Voice of Experience: Lorna Chen, Partner, Global Asset Management Group, Shearman & Sterling LLP, Hong Kong

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lorna_chenWelcome to The Glass Hammer’s Spotlight on Asia Week. We’ll be featuring profiles of successful business women working in Asia all week long!

By Michelle Hendelman, Editor-in-Chief

Lorna Chen, a Partner in the Global Asset Management Group at Shearman & Sterling’s Hong Kong office, wasn’t always sure where her career would take her, but she always knew that she would do something great. “If you ask me what made me what I am today, it is my subconscious belief in myself,” said Chen.

“I was born and grew up in Beijing as a native Mandarin Chinese speaker. I completed all of my schooling in Beijing and as an undergraduate and in graduate school, I specialized in English Language and Literature and American Studies. This turned out to be a very firm foundation for my future.”

Career in Law

“I think it was destiny that after I finished graduate school, I met a group of people who were opening up their own law firm. This was right around the time that China was beginning to open its doors and privatize the legal industry. I decided to join them because it was very challenging and interesting to work for a law firm.” She continued, “I took the first National Exam ever administered in China to become a trademark agent and I ranked first. My job was to go to the Chinese administration and address issues around major trademarks being copied without permission.”

This experience motivated Chen to take the bar exam in China despite not having her law degree, a practice that was, and still is, allowed in China. It was a very exciting time, explained Chen, since China was just starting their legal system. “Originally, I planned on attending business school to earn my MBA, but after I passed the bar exam, I decided that if I was going to stay in the legal field, I needed to get a law degree to become a lawyer.”

In 1997, Chen took advantage of a unique opportunity to spend six months in Frankfurt as an international associate for a leading German law firm that was considering expanding their practice into China. “Because I spoke English very well, I was the only person chosen out of about 2,000 lawyers to go to Germany. This experience started my journey in the legal profession outside of Beijing,” said Chen.

“I had already started to take charge in my firm, so I had a first mover advantage upon going to Frankfurt,” explained Chen. After accumulating so much experience in Beijing and Frankfurt, Chen decided the time was right to start applying to law schools in the United States. However, she was asked by the partners of the Frankfurt firm to stay on board for the rest of the year because one of their mid-level associates in their Hong Kong office was leaving the firm. “The year I spent working for Bruckhaus was very valuable and really opened my eyes to what it was like to work as an international associate.”

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Voice of Experience: Kathy Matsui, co-head of Economics, Commodities and Strategy (ECS) Research in Asia, chief Japan equity strategist, Goldman Sachs Japan

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Kathy_Matsui_GSWelcome to The Glass Hammer’s Spotlight on Asia Week. We’ll be featuring profiles of successful business women working in Asia all week long!

Although she was born and raised in the United States, Kathy Matsui became interested in living and working in Japan while she was there as a Rotary Scholar after finishing college. When Matsui returned to the US to attend graduate school in Washington D.C., she decided to focus on Japan Studies in order to expand her knowledge of the Japanese economy.

During graduate school, Matsui had the opportunity to return to Japan as an intern at a large Japanese bank. She recalled, “It was a tremendously eye-opening experience to work in a Japanese institution and I gained an interesting perspective on what it was like to work in a domestic organization.” Matsui continued, “After this experience, I decided that I did not want to work for a traditional Japanese company, mainly because I was concerned about how long it would take me to get to the level I knew I wanted to be at.”

Career Path

After graduate school, Matsui relocated to Japan and began looking for a job in an organization where she would be evaluated based on her performance. “I started in Japan’s financial industry in 1989 at the peak of the asset bubble and I was fortunate to have received several job offers,” said Matsui. “I accepted a job in the research department at Barclays de Zoete Wedd Securities where I was one half of a two person team,” she added.

Matsui has always worked in research and has always been based in Tokyo, which makes her career path unique compared to many other senior people in the financial industry who often work in different business divisions and different markets. “I love doing research,” said Matsui, “And this is where I enjoy working the most.”

