Voice of Experience: Xing Zhou, Diversity & Inclusion Leader, PwC China

You can fulfill your dreams in your work life and also enjoy your family life.

Voice of Experience- Xing Zhou, Diversity & Inclusion Leader, PwCThat’s the message that PwC China’s Xing Zhou works hard to impart to her female staff members. “I view it as an achievement that as the mom of two children, I am able to find the balance and can serve as a role model for others in my firm and industry,” she says.

Zhou began her career with the Central Bank of China where she spent three years before deciding on a career change that took her to PwC in Shanghai. She soon was offered the opportunity to work in the New York office where she was promoted to manager before returning to her hometown of Beijing.

For the past 14 years she has worked with PwC in Beijing. Zhou is currently the insurance industry leader for PwC China where she oversees all the services they provide to the insurance industry, including audit, consulting and tax.

Since insurance is a relatively new industry in China, Zhou says it has been gratifying to watch the discipline mature over the past 14 years and see the contributions that PwC’s team has made to its growth, as they work with regulators and key market players to introduce best practices from the firm’s expertise overseas.

Going for the Gold

Recently, Zhou participated in one of her most exciting professional obligations to date: She was chosen to be part of the eight-person delegation that represented Beijing’s winning bid for the 2022 Winter Olympics. She participated as the financial expert on the committee, collaborating with many top dignitaries, including the Vice Prime Minister of China and Mayor of Beijing.

“To have all these accomplished people respect my professional expertise in finance provided an incredible amount of satisfaction, to have my many years of hard work acknowledged,” she says.

Participating in the committee was also rewarding because it reinforced that she was able to take on any challenge, even something outside of her comfort zone. “Each success like this builds your confidence,” she notes.

Promoting Diversity from Different Angles

Zhou says that the concept of diversity is newer in China and Hong Kong than in the western world, and was largely introduced by global companies such as PwC. While gender diversity is important to ensure that female employees have equal opportunities for promotions and upward mobility, she says that China’s culture, which encourages women to work outside the home, makes it easier to balance men’s and women’s roles.

However, there are two new areas where they are shining the diversity spotlight. The first is on cultural diversity, where teams of people from mainland China, Hong Kong and expatriates are learning to work together and value the viewpoints and contributions of disparate groups.

In addition, they are increasingly encountering generational diversity from younger colleagues, as well as younger clients due to the many new start-up firms that seek their services.

As Diversity Leader for PwC China/HK, Zhou’s core focus is to create an inclusive working environment. She acknowledges that’s easier to talk about than to create, so she says that it’s important to make sure that diversity is part of the strategy of the firm.

One way they encourage diversity is through recruiting, by intentionally making sure that they seek a diverse pool of candidates, which includes bringing folks together from mainland China and Hong Kong as well as expatriates. As a consequence, the advisory team stands to benefit from a plurality of talent.

Then they have a three-pronged strategy to ensure the concept infiltrates throughout the firm.

First, PwC makes sure everyone understands the issue by providing mandatory training to leaders on unconscious bias; then they share those lessons with the rest of the workforce; and finally they intentionally monitor it via KPIs.

Work/Life Balance Challenges

The biggest challenge that Zhou finds Chinese women face is pressure from their families – from husbands through in-laws – to work less. She feels part of that stems from the traditional one-child policy, which put the sole family focus on caring for one baby.

She hears from her employees that sometimes their families assume their focus will shift from their work to their child when they become mothers.

“When my staff members come to me and say that they feel pressured, I ask them, ‘What do you want?’ I remind them that being a mother brings life changes, but that they remain the same person they always have been,” she says, adding that everyone has their own specific goals; some may choose to dedicate most of their time at home, while others may elect to continue working.

“Each person has to look inside themselves and make their own choice without feeling pressure from family members, and then ask them to support that choice,” she asserts.

She also finds that global mobility for women is a growing area of focus. While PwC has a mature global mobility strategy, it’s become a hot topic for many Chinese companies that have started to globalize their businesses, but don’t yet have policies in place. PwC has been instrumental in sharing best practices, having recently published a thought leadership paper on moving women with purpose.

Part of the reason that women don’t go overseas from China as frequently is that few companies have formal policies in place, and often there is no mechanism to survey them to assess their interest. Interestingly, she says that when PwC surveys its employees, 70 percent of them express interest in an overseas assignment. From there, the key concern is the career path after they return.

Maintaining Work/Life Balance in Her Own Life

Zhou values her work/life balance and appreciates the support she receives from her parents and in-laws, but most of all her husband. As a doctor, he understands the professional challenges she faces and the two of them are able to support one another’s struggles and schedules.

Weekends are family time – even when there is work to be done. Her children love to join her at the office, where they can draw on the whiteboards and find other ways to amuse themselves. She encourage her staff to bring their children in as needed, also.

Finally, her family plans plenty of outside activities from skiing to weekly art lessons they take together. And, she adds, she loves to cook, a hobby that her family can enjoy also.

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Voice of Experience Ay Wen Lie, Partner M&A Advisory PwC Singapore

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Voice of Experience Ay Wen Lie, Partner M&A Advisory PwC Singapore (F)Ay Wen Lie began her career with KLM Airlines as a business manager working on restructuring and growing the business via joint ventures and mergers.

