?

A: We recently put out our first simultaneous metal and digital font release. The response for metal type has been surprising.

Q: Is it due to the revival of old-style letterpress printing? More people are buying and restoring small printers.

A: Exactly. It’s part of the do-it-yourself craft movement. We originally thought we’d sell half a dozen. We’ve sold over 50 sets, and they’re not cheap. People are dusting off these old [letterpress] printers and doing wedding invitations, art printing and rough concert posters. It’s mostly one-person shops, typically women.

Q: How has type designing changed since Gutenberg?

A: Being a designer is relatively the same, though it used to be that this was a skill handed down and protected like trade secrets. With the advent of desktop publishing, everybody can dabble by popping open software like Fontlab and drawing Bezier curves.

Q: Is it a tough market with so many fonts being offered?

A: People always ask if there need to be more fonts in the world. But that’s like saying there are already enough wines in the world. Just like fonts, each has its own character and depth.

Write to
Dennis Nishi at cjeditor@dowjones.com

By AMY PALANJIAN

Gigi Lee Chang was on a trip to California in 2004 when she had a realization that would quickly alter her career path.

Her young son wouldn’t eat jarred baby food and it was nearly impossible for her to make him meals from scratch during especially busy times or while traveling to visit her family. Ms. Lee Chang, who was then a vice president of strategic planning for Euro RSCG and on the fast track, quickly learned that many of her friends with babies were having a similar problem. Her years of experience in market research and planning for other companies kicked in and she decided to start a business to fill what she saw as a gap in the baby-food market: There was no convenient frozen organic baby food available to busy parents in the U.S.

Finance Background

It was a different animal than her previous work. But, Ms. Lee Chang grew up in an entrepreneurial household in Orange County, Calif., so her launching Plum Organics didn’t surprise her family. Her father ran an import-export business with manufacturing facilities in Hong Kong, and from an early age Ms. Lee Chang was involved in the family business. “I started checking my parents’ business letters for grammatical errors when I was about 10 years old,” she says.

After earning an undergraduate degree in finance from the University of Southern California, Ms. Lee Chang joined her family’s company as a liaison between the Hong Kong and China offices and clients in the U.S. Later, she attended graduate school at the London School of Business and went on to work for Oracle Corp.’s consulting group in the U.K. and at two boutique consulting firms: Tessera, where she was exposed to branding and marketing, and Euro RSCG, where she was working when the idea for what would become Plum Organics hit her.

Ms. Lee Chang’s initial research into the organic frozen baby-food market showed that the category was already established in the U.K., Australia and Canada, but not in the U.S. With the financial security and stability of her husband’s full-time job, Ms. Lee Chang, now 41, left Euro RSCG in 2005 to make her foray into the frozen baby-food business. “From past work experience, I knew I could make Plum Organics a success because I had a good comprehension of most facets of a business,” she explains.

Doing Research

Still, Ms. Lee Chang didn’t have any experience in the food industry, the natural or organic sector, or even in starting a business. She began with research, including a class at New York’s New School called “How to Start a Specialty Food Business.” She also scoped out other products targeting her intended audience, including Healthy Handfuls, an organic kids’ snack-food line that specializes in cookies and crackers. “I realized that they were a noncompetitive business with similar positioning, so I called them for advice,” she says.

Ms. Lee Chang was referred to a consultant who specializes in organic and natural-food start-ups, and a few months later, she teamed up with a research and development firm that helped her with recipe testing and branding. She also worked with a team who helped her turn the sentiments and attitudes that she wanted her products to stand for into the design of her packaging. All told, launching the company cost nearly $1 million, financed mostly through her personal savings.

Trade-Show Launch

Within a few months, Ms. Lee Chang launched Plum Organics at Natural Products Expo West, a large trade show for the natural and organic food industry. By the time she left, Whole Foods and Wild Oats stores in almost every U.S. region had committed to carry her products.

“Plum Organics was one of the first frozen baby-food lines, but what really caught my eye was the packaging,” says Perry Abbenate, global grocery coordinator of Whole Foods Market, who also liked the organic nature and simplicity of the foods.

