I like to be the person who makes the decisions, but I am well aware of the pressures that it brings. Before taking any big decision you have to digest all the relevant information to make the most informed call. If you rely on the right people, the decision you make will always be more robust.
If you don’t have the right structure around you, responsibility can feel very heavy.
Diversity is a hugely important aspect for me. A diversity of minds, backgrounds, expertise and experiences, having access to various viewpoints is a gold mine.
Opportunities are what drive me—my team is well aware of that! I tend to be quite an optimistic person, but I do think it is important to have an element of skepticism in your thought process as well. Not every opportunity is a good one.
When you are at the top of a business you are alone. You no longer have peers on your level and the accountability rests firmly on your shoulders.
I am often asked to talk at conferences about female empowerment. When I try to tell my two young kids that I am going to talk people about how it is okay for a woman to be in charge of a business, they don’t understand. For them the gender gap doesn’t exist, and they don’t understand why people need to be told such an obvious thing. It gives me great hope in the next generation.
I have been fortunate to always be a part of progressive working environments. I know it is different in many other parts of the world, but we are seeing this starting to change—and rapidly in certain countries. What has helped is the progressive mindset of men who not only support the empowerment of women, but the importance of diversity within decision-making positions.
A lot of the companies and industries still have a large gender imbalance, but if you look into it you’ll actually find a lot of women who are responsible for driving a lot of the teams. They are the people who I admire the most.
I always thought that I was driven by curiosity and innovation—and every time I have a new challenge it reconfirms just how much I like being challenged with problems and coming up with new solutions to solve them. That is something I have learnt about myself.
The global health pandemic has been a completely unique challenge for everyone as there are no previous examples to learn from. What I have learnt is that you really start to see if you have the right people around you, and if people step up as problem solvers or not. It is a test of yourself as a person and a leader too.
I like having dynamic people around me, because I thrive off people’s positive energy. I am curious by nature so the process of evolving ideas is very inspiring to me.