KLM had a joint venture with Northwest and was considering the option to merge with the airline Alitalia.

However, the merger with Alitalia did not go ahead and instead of growing the business, the focus shifted to cost savings and selling off non-core businesses. After a few years of continuous downsizing, she wanted to turn her attention to the act of building something, focusing on business growth and exploring her entrepreneurial capabilities. She started her own company together with her sister, focusing on interior lighting with products made from natural materials and the use of traditional handcraft in modern designs.

For several years, they built the business, refining the concept and expanding the business, primarily through selling B2B at trade shows. Although it was challenging, she appreciated the sense of control and excitement of building something from scratch. However, in a small company, at some point the business cycle remains the same — constant travelling in search of new producers, developing new products, quality control, tradeshows, shipping and designing new products. She decided it was time to turn to something new, where she could develop new skills and explore other opportunities with more variety. That’s when she joined PwC in the Netherlands.

“Even though the company was doing well I wanted to see what else was out there” Lie says.

“I didn’t see new opportunities for my personal development that I could get excited about. My sister, who loves creating new designs understood, and she has continued the business together with her husband”.

Although she grew up in the Netherlands, her family is Chinese-Indonesian and it had always been her ambition to live abroad with her husband and children. After a few years at PwC Netherlands, they offered her an international assignment opportunity abroad: The United States, China or Singapore.

Location, Location, Location

The couple chose Singapore because of its location as the central hub in South East Asia that was close to family, the opportunities that came with a booming Asian economy, and the fact that Singapore is one of the world’s leading financial centers.

The relocation to PwC Singapore also offered Lie the unique opportunity to build a Mergers & Acquisitions Operations practice for PwC Singapore’s Financial Services Industry Practice. “This was a great opportunity and I really enjoyed the challenge,” she says.

After three years, Lie decided to make her move to PwC Singapore permanent. “There was still such great opportunity to grow the practice further, and I was so proud of what we had built – it would have been hard to let go.”

PwC Singapore acts as a center of excellence in many areas for the region, as many international companies base their regional headquarters in Singapore, and the firm had invested early in developing a strong deals practice. The result is one of the most advanced deals practices in the region, supporting clients along all aspects of the deal continuum. “Singapore remains a very exciting location to me as we continue to develop our deals practice,” comments Lie.

Succeeding by Making Clear Choices

She says one of her biggest learnings has been to not be afraid of making choices and being clear about what you want, what you believe in and what you stand for. “There were lots of things I was interested in, and I wasn’t sure what to focus on; I was always hedging my bets. Only when I started to make choices, and others could see what I was about, did it all came together,” Lie states.

She had what she calls her “breakthrough moment” on the wisdom of this philosophy when the company she was running made a clear choice that they should focus only on their own products. “It was a scary moment taking out half of the product line up, but all of a sudden we were being courted by top magazines. It was clear what we stood for and believed in.”

She encountered the same when she moved to PwC Singapore. In the beginning she took on a lot of different things, trying to be useful to everyone. She found, however, that by doing that you don’t stand out, as it is not clear to others what you are really good at and passionate about, and therefore where you can add most value. She had to figure out what she wanted to do and build her own personal brand. “Don’t be afraid to make choices, play to your strengths and focus your energy on where you can best add value,” she says.

An Exciting Industry

At work these days, Lie finds her position constantly evolving as she supports clients with their regional integrations and/or divestments. She appreciates that these programs give her a view into a company’s whole ecosystem, addressing strategic, tactical and operational issues. It is a challenge creating a new business under tight timelines, with lots of uncertainty, bringing people and businesses together and motivating them to buy into a new future. It is often difficult for people to let go of what they have been part of for many years.

“I enjoy thinking through the complexities with a diverse range of people, finding the best solutions given the circumstances and keeping an eye out for what this means in the long run.”

She says it’s an exciting time to be in the financial services industry as a whole. “It’s crucial to have a stable financial system, and yet so much is happening. There is uncertainty in the markets, and regulators are constantly implementing new regulations which make it difficult for banks to be agile and focus on client needs. There is a lot of competition and cost pressure. On top of all that, blockchain or more general fintech will rapidly change the traditional operating models.”

She has been a member of the board of the Association of Dutch Business People in Singapore and also participates in the ‘Women in Finance’ Network which brings together women (and men) from all the industry layers and fosters networking.

A Family Affair

With two children, ages 9 and 11, Lie loves to spend time watching their sports, but also being active together — hiking, skiing or riding horses. “Outdoor sports allow you to be connected with yourselves, each other and nature.”

She believes for women to successfully combine family and career a lot depends on a woman’s partner. “In my experience it’s important to discuss and agree with your partner what both your ambitions in life are. What do you want to achieve; what kind of family life do you want; and how do you want to raise your children?”

While circumstances can change and priorities will shift, couples should reach an understanding of what is important to each and discuss how they can achieve that together, by supporting one other’s ambitions and accepting and acknowledging what the impact will be in terms of lifestyle or timing of career choices.

