Today I had the great pleasure of speaking at The Innovation
Enterprises’ 2013 Women in
Strategy Summit, which brings together 75 high-level women in
marketing and strategy, about the leadership secrets of the world’s most
powerful women. With women comprising just 4% of corporate CEOs, 14% of
executive officers and 20% of America’s government officials, we’re facing a
persistent leadership gap at the highest echelons. To move forward, we must
first take stock of what is working. The following eight leadership lessons, synthesized and
updated from a keynote I gave last year, come directly from the women who know what it
takes to get to the top.
Stay Determined
The world’s most successful women really want it–and remain
determined even in the face of obstacles. They have the skills, and they put
the time in. But more importantly, they have the desire to do something great. Beth Brooke, global
vice chair of Ernst & Young, was diagnosed with a
degenerative hip disease at age 13 and was told by doctors she may never walk
again. Before going into surgery she promised herself she would walk—no, she
would run—and aspired to become one of the best young athletes the world had
seen. Not only did she walk, she went on to play several varsity sports at her
high school, earned multiple MVP awards, and
later played Division I basketball in college. She made up her mind, and
she didn’t quit. She brought that same determination to her career and today
ranks among the 100 most powerful women in
the world.
Be Courageous
Women at the top aren’t fearless. They move toward their fear to
continually challenge themselves. That takes courage. In 2011, Beth Mooney, CEO ofKeyCorp, became the first
woman ever to
lead a top-20 bank in the U.S. Mooney began her career as a secretary at a
local Texas bank,
making just $10,000 a year, but soon realized she wanted something more. In
1979, she knocked on the door of every big bank in Dallas and asked for a spot
in their management training programs. At the Republic Bank of Dallas, she
refused to leave the manager’s office until he offered her a job. After waiting
for three hours, he finally agreed to give her a chance if she earned an MBA by
night.
That was
a turning point in her career, one of many, powered by a courageous call to
action—to champion herself and what she knew she was capable of. Later, she had
the courage to move into roles she’d never done before, to pick up and move
across the country, and to stick with it for three decades. If you’re not a
little bit scared every day, you’re not learning. And when you’re not learning,
you’re done.
Think Bigger
In order to achieve big success, you have to have big impact. When Michelle
Gass, who is now leading 33 countries for Starbucks, started at the
coffee chain, she was asked to architect a growth strategy for a just-launched
drink called the Frappuccino. Her mantra: “Let’s think of how big this can be.”
After countless hours testing ideas, she decided to position it as an escapist
treat and added ice cream parlor fixings and new flavors. What began as a
two-flavor side item is now a $2 billion platform with tens of thousands of
possible combinations. Gass repeated her go-big-or-go-home strategy when she
took over Seattle’s Best Coffee. She decided to take the sleepy little-sister
brand to new heights by partnering with Burger King, Delta, Subway, convenience
stores and supermarkets. In one year, the brand exploded from 3,000
distribution points to over 50,000.
Take Calculated Risks
As CEO of Kraft Foods and now Mondelez
International, Irene Rosenfeld is very familiar with this one. A couple years ago she completed a hostile takeover
of British candy company Cadbury. Not long after, she surprised the business
community again with a plan to split Kraft into two separate companies, a North
American foods company and a global snacks company. To move the needle, you
have to make a big bets—but never rash—always based on a careful study of the outcomes.
You have to know what you have to gain, and if you can afford to take the hit
if it doesn’t go your way.
Remain Disciplined
It takes discipline to achieve and maintain success. You simply
can’t do everything, and the world’s most powerful women stay focused on the
areas that will have the biggest impact—from both a leadership perspective and
a career management perspective. Sheri McCoy, the new CEO of struggling Avon Products, is currently implementing
a huge turnaround at the century-old beauty company. Interestingly, when I
asked what the biggest challenge would be, she said:
“Making sure people stay focused on what’s important and what matters most.” It
is very easy to get distracted by new trends, new markets, new projects—but
when you extend yourself too far, the quality of your work suffers across the
board.
Hire Smart
Over and over again women at the top say their best strategy for
success is to hire people who are diverse, passionate and smarter than
themselves–and then listen closely to their perspectives. Hala
Moddelmog, president of Arby’s Restaurant Group, believes
surrounding yourself with people of different backgrounds—including gender,
race, geography, socio-economic and personality types—will help round out your
conclusions. “You really don’t need another you,” she says. Similarly, staying
open to different viewpoints keeps you ahead of the curve. Claire
Watts, the CEO of retail and media company QVC, schedules open door
times every Tuesday, so that anyone in the company who wants to come talk to
her, ask her a question or share something they’ve noticed can do it then.
Manage Your Career
Denise Morrison, the CEO of Campbell’s Soup, knew from a very
young age she wanted to eventually run a
company, so she asked herself what are the kinds of things I need to
do to prepare for that? That might mean management experience, global exposure
or revenue responsibility. She always looked at her career as: Where have I
been? Where am I now? Where am I going, and what are the right assignments to
get there? If her current company would work with her to deliver those
assignments, she was all-in. But if it didn’t, she knew she needed to move on.
“We apply these skills in business, and yet when it comes to ourselves we
rarely apply them,” she said.
Delegate At Work And At
Home
The most successful women have learned that they have to have
help, and they have to have faith in the people around them—at work and at
home. It’s not easy, but it’s critical over the long-term. Katie Taylor, the
CEO of hotel brand Four Seasons, admitted to me that she is a bit of control freak, but for the good of her
and everyone around her, she tries to delegate. “Sit on your hands, if you have
to,” she said. “Get yourself to that place.”
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