Jon Harris, Chief Communications and Networking Officer at Conagra Brands, has led communications at some of the world’s most recognized companies, including PepsiCo, Sara Lee, and Hillshire.

Ask Jon what defines great leadership, and he’ll point to something deep: trust, generosity, and the responsibility to elevate others. In this episode of Taking the Lead, Jon reflects on how music, mentorship, and a people-first approach shaped his leadership philosophy and why culture is the foundation of lasting success.

Here are excerpts from the full video interview:

You’re the 2024 recipient of the Plank Center for Leadership in Public Relations Legacy Award. What about Betsy Plank’s leadership inspires you as a leader?

Betsy believed that leadership was about service, not stature—and that’s always resonated with me. She was deeply committed to ethics, mentoring, and lifting others. Though I never had the honor of meeting her, I’ve studied her work and her legacy, and I’ve carried that example throughout my career. She reminds us that communicators don’t just tell stories. We build trust, empower voices, and lead with integrity. Betsy did all that, often behind the scenes.

Who, besides Betsy, from inside or outside the world of PR, most inspires you as a leader?

I’ve been blessed to have many mentors who have inspired me greatly. My first job came from my adjunct professor at Rutgers, Gil Bashe, who is now at FINN Partners. At Ketchum, Bob Feldman and Rob Flaherty taught me a great deal. At Pepsi, I had the chance to observe Roger Enrico, Wayne Calloway, and Don Kendall.

I’ll never forget when I was a relative new employee, two senior executives, Brenda Barnes and Craig Weatherup remembered my name. That meant the world to me. Brenda eventually brought me to Sara Lee, and I studied at her feet. She taught me not just what to know, but how to behave and lead with empathy. And for the past 14 years, I’ve been privileged to work with Sean Connolly at Conagra. He’s an incredible leader—ethical, generous, mentoring, and elevating others.

What was the moment in your career where you realized, “I’m not just a PR practitioner or even manager, but a true leader of people”?

It was during a major crisis at Pepsi in 1997. I was a senior manager and got a call about an issue in Chicago—someone was contaminating our products. I jumped on a plane with no clothes, no toiletries, nothing. When I got there, I found myself leading a cross-functional team: legal, R&D, ops, marketing. They were all looking to me, and that’s when I realized this is what leadership is. I was probably in my late 20s, and it hit me that this was my shot. And I didn’t give it away. Ever since then, I’ve tried to take all the shots I can.

Perhaps on the other extreme, please share your worst leadership failure.

When I first took on international responsibilities at Pepsi and then later at Sara Lee, I just thought, "Oh, well, it’s going to be the same as the U.S." And it wasn’t. I didn’t realize how much I didn’t know. You can’t take a U.S.-centric view and apply it to the rest of the world. I had to listen more. I had to learn more. And I had to rely on those incredible professionals in all those different countries to help guide me, and to do it together. I’m really proud of the work we did. That experience shaped how I lead today.

The world is changing every single day. And if you’re not learning from your colleagues, your clients, your interns, your kids, then you’re just not going to be effective. You have to lead with humility. As soon as you think you know everything, you’ve stopped leading.

Many of us know you from your Basement (jam) Sessions. How did those begin? And what have you learned about leadership from the world of music?

They started in March 2020 when COVID hit. I saw artists doing livestreams and posting music to uplift people, and I thought I’d try it too. I took song requests, jammed with a friend, and dedicated each session to a frontline worker. I’ve now done hundreds. Music has taught me about listening, collaboration, and improvisation. Whether you’re in a band or a boardroom, great leadership means creating space for others to shine and being okay not always having the spotlight.

How important is a winning culture in business?

Culture is everything. Every organization I’ve worked with has been in some state of transformation. What makes the difference is leading with vulnerability, clarity, and compassion. At Conagra, we invest heavily in internal communications. Our employees are our number one audience. We run series like The Connection Series and Refuse to Lose, where I interview everyone from plant employees to Al Roker and Valerie Bertinelli. For me, a winning culture isn’t about ego or being the best on paper. It’s about building resilience, celebrating risk-taking, and lifting each other up.

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Ken Jacobs is the principal of Jacobs Consulting & Executive Coaching, which empowers PR and communications leaders and executives to breakthrough results via executive coaching, and helps communications agencies achieve their business development, profitability, and client service goals, via consulting and training. You can find him at www.jacobscomm.com, [email protected] @KensViews, or on LinkedIn. You can also subscribe to the Jacobs Consulting and Executive Coaching YouTube channel.