“Sometimes that means taking a step back in one area to move forward in another,” Lie says, “and this goes both ways between partners.”

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Voice of Experience: Marina Lui, Regional Market Manager for the China International Team UBS

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Marina LuiMarina Lui believes a strong team brings success, and that companies need to create an atmosphere that will attract and retain those solid performers.

As one of the early immigrants to Hong Kong from China, Lui says she appreciated the opportunity to receive the education that she did, both in Hong Kong and then attending the University of Texas at Austin in the United States.

She began her career as a branch manager in consumer banking, but wasn’t sure she was cut out for managing – ironic, given her current success in that arena. She joined UBS in 1995 as a client-facing relationship manager, spending 10 years covering the Hong Kong domestic market, and then once again moving into managerial positions.

At the time, the Hong Kong domestic market was quite established so she appreciated the opportunity she was given in 2011 when she was appointed as one of the team heads serving ultra-high worth clients in China and Taiwan. That allowed her to work in a sophisticated new market with a team of 50 experienced staff.

Soon she honed her focus solely on China, where she became regional market manager for the China International Team with a staff of 150. “I was very proud of being named regional market manager and subsequently building the team. In less than two years we have doubled the size of the business.”

Winning Because of the Team

Lui credits her team with that feat, but much of the acknowledgement surely should be given to her leadership style. “I want to be the team of choice and feel I have achieved that goal with the high morale we have. I want my team to be proud of what they do, and know that they have collectively contributed to our accomplishments,” she says.

Not only is she focused on success, but on developing the next generation of leaders. She admits it’s challenging sometimes when you can’t see quick results since talent development is a long process. However, she enjoys the role she plays in nurturing employees to help support the success of the firm.

Changing Demographics Mean A Changing Industry

The industry is currently in the midst of wealth transfer from one generation to another, and they need to accommodate the different way that the next generation thinks. Since many of her relationship managers are relatively young, they are in a position to relate to, and therefore confidently meet, the needs of this next generation.

And the changing demographics brings internal challenges as well, as companies grapple with providing employees with the diverse experiences they increasingly seek. “We have to question whether employees who are in their late 20s will want to work for the bank for 20 years, given their mindset that they don’t want to be in one place too long.” She says that they are addressing that through encouraging millennial employees to seek additional opportunities in other divisions of the bank, so they can have those varied experiences without leaving.

Growing the Next Generation of Leaders

Younger employees today also have the benefit of being able to research an industry before they join, and she encourages them to do their homework, to find out what exactly a banking position entails and confirm that it suits their interests and skills. But, it also has to be something they enjoy.

“When you join an industry or company, you have to be passionate or you won’t last long,” she says. She advises them to trust their gut feeling when determining a career path, but then to realize that success may be delayed. “The younger generation tends to want immediate gratification but often you have to be patient as you climb the ladder. Learn what you need to know on each rung.”
She encourages wealth management as an industry where women can be particularly successful, because it’s a people business, and women naturally exhibit interpersonal skills that allow them to excel at networking and building relationships with clients.

Within UBS, Lui is involved in the Global Key Talent Program, which helps develop high-performing talent. The group brings together emerging professionals and senior leaders to encourage mentoring and exposure. “It’s important to offer this opportunity for younger professionals to engage with senior leadership, both men and women, and show their capabilities.”

She also is involved with a group called “Half the Sky” that helps the bank better understand the needs of female clients who are becoming a larger part of their portfolio, as entrepreneurs and decision makers.

Work/Life Balance as an Imperative

Lui counsels her peers that it’s important to leave your stress at work and develop a healthy work/life balance that allows you to perform and focus better on the job. For her, exercise is a stress reliever, but she encourages women to find what works for them.

She loves traveling and spending time with her family but also believes in the importance of giving back through philanthropy. Two causes she is particularly passionate about are elder care and children. Recently she instigated a team project where they visited the elderly. “We need them to know they are important and not forgotten.” On the other end of the spectrum, she is involved with the group “Pencil of Promise,” which is working to build schools in Laos.

“I know that I am fortunate to work in the banking industry and make a good living compared to many families who struggle on a daily basis. We all need to make giving a part of our lives, to remember to reach out and support those in need. “

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Voice of Experience: Jacqueline Arthur, Chief of Staff to the Co-heads of the Investment Management Division (IMD), Goldman Sachs

Jacqueline Arthur“Change doesn’t always happen when you expect, but it has altered my career and outlook for the better. Even when I have had second thoughts about past decisions, those have been my best learning moments. Taking risks throughout my career has made me more confident and resilient,” says Goldman Sachs’ Jacqueline Arthur.

From Law to Investment Management

Arthur attended law school at George Washington University after earning her undergraduate degree at Duke University. She began her career as a corporate attorney advising private equity (PE) clients, and five years later joined Goldman Sachs in the Investment Management Division (IMD), parlaying her PE experience into her new position.

Arthur noted that even though she was in a similar industry, she was looking at it through a different vantage point and in some ways felt like she was starting from the beginning. “When I started my career as a corporate attorney, I never would have envisioned this trajectory,” said Arthur. “I’m proud of risks I’ve taken to step out of my comfort zone. I’ve become open to trusting my instincts and leveraging my network and mentors, which has allowed me to be more confident in taking on new opportunities.”