Ms. Lee Chang’s company is positioned at the center of a booming organic baby-food market, which grew by nearly 22% in 2007, according to market-research company Mintel. But she isn’t stopping there. “I built the business to be able to extend into other product categories, like we’re doing with our new toddler-friendly kids’ line,” Ms. Lee Chang says.

Printed in The Wall Street Journal, page B15

Business strategist Thomas Newman left Time Warner Inc.

in 2007 to launch the digital arm of Radio One Inc.,

a black-owned media company. But the white executive lacked experience dealing with operations or serving African-American consumers.

“I don’t know what I’m doing,” Mr. Newman recalls warning Alfred Liggins, Radio One’s chief executive. His future boss replied, “You’ll pick things up.”

Mr. Liggins was right. The Interactive One division run by Mr. Newman saw revenue climb 13% to $19.8 million in 2012. He expects the unit will break even this year – three years later than he projected—and make money next year.

It’s risky for newly hired executives to make multiple changes at once, switching both industry and job level, for example. Lacking inside allies, they must simultaneously lead well and learn quickly. And it doesn’t always work out: Ron Johnson, who jumped from Apple Inc.

to the top job at J.C. Penney Co.,

got forced out April 8 after 17 months as CEO.

Mr. Newman and two other such “extreme” switchers figured out how to pull off this tricky transition.

Benita Fitzgerald Mosley, an Olympic gold medalist, left a public-relations post at the U.S. Olympic Committee to head a struggling cable-television trade group for women. Maryam Banikarim, an NBCUniversal senior vice president and former entrepreneur, became the first chief marketing officer of Gannett Co. at a time when the USA Today publisher’s revenues were sinking, mainly due to declining advertising.

It’s a good bet that more senior managers will face similar opportunities in coming years. Fast-changing fields such as media, health care and technology increasingly tap industry outsiders for a fresh perspective and transferable leadership skills, executive coaches say. Industry novices will win 18% of top leadership placements this year, concludes a survey of 170 recruiters by ExecuNet, a business and career network. Candidates from a different industry landed 13.6% of such positions in 2012, a prior ExecuNet poll found.

Successful switchers tend to be highly curious people who pursue risky approaches and constructive feedback, according to Rich Wellins, a senior vice president of human-resources consultants Development Dimensions International. His characterization reflects its thousands of executive assessments every year. Arrogant micro-managers rarely flourish following a switch, experts say.

Far-flung outsiders like Mr. Newman, Ms. Mosley and Ms. Banikarim represent “the on-steroids version” of executive job switchers, notes Erika Andersen, their coach and CEO of Proteus International, a leadership and strategy consulting firm. Among their insights:

Leverage Connections to Get Hired

While at Time Warner, Mr. Newman worked with Mr. Liggins on possible deals involving Radio One. “Tom was the smartest person I knew at the time about the Internet,” his boss Mr. Liggins remembers. “There was a natural fit.”

Similarly, Ms. Mosley became president of Women in Cable Telecommunications in 2001 following a recommendation from the former head of a women’s sports foundation where she served on the board. The Olympian hurdler had alerted that acquaintance and others about her desire to change roles and possibly run a nonprofit outside of sports.

Since she knew little about the cable business, Ms. Mosley says she stressed her managerial acumen and passion for advancing women while interviewing for WICT’s presidency. “The fact that she came from outside the industry was very important,” recollects Kathy Dore, then a board member. “We wanted a change agent.”

Enlist Expert Help Right Away

A management consultant counseled Mr. Newman and fellow Radio One executives between 2009 and 2012. He retained Ms. Andersen about a year ago to teach him to be a more effective leader. In hindsight, he says, “more help up front would have definitely made the transition easier—especially understanding the perceptions of the people around me.”

Mr. Newman sometimes confused his lieutenants by suggesting 20 solutions for one problem. Differentiating between brainstorming and marching orders “is very hard for someone who has spent 15 years in strategy and business development,” he explains. “I did a lot of things wrong.” Ms. Andersen says she encouraged him to clearly state when he’s thinking out loud and when he’s giving orders.

Get Powerful Players to Endorse Your Agenda

To reverse WICT’s $375,000 deficit, Ms. Mosley immediately won board support for a sweeping overhaul. It helped that she accepted “all sorts of feedback,” Ms. Dore recalls. Her plan included a new, bright red logo, innovative professional-development programs for members and a gender-equity study that involved top executives of cable companies.