In 1999, Matsui authored a landmark research study around the theme of “Womenomics” in Japan that had a major impact on her career and the Japanese business culture. In her research, Matsui outlined ways in which the Japanese economy would benefit as a whole by including more females in the labor force. She argued that if Japan could close its gender employment gap, it could boost the level of GDP by as much as 14-15 percent.

She said, “I picked this subject because I thought it would be an interesting topic to write about, and all of a sudden the research took off and I was being invited to speak about the topic frequently both inside and outside the industry.” Matsui continued, “In many ways, coming to Japan as a foreigner allowed me to gain insight into aspects of the economy and culture that I might not have had otherwise.”

According to Matsui, given the severe demographic pressures of a rapidly-aging society, there is a growing emphasis on getting more women to participate in the workforce in Japan. While Matsui still focuses on women’s empowerment through her research, she spends most of her time analyzing the Japanese economy and stock market, as well as helping to manage a macro research team spread across the Asia region.

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Voice of Experience: Maan Huey Lim, Partner, PwC Singapore

maan_huey_limWelcome to The Glass Hammer’s Spotlight on Asia Week. We’ll be featuring profiles of successful business women working in Asia all week long!

By Melissa J. Anderson (New York City)

“To be very candid,” began Maan Huey Lim, Tax Partner at PwC, Singapore, “Early on, when I started I was very much focused on the technical work. To be a good tax advisor, you need to spend a lot of time going though the legislation, and deciding how it would work in the real world. I spent a lot of time doing the work, but as a result, I spent less time on soft skills.”

But over the course of her career, her focus has expanded. She continued, “Don’t get me wrong – my clients loved me because I was doing top notch work. But as I progress, I find my focus changing. I’m spending my time really talking to people and engaging with the team around me. It’s such an important part of the business. I could not see as much when I was starting out. As an associate, a lot of your focus is on getting a good foundation, learning tax laws, and writing good advice. But it’s also important that you are really connecting and engaging with the team and clients you are working with.”

“You get so much more out of talking to people. You learn useful information, and the more you get to know people the more business comes to you along the way,” she added.

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Voice of Experience: Mary Patrice Brown, Partner, O’Melveny & Myers

Mary Patrice BrownBy Melissa J. Anderson (New York City)

Mary Pat Brown, Partner in the DC office of O’Melveny & Myers and member of its White Collar Defense and Corporate Investigations Practice, says one of the most important things for a young woman to learn early in her career is confidence.

Brown, a former Deputy Assistant Attorney General at the U.S. Department of Justice, said she shared this advice as a panelist at a career presentation. “While there are many things I wish I had known when I was younger, one was that I was not the dumbest person in the room after all.”

When you’re young and lacking in experience, she explained, there’s a natural tendency to feel that your insight isn’t as valuable as everyone else’s. But that’s not true – and in fact most people have these same insecurities. “When you’re young and you go into a room, you sometimes assume that you are not the smartest. The truth is, everyone else is feeling the same thing you are.”

By remembering that everyone is subject to doubts like these, women can better cultivate the confidence they need to advance.

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Voice of Experience: Clarine Nardi Riddle, Counsel, Kasowitz, Benson, Torres, & Friedman

Riddle.Nardi.Clarine_8423By Michelle Hendelman, Editor-in-Chief

For Clarine Nardi Riddle, Counsel, Kasowitz, Benson, Torres, & Friedman, it is difficult to pick one moment in her professional career of which she is most proud. This is because since graduating from Indiana University School of Law in 1971, Riddle has accumulated numerous achievements while working in local, state, and federal governments and in the private legal sector as well.

Although Riddle has several impressive milestones in her career to talk about, like becoming the first female Attorney General of Connecticut, being the first woman Attorney General to argue a case before the United States Supreme Court and win, and assisting in the drafting of the first Title IX plan during her third year of law school at Indiana University, she feels especially proud of the progress that has been made by women in law over the last few decades.