One particularly exciting challenge was when she joined the Global Portfolio Solutions team in 2008, focusing on multi-asset class solutions for clients. “Our clients were relying on us to ensure their portfolios were in safe hands during a volatile time,” Arthur says. As part of the move, she was given the opportunity to broaden her responsibilities as the group focused on expanding its capabilities. “This was a terrific growth opportunity and gave me a chance to stretch beyond a pure client role to focus on management and strategy. While I had always enjoyed advising clients, I found that I also really loved thinking about how to grow our business and to ensure we are best positioned to serve our clients.”

When a position opened in 2011 to work with the chief operating officer of Goldman Sachs Asset Management, she says she leapt at the opportunity. Her role has grown significantly in the last several years, and she currently serves as chief of staff to the heads of IMD, where she focuses on a broad spectrum of initiatives across IMD’s businesses.

“Our clients come to us for comprehensive solutions, and one aspect of my role that I have found particularly rewarding is focusing on our efforts to tap into not only the intellectual capital of the people in IMD, but also the expertise of the rest of the firm. This is a powerful tool for clients, and one that differentiates us,” she says.

“I love the diversity of my work and the people I get to interact with across the firm. Every day I am reminded that I work with such a talented group of people.” Arthur says a priority for her is to identify junior talent who have the potential to excel at leadership roles within the firm.

Viewing Your Career With a Long-Term Perspective

Approach your career as a marathon not a sprint, Arthur advises, wisdom she received from a managing director when she first began working at Goldman Sachs.

“This mindset ensures you avoid burnout and retain resilience for speedbumps you might experience during your career,” she notes. “Staying the course and having a long-term perspective has served me well in the ups and downs of work-life balance.” Arthur, who is the mother of two young children, notes that while she was initially anxious to be out of the office for maternity leave, the culture at the firm is collaborative and team-focused, and she was able to resume her role seamlessly following her return to the office.

She appreciates that Goldman Sachs has a “mentorship culture.” Arthur serves as an advisor to the IMD Women’s Network on its community engagement efforts and has found the network to be a very impactful resource. She says she has also received terrific support from mentors and sponsors at key moments. “The relationships I’ve created at the firm and in the industry enable me to tap into resources that make me better at my job and have made my career more meaningful,” Arthur says.

“The Best Part of My Day”

Arthur looks forward every day to the moment when she returns home from work and her kids run to the door to greet her. “It can be hard to maintain a work-life balance, and before having children I couldn’t envision how I would be the mother I wanted to be.” But, she says that being a mom has made her more focused at work, and she believes working has also made her a better mom. “When I am with my children, I focus on being very present and engaged. They also love coming to work with me and asking me questions about my job.”

Her family loves traveling and Arthur thrives on seeing the world through her kids’ eyes and learning about different cultures with them. Closer to home, they appreciate the access they have to restaurants and the arts in New York City. “Having grown up in a small town, the experiences we can have locally constantly amaze me, and we really try to make the most of it as a family.”

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Men Who Get It: Joe Sieczkowski, Senior Managing Director, CTO, Chief Architect/Engineer, TIAA

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“Being a leader who is open to diversity requires a number of qualities, but a key one is being a good listener,” says TIAA’s Joe Sieczkowski.

“So many people listen just so that they can respond, rather than internalizing what’s being said to see if there’s another issue at play. You have to be willing to have your beliefs turned around in the face of evidence,” he says, citing a quote that has been attributed to Mark Twain: “It isn’t what you don’t know that gets you into trouble. It’s what you know for sure that just isn’t so.”

A Tech Career Born on Wall Street

joe-sieczkowskiSieczkowski graduated in a short 3.5 years from Lehigh University in the top 10% of his class with a degree in computer engineering and began pursuing a career in finance. As he describes it, “It was ‘Revenge of the Nerds’ on Wall Street where they were realizing it was easier to teach a math guy about bonds than vice versa.”

He began his career at Lehman Brothers, where he took on a series of roles of increasing responsibilities. One characteristic that differentiated Sieczkowski from his peers was his drive to understand the nuances and complexities of each business, even as a technologist. For example, if he was delivering technology for derivative traders, it was important for him to understand how options were priced and how factors such as volatility would affect them. He subsequently held technology leadership roles at Deutsche Bank and then Bear Stearns. At Bear, Sieczkowski worked in the global clearing services division, where they were developing white labeled trading websites for their institutional clients.

With a desire to earn his MBA always in the back of his mind, Sieczkowski took the opportunity to do so during the market turmoil of 2008. During this time, he did advisory work and subsequently joined TIAA in 2011 as Chief Architect/Engineer where he currently leads a cross-functional team of technology leaders in strategy, architecture and enterprise data.

Lifelong Diversity Champion

Beginning with his mom, and leading up to a female CIO at TIAA, Sieczkowski has had a series of women role models who instilled the importance of diversity. He was proud watching his mom as he grew up: She juggled three kids while working and going to school where she graduated summa cum laude. Her career progressed from being a nurse to head nurse to nurse manager and also president of the New Jersey State Nurses Association. With that upbringing, he never doubted the capabilities of women, who have been his colleagues and managers ever since.