Ms. Mosley publicized the revamped image, urging association leaders to wear red at a Washington gala six months after she arrived. Based on its study, the group subsequently issued report cards on the best cable-industry employers for women.

Win Points Early

Ms. Banikarim, hired by Gannett in 2011, quickly encountered colleagues skeptical about her newly created position because “marketing wasn’t a huge priority,” she remembers. She says she realized she needed to settle in fast, then try novel tactics with demonstrable results.

“She is a bit impatient, which I think is a good thing,” remarks her boss, CEO Gracia Martore.

For instance, Ms. Banikarim and colleagues rapidly organized Gannett’s first investor day this February, which its full board also attended. The event generated favorable feedback from shareholders, she says. “That was a success.”

To be sure, even successful switchers can wind up switching back.

After Ms. Mosley produced a roughly $1 million surplus within five years, she quit to take on another sports role in 2009. She now is chief of sports performance for the U.S. track and field team, which competes in major international events.

She says she was attracted by the notion of helping another organization “in a state of flux” after the U.S. track and field team won fewer medals than expected at the 2008 Olympics.

Write to Joann S. Lublin at joann.lublin@wsj.com

By DIANA MIDDLETON

• The Job: Translator/Interpreter

• The Nature of the Work: Translators and interpreters work fluidly with languages, but their responsibilities differ. Translators work with printed copy. Interpreters specialize in the spoken word and serve as liaisons between two parties, such as a doctor and patient or defendant and attorney. They typically must consider ethical obligations; translators often have to massage copy to make sense of pop culture references. “Being bilingual isn’t enough,” says Judy Jenner, who co-founded Twin Translations with her sister. “We have to shape a message to an international audience.”

• The Pay: Many jobs are free-lance. Interpreters can earn between $15 and $30 per hour, according to Common Sense Advisory, a Boston-based research firm. Translations are paid per word. Ms. Jenner, for example, charges 24 to 27 cents per word, depending on the skill level. Savvy translators can earn six figures per year, says Milena Savova, academic director of the department of foreign languages, translating and interpreting at New York University. Full-time staff at language-services firms earn from $40,000 to $60,000, according to a recent survey from the Globalization and Localization Association, a language-services trade group.

• The Hours: Hours are often flexible. Ms. Jenner, who lives in Las Vegas, says she completes her assignments while lounging by the pool. Her twin sister and fellow translator/interpreter works from Austria. Elizabeth Chegezy, a translator and interpreter in Philadelphia, says free-lancers can work as much or as little as they like. However, she warns that the high-paced role technology plays in the business means some clients will demand unreasonable deadlines. At language-services firms, business hours are the norm.

• The Benefits: Free-lancers are responsible for their own health-care and retirement-savings plans. At language-services firms, traditional health-care packages are common, as are retirement-savings programs.

• Other Incentives: Translators and interpreters can cultivate a specialty in the field—thus leading to higher-paying jobs. Those with a background in chemistry, for example, will be shoe-ins for jobs translating complex documents about chemicals. Ms. Jenner parlayed her M.B.A. in marketing to nab a tourism-related translation job in Vienna.

• Best Part of the Job: For those with a passion for languages it’s a way to flex that muscle for personal satisfaction. Ms. Chegezy enjoys learning different strands of slang from Spanish-speaking countries, from Panama to Mexico. “Languages are an acquired skill for me, and there’s always something new to learn,” she says.

• Worst Part of the Job: Interpreting jobs in the health-care industry can make some squeamish. Ms. Chegezy has seen broken bones and patients vomiting while on the job. In addition, professionals must aggressively look for jobs. “It’s feast or famine,” says Ms. Jenner.

• Education/Qualifications: There are no official certifications required, although several are offered through trade organizations, such as the American Translators Association. A college degree is not required, but most have them. Spanish is the most in-demand language, but other languages are growing, such as Arabic.

• Hiring: Demand for translators and interpreters is expected to increase 24% through 2016, according to the Department of Labor. Joining an industry group such as the American Translators Association, which has its own job bank, can help translators find jobs in both translation and interpretation. The All Language Alliance also connects job seekers and positions.

Write to Diana Middleton at diana.middleton@wsj.com