“At Indiana University, my class in law school probably had the largest number of women ever, and that was only a little more than twelve,” said Riddle. She continued, “It was a critical mass at that point, and we were just at the beginning of having more and more women apply to law school. It was a different world back then, and I am so happy to see where we have come since then. I am so proud of it all.”

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Voice of Experience: Philippa Nesbit, Chief Risk Officer, Citi Private Bank and Citi Holdings

Philippa NesbitBy Melissa J. Anderson (New York City)

Reflecting on her early career, Philippa Nesbit, Chief Risk Officer at Citi Private Bank and Citi Holdings, encouraged junior women to seek out broad opportunities to learn. “Really, the important thing is getting a diversity of your knowledge base. It’s easier to learn more and get a breadth of knowledge when you are junior. When you are a managing director, it’s hard to get those different experiences. I hadn’t appreciated the importance of that 20 years ago.”

She continued, “Tied to that, make sure you grasp every opportunity. Be really flexible and adapt the ways that you work. Our junior colleagues are from a generation with lots of tools and options to manage their careers – from day one, develop and build your network every day.”

“I attribute a lot of my success to being able to call many people – to get both business perspectives and career perspectives. I will always advise people to ‘push yourself’. Put yourself out of your comfort zone and into decision making roles,” she added.

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Voice of Experience: Laila Worrell, New York Metro Office Managing Director, Accenture

Laila Worrell, AccentureBy Melissa J. Anderson (New York City)

Laila Worrell, Managing Director of Accenture’s New York Metro Office, says some of the most important advice she’s received is, “when given a choice, choose on the side of generosity.”

She explained, “We all have demands on our time and resources that we must prioritize.  The advice I share often is to remember to err on the side of generosity.  If given the opportunity to support or mentor someone, view it as a privilege.”

Worrell also emphasizes the importance of building strong networks internally and externally. She noted, “Many of us feel too busy with other responsibilities, but it’s important to prioritize building and maintaining your network.  It can be an incredible resource to you throughout your life and career.”

Career Path

Currently Worrell is the leader of the company’s New York Metro Office, where she is responsible for 4,000 people in New York and New Jersey. She serves on the company’s North America leadership team and CEO Advisory Council, and she also leads the company’s work in the private equity sector.  Initially, though, Worrell didn’t anticipate a career in business.  She recalled, “I joined Accenture immediately after completing my undergraduate degree.  I had majored in liberal arts and was passionate about the academic world. I thought I would eventually return to academics.”

“However, I had an incredible experience with Accenture, and I found I was very passionate about business and helping clients solve some of their most complex business problems,” she continued.  She enrolled in Harvard Business School, graduating with her MBA in 1998.  After several years leading strategy and corporate development for a major media company, she had the opportunity to rejoin Accenture, shaping the company’s growth initiatives in the North American market.

Today Worrell works with clients in the financial services industry and is also involved in the company’s initiative around skills and competitiveness. “Accenture is undertaking work to support an initiative to increase the competitiveness of the United States in the global economy, including by leveraging skills as a driver of economic growth.”

This ties into Accenture’s Skills to Succeed global corporate citizenship initiative, she continued. “One of our economy’s key growth levers is our base of skilled resources.  Accenture is committed to helping even more individuals in our communities gain the skills they need to get a job or start a business.”

The topic of competitiveness is relevant to her work with financial services clients as well. “I spend a lot of time with our clients in the financial services sector. We’re going through an unprecedented period of change in financial services. There is an enormous amount of competitive pressure. The question is how can institutions continue to innovate, transform, and compete in a rapidly evolving environment. It’s fascinating working with our clients on these issues.”

Worrell says the part of her career that has been the most rewarding is helping others advance in their own careers. “When I’ve helped people build confidence to fulfill their potential, to see what’s possible, these are the types of achievements I’ve found rewarding, absolutely.”