That’s why he champions diversity throughout TIAA, realizing that the department’s success depends on the skills of his team. With a proven correlation between innovative teams, success and diversity, he embraces the need to seek diverse points of view to challenge the status quo and ultimately reach better conclusions. “My teams are known for highlighting diversity, and I believe that’s one of the reasons we consistently outperform norms,” he says. “When an employee takes pride in their differences, they are more apt to seek out opportunities that showcase their skills, which in turn helps us perform.”

Groom and Let Go

Sieczkowski takes pride in the leaders he has helped develop, explaining that it’s a four-part process that involves mentoring, grooming, promoting and releasing. “Often that fourth step can be the hardest, but you have to do all four,” he asserts.

“If you insist that you need a certain person on your team, you are holding them back. When you develop talent, it’s in the best interest of the firm to let them fly.” He has taken that to heart, and prides himself on leading a development-focused organization that constantly works to promote people into larger roles.

Part of that evolution in driving female success is bringing in entry-level talent and then making sure they have opportunities to be in front of senior leaders. “When you have outstanding people, you want to make sure they are visible,” he says. “Effectively sponsoring people entails identifying potential and spotlighting and nurturing talent.”

He also encourages his female employees to pursue continuing education, whether formally through a master’s program or informally through the many training opportunities TIAA provides.

Failing Fast and Focusing on Output

While he is an official sponsor of a group mentoring program, he also believes it’s in the informal actions where he can make a difference, and that supporting emerging talent through stretch assignments should be part of each leader’s job. “You have to let them know that it’s ok to fail,” he says, adding that his department understands the value of “failing fast.” When they undertake an innovative initiative, they’ll term it a “fast fail pilot,” knowing that they have the chance to watch it for four to six weeks to see if it will be effective and move on if not.

As leaders consider opportunities for women, there is one key area where they should be focused: output. “We have to remember that flexibility thrives when we focus on the outputs of performance and effectiveness, rather than time. It yields a better work environment and a better work product.”

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Movers and Shakers: Kristy Finnegan, Portfolio Manager, Voya Investment Management

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“When you begin your career, it’s easy to assume that you’ll choose your path, and that you’ll start at the bottom rung and work up in a linear fashion,” says Kristy Finnegan, a portfolio manager on the global equity team at Voya Investment Management.

Movers and Shakers: Kristy Finnegan, Portfolio Manager, Voya Investment Management“But the truth is, you determine your own progression by asking for responsibility and taking chances.”

This theory has propelled Finnegan from her initial career in investment banking after earning a BS in economics from Vanderbilt University. She moved to New York with the intent of landing a position on the sell side, but the 9/11 tragedy set off a hiring freeze.

Finnegan eventually joined the precursor firm to Voya, where she started pursuing her Chartered Financial Analyst® designation, initially working with the small cap value team.

A Courageous Meeting Yields a Career Break

When Finnegan realized she was not in her ideal role, she worked up the courage to pitch a stock, unsolicited, to the portfolio manager.

“It ended up being the best career move I ever made,” she says, since it set off a discussion that ultimately led to the manager recognizing what she wanted to do and moving her into a junior analyst role. To this day, she says the portfolio manager she spoke with was fundamental to her career success. “He believed in me and took a risk in promoting me into the analyst role. He guided me the first few years, during the start of my career path, and his investing style of avoiding group think formed my current approach to stock selection.”

That was her first break into equity research, which she followed with a stint as a technology analyst and then consumer staples analyst before becoming a portfolio manager. “That was a huge professional achievement, because it was a recognition of both my analytical abilities and interpersonal skills,” she says.

In her current role on the global equity team, she has been instrumental in forming a platform that brings together U.S. and international teams and portfolio engineering groups. “Joining these groups has been a really exciting process and we are off to a great collaborative start,” she says.

Learning Along the Way

For Finnegan, learning moments have come via mistakes, as they do for most. Equity analysts work with available data to form estimates for the future, which means there are inherent risks. “Early on I missed some lucrative opportunities because I deferred to others rather than trusting my own work,” she says. “Those misses taught me to be an advocate for my own stock picks and trust my instincts.”

Finnegan believes that success comes most naturally if you love your job. “I’ve always had career goals, but my major motivation is to excel for both myself and my team, and that breeds success.”

While she credits her portfolio manager as her sponsor, Finnegan knows that you can find mentors anywhere and everywhere, which is why she names Sheryl Sandberg as one of hers. “When I read her book Lean In, I felt like she was talking to me, with clear, tangible advice on how to overcome obstacles and the challenges that all of us face.”

Mentoring the Next Generation

Several years ago, Finnegan was part of the team that introduced the Voya Investment Challenge in collaboration with Girls Inc. She and another colleague were chosen as volunteers to lead a group of eighth grade girls. They worked with the same girls through sophomore year, educating and mentoring them on financial foundations and how to take charge of their financial future. The challenge took place over three years, concluding in their sophomore year. They were given $50,000 pretend dollars gradually over their first year, which they invested it in stocks, bonds and other funds. They tracked the investment performance and made buy/sell decisions as you would with a real portfolio.
“It is so important for girls to gain exposure to these situations where they might not otherwise have the chance to learn these principles,” says Finnegan. Her involvement came full circle when a colleague attended this year’s celebratory lunch and excitedly told her that one of the speakers was a girl whom Finnegan had mentored, now attending Cornell University. “It was so impressive to see the success she had become.”

These days Finnegan is still mentoring young people, but it’s her own children, a five-year-old daughter and three-year-old twins. She’s also an avid reader and runner, but spends most of her time having fun with her family.

By Cathie Ericson

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Voice of Experience: Marla Arbiv, Managing Director, Accenture

Marla ArbivMarla Arbiv, a working mom of three, has led a nearly 30 year career at Accenture.

She spent the first two-thirds serving clients, traveling around the world and living across three continents. She’s worked in multiple cities across the U.S. and spent two years working at Accenture in Tel Aviv and later, in Sydney, for an additional two.

Currently living in Atlanta, Marla helped build the company’s Oracle capability in its North America Global Delivery Network and now focuses on the company’s Oracle Outsourcing business. As part of her role, Marla managed a pipeline for delivery center-based work and has invested a significant amount of time helping Accenture teams and clients adopt delivery models that enable more people to work locally, and remotely.

In fact, numerous women (and men) come to Marla for coaching on how to raise a family while advancing careers. Navigating this balance can be tricky when travel is extensive, and Marla has a personal desire to see people achieve a work life balance that works for them. She states, “I’ve personally promoted many of the Accenture programs for flexible work and tried to lead by example for my peers and colleagues. I think for many people, regardless of company or level, finding a balance can be difficult – but it is possible.”

Marla strongly believes she has proven that as a career woman, you can progress professionally while effectively managing family and other personal commitments. In this way, Marla has been a direct and indirect mentor for multiple people, at various points in their careers. She comments, “I’ve worked to develop longstanding relationships with people, even if they move to other parts of the business or away to other locations. I greatly enjoy being a mentor to others, and I hope that people perceive me that way. I work with people to understand their situations so that I can help them be successful.” Interestingly for Marla, most of her early mentors were men. She reflects, “I’ve always been a self-driver, so there were times when I didn’t have an active mentor, but I’ve always encouraged people to find support through mentors, male or female.” Marla attributes her lack of women mentors to the lower number of women in tech at the time.

Now, however, interest in technology among young women is on the rise, thanks in part to organizations like Girls Who Code (GWC), with which Accenture partners across the U.S., helping the organization inspire, educate, and equip young women with computing and professional skills that enable them to pursue technology careers. The company has hosted multiple GWC clubs across the U.S. including NYC and Chicago and, this year, has extended the program to Atlanta, where Marla served as the executive sponsor. She says, “The girls in the program spent seven weeks learning new skills and were exposed to real-world business expertise and mentorship opportunities. While GWC provided the curriculum and wonderful instructors, we scheduled field trips and guest speakers and coordinated a mentorship program with our people who met with the girls on a weekly basis.”

As a leading technology company with a commitment to gender equality, Accenture has a vested interest in supporting organizations like GWC and fostering the next generation of women tech talent. Labor force statistics show anticipated shortages of technology majors in the near future. As for the gender gap, there is a significant decline in graduation rates for young women with technology degrees.

For Marla, it’s also personal. “It really started with Accenture’s involvement with organizations like GWC and Code.org to open my eyes. My three children are in high school and I began to ask myself, what are we doing to promote careers in tech for these kids? Are my children being taught computer skills in school? On college tours I heard prospective students speak about what they’re interested in and very few indicated computer science. Technology education needs to happen before college.”

According to Marla, early education about career possibility in the field is imperative, as “technology is going to drive everything we do– regardless of job or industry.” Every field has a piece of technology. Everyone needs to understand the influence of tech, even if they don’t want to be a technologist. “Concepts that we were talking about when I first started at Accenture, that at the time seemed esoteric and impossible, are now the reality. Technology is expanding and fast moving – there’s opportunity for young women to really make a mark. It’s a great field to look forward to.”

Advice for young women? Pace yourself to be able to sustain the changes that happen both in your career and personal life. She offers, “A career in tech is not an easy one –change is rapid and expectations are high. But by seeking out opportunities to grow, and taking chances when you are not always comfortable, it provides for a rewarding career in an exciting field.”

Her admission about change being uncomfortable at times is balanced by Accenture’s encouragement and support in her pursuing new and challenging opportunities, which she says mirrors the changing pace of technology. “Throughout my career, I have balanced the times when I could be flexible and take chances, with opportunities that aligned to my personal needs raising three children. I now see how my career choices have positively impacted my kids. No doubt they picked up on my constant drive to ‘get things done’ and do my best to succeed in both my professional and personal life. They’re self-starters, and I like to believe that they saw me be a self-starter.”

Outside of Work, Marla enjoys traveling and hiking and has a knack for running long distances “when she finds time!” With three very active teenagers, 15, 16 and 17, Marla spends most of her personal time watching (and driving to) her children’s sports events – track & field/pole vaulting, basketball and soccer.