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Voice of Experience: Natalie Trunow, Senior Vice President and Chief Investment Officer, Equities, Calvert Investments

Natalie Trunow, Calvert InvestmentsBy Melissa J. Anderson (New York City)

According to Natalie Trunow, Senior Vice President and Chief Investment Officer, Equities, at Calvert Investments, women and other minorities in the financial services industry can turn their diverse background into a competitive advantage. She encouraged women to consider the industry as a place where their personal viewpoints can make the difference in their firm’s success.

She advised, “I would try to not be so apprehensive about entering an industry with pockets of male dominated environments. If anything, this industry seeks out differentiated viewpoints. If you look at the industry today, compared to a few decades ago, there is a conscious reach for that differentiated viewpoint. Women, minorities, and people with international backgrounds do add to the mosaic of viewpoints and perspectives. In this globally competitive environment, firms are trying to add to that.”

She also encouraged women not to shy away from a big career in the financial services because of perceived work life challenges. “It can be done – you can have a family, be successful, and be competitive. If anything, perhaps you have an advantage because you’re part of a group that can add a differentiated viewpoint to the decision making process and help your organization succeed.”

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Voice of Experience: Heidi Levine, Co-Managing Partner, New York Office, DLA Piper

By Melissa J. Anderson (New York City)
Heidi Levine
“My advice for young female lawyers is to concentrate on doing excellent work that gets noticed by senior practitioners, rather than overly focusing on managing their careers,” said Heidi Levine, Co-Managing Partner of DLA Piper’s New York office.

Levine benefited from this strategy as a senior associate, with the support of a powerful sponsor who helped advance her career. Today Levine is also a member of DLA Piper’s Executive Committee, Co-Chair of the firm’s New York Mass Torts Practice, Co-Chair of DLA Piper’s women’s initiative called LAW (Leadership Alliance for Women), Co-Managing Partner of the firm’s New York office, all in addition to a thriving litigation practice.

She added, “Always be reliable and concentrate on being the best – it will lead to great things. Keep your eyes open and seek out mentors. But don’t think you’re entitled to one – you have to earn it.”

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Voice of Experience: Julie Harris, Managing Director, Goldman Sachs

Julie HarrisWelcome to Pride Week on The Glass Hammer — we’ll be profiling successful LGBT business women all week long!

Julie Harris, Managing Director at Goldman Sachs, had a master plan when she entered college – or so she thought. “I come from a blue collar family,” said Harris, “and while my parents have always been incredibly supportive, they did not have a lot of advice on career choices, so I picked a major that seemed challenging and figured I would get a good job. That was my mental model.”

Harris decided that she was going to major in Computer Science and get a job programming. This trajectory probably would have served Harris very well had she not determined in her senior year of college that while she was very interested in applying technology to business problems, she did not love programming.

It was at this juncture that Harris first tapped into a bit of profound professional wisdom. Harris said, “It was the first time I made the distinction between knowing what you can do and are good at, versus knowing what you love doing.” She adds, “This is something I have thought a lot about throughout my career when making choices. When you follow passions instead of just capabilities, it can be the difference between good and great.”

Although Harris had just spent four years preparing to graduate with a Computer Science major and enter the workforce as a top notch programmer, she was unwilling to settle. So, instead of heading to a traditional programming job, Harris decided to apply her technology background in a burgeoning industry at the time known as consulting.

“All the big accounting firms started building consulting arms because clients wanted total solutions.” Harris continued, “I started working at what was then known as Arthur Andersen, which became Andersen Consulting, and is now Accenture, in the Management Information Consulting division.” Out of the nine years Harris spent there, she only focused on programming for two of those years, ultimately moving to business analysis roles which focused more on application of technology to business problems .

Even though this experience formed the foundation for Harris’ professional career, she gleaned much more from her time as a consultant. Harris explained, “The great thing about a firm like that is that it taught someone who didn’t have professional experience how to be structured and disciplined, essentially how to be a professional.”

If Harris was going to continue to be a key player in the corporate arena she knew she had to familiarize herself with the business landscape in order to successfully navigate it. Although her knowledge of business, particularly in the financial services sector, was limited, Harris was not deterred. Instead, this motivated her to enroll in the MBA program at the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern.

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