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Voice of Experience: Melissa Barrett, Managing Director, Chief of Staff Global Compliance & Head of Global Compliance Training, Goldman Sachs

Melissa Barrett By Cathie Ericson

“Work hard, seek advice from mentors, and the advancement opportunities will come,” says Melissa Barrett, Managing Director at Goldman Sachs, who has experienced that firsthand in her journey with the firm.

Barrett has spent 19 out of her 20 year career at Goldman Sachs, beginning in the Investment Management Division and then moving through several locations and departments to her current role in Compliance. “What is unique about Goldman Sachs is that there are so many opportunities to take on diverse roles while staying with the same firm,” she says. “I’ve loved having the opportunity to do different things at the firm and that I haven’t had to look outside of the company to be able to take on new challenges.”

Much of her current focus in Compliance is helping employees achieve a similarly diversified career, as she spends time on people initiatives for the division. Her goal is to determine what motivates employees and help them identify rewarding career paths at the firm. To address research showing that millennials are apt to job hop, Barrett spent time last year reaching out to other managing directors on ways to engage specifically with millennials. This year, she is doing the opposite and ensuring that millennials are best prepared to engage with people of different generations. “I want to figure out how to retain this generation and ensure they carry on the firm’s culture of employing high performers over the long-term,” she noted.

Mentors Can Make the Difference

Barrett attributes much of her success to trusting her mentors and managers, who encouraged her to take risks that she says she otherwise might not have considered. That’s why she believes it is important for professionals at all levels to find people who will be their sponsors or mentors. “Some of the moves I’ve made in my career were a result of someone I trusted advising me that taking a risk was the best move for me. Use your mentors’ guidance to help you navigate your career. No matter what their level, or whether they’re inside or outside the firm, find people who can answer questions and provide solid advice,” she says. “Have a diverse group of people you can turn to – at various points in your life and career you will need to seek advice from different people.”
Based on her positive experiences with mentors, she encourages her peers to sponsor women and act as a role model. “Think about what the younger generation is searching for and realize that you are what they aspire to be. Make an effort to support them and be open and honest about what attributes will lead to success. Being transparent about your personal struggles allows people to connect with you.”

Barrett advises younger women to be confident and trust in their abilities. “Have a voice and know that you have a place at the table and your opinion is valued,” she said. She also recommends that women get involved in activities at the company beyond day-to-day work, such as an affinity network. “I think one of the things that has kept me so tied to Goldman Sachs is that I’ve worked with and met so many people, and coming to work each day becomes more than just a job,” she noted.

She herself participated in the year-long Vice President Leadership Acceleration Initiative (VPLAI). One of the most unique facets was a feedback component that was directly targeted to specific areas of development. “I really appreciated that direct feedback so I could understand what skills and areas I needed to improve to get to the next level,” she said.

Balancing Work and Home

Barrett was already established in her career when she had her child, now three years old, so she has been adjusting to the challenge of being a working mother in the finance industry. “Every day is a juggling act to find time to be a good mom, a good spouse and take time for myself. Each person has to figure out how to make it work.”

Barrett also notes that flexibility and a work-life balance aren’t solely for working parents. “Ultimately, I think it’s up to you as an individual to determine what’s important to you and ensure you prioritize things outside of work. I try to lead by example in this regard.”

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Voice of Experience: Susanna Charlwood, Partner, Shearman & Sterling’s Litigation Group

Susanna CharlwoodWhile it’s easy to lament the disparity between the number of men and women in senior positions at law firms, Susanna Charlwood says that it does have a positive effect. “Since there are fewer senior women, it can help you stand out”. That attitude has been a source of confidence as she has built her career. Charlwood adds that she has not encountered difficulties or been treated differently as a woman in law.

Charlwood began her career at one of London’s “Magic Circle” firms and joined Shearman & Sterling three years ago as counsel in the Litigation Group. She was promoted to partner at the end of last year.

A Time of Change in the Field of Law

Currently Charlwood is involved in the final stages of a two-year investigation into certain activities at a European bank. Assisting clients in long term projects and counselling them through difficult times is something she particularly enjoys about her area of the law.

Contentious antitrust is an area where there has been significant recent legislative change in the UK. “For the past year or so we’ve been dealing with a lot of queries as our clients seek clarity on the implications of this new framework for them. The idea of the changes was to facilitate the recovery of damages for breaches of anti-trust law, bringing our process closer to that in the US. We are now waiting to see the effect of these changes.”

Lending a Helping Hand

Reflecting on her career, Charlwood remarks on the importance of building your network from the outset. “As well as being a great lawyer, it is key to understand the value of professional relationships and invest in making and maintaining them.” She recalls how many of her peers left private practice after a few years, and several today hold senior positions in the legal teams of major banks.

Charlwood also observes that junior lawyers sometimes are unaware of the scope to impress. “As the junior member of a team it may sometimes feel like you are not noticed, but you are – both internally and by clients. I have often had clients comment at length on how pleased they have been with the work done by particular associates.”

Charlwood says that while the number of women in senior positions in private practice may not have changed very significantly during her career, her impression is that there has been an increase in women in senior positions at her clients. She also comments that there is a lot more being done to encourage and facilitate women in pursuing long term careers at law firms. She says, “There are so many fabulous young women working at our firm and I really hope to see them flourish. I believe it’s my responsibility to them to help them fulfill their capabilities and to navigate the particular challenges that women may face in managing work and family.”

She believes it’s important for more seasoned women to show they can be dedicated to and successful in their job but also have a balanced life. “We have to model work/life balance so younger women see it as something achievable and enjoyable.”

Shearman & Sterling has many formal programs but Charlwood comments that informal mentoring relationships can be equally important. The advice she gives to younger women is, if they enjoy the profession, to have a plan and work towards it. “Be strategic, be confident and seek out opportunities.”

A Supportive Family

Charlwood’s husband is also a lawyer and so understands the demands of the profession and is very supportive. She also has a two-year-old daughter and says she feels having a family has increased rather than undermined her professional confidence. “You have to be very organized and efficient but, somehow, I feel the different perspective being a mother has brought me has been a positive thing professionally.”

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Voice of Experience: Tina Shell, Managing Director of Client Operations for Citi’s U.S. Retail Bank and Mortgage Businesses

tina shell“People are what draw me to opportunities. When you build relationships, you want to follow those whom you admire,” says Citi’s Tina Shell. Now that she is in a position to inspire others, she is focused on helping her own team develop. “Sometimes I take a chance on someone, when their talent or commitment might not be obvious, but I help them grow and identify what they’re good at it,” she says.

And sometimes Shell finds people need help identifying potential paths; for example, in operations, where there appears to be just one ladder, it might be difficult to see all the other opportunities that are out there. “I believe in strengths more than weaknesses so when you help people see theirs, they can move onto paths they hadn’t seen for themselves.”

That philosophy has helped guide her successful career through a constantly evolving industry – one that barely existed when she first started out. As Shell puts it, her journey “just happened along the way.”

Radical Changes within an Industry

Shell started her career in the industry working the phones in call center operations for SPS Payment Systems to earn money while attending college. “It’s a tough job and it stays with you,” she says. And she stayed with it. While she remarks that it’s a career path you might never think of, since many people don’t even what call center operations is, it has grown to be an entire industry, one in which you can even now earn a degree.

She had planned to become a professor, so she earned her master’s degree while working full time at the center. Her next step was earning her Ph.D., but she felt as though she needed a break before plunging back into school. Her managers had been discussing her potential for management opportunities so she decided to give it a try.

With the web and online services just a fledgling product, she was assigned to the division as a special project, working with others outside her area to get it up and running. From there she was recruited to manage two outsourced contact centers based outside of Chicago.

The new opportunities gave her a solid foundation, and when a former boss joined Citi, she eventually followed him and has been there 15 years. Today she wears numerous hats: she leads Client Operations for Citi’s Retail Bank and Mortgage Businesses; is Functional Program lead for the North America Contact Center Operations Digital Strategy for centers that service Retail Bank, Mortgage and Credit Card clients; and serves as the site president of the 3,000-employee Citi Service Center in Florence, Kentucky.

As she looks back on the twists and turns the industry has taken, she says that “contact center operations has been turned on its ear.” The old model was about customers calling in, and now we are moving to a model where most of the servicing and communications will take place via online mobile app. “What excites me is that we aren’t sure yet where the model will land,” she says, underscoring the importance of choice whether it’s online or on the phone. “Omnichannel servicing is important and with it comes a different employee of the future,” she says. “We have to build a pipeline of employees who see these jobs as valuable.”

To that end, Tina and her team are always looking toward the job of the future and how they prepare for it. With 4,000 employees, the majority of whom are interacting with customers, the model will change going forward, which will have repercussions for recruitment, hiring and training. “You want to make sure that the people who are in the job today can do it tomorrow.”

Building Women’s Stature in the Industry

She advises women entering the industry to realize they might have to be open to taking on assignments and roles where they are a little uncomfortable. “Those are the opportunities that get you recognized and where you learn the most,” she says. She adds that she wishes that earlier on in her own career she had relaxed and not stressed about the little things that always eventually work themselves out.

She is a big believer in cultivating relationships and networks. “I am so thankful for the people I‘ve worked with who have influenced me, but it doesn’t just happen. You have to focus on deepening and growing the relationships. One of the best pieces of advice she has been given is to talk to at least one person every day where you’re just checking in with them, not asking them for something.”

And that extends to her peer group, whom she encourages to support and advocate for each other and identify opportunities for one another.

Building those relationships requires getting out of your silos and working across departments. Over the years she has found it beneficial to participate in groups that allowed her to learn more about the business and its offerings from a global perspective. “You learn more about others’ frame of reference and that helps you think about things differently when you go back to your desk.”

Finding a Balance

Shell says it’s vital that workplaces encourage flexible work environments. “It used to be that if you left five minutes early, there would be a boss who would point it out, ‘I see you’re only working half a day today.’ We’re all becoming more accepting.”

Finding time for balance and recharging means that she will unplug, and rely on the confidence she has in the capable people managing the business in her absence. A favorite getaway for that unplugging time? Beach vacations, spent with family and friends.

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