By Melissa J. Anderson (New York City)
One key element in career advancement, according to Toni Mohammed, Client Manager at Marsh Inc., is being assertive about your goals. “I would advise young women to not be afraid to ask for what you want, work hard, keep pushing, and be patient.”
The other, she said, is building relationships. “This industry has a lot to offer. It’s also a very small world, so leveraging your networks early on will help you get to where you want to be.”
“I like to say I’m a child of insurance,” she said with a laugh, explaining that her mother worked in the industry for 25 years in Trinidad. “I kind of grew up in the industry.”
Born and raised in Trinidad and Tobago, Mohammed came to the United States on a scholarship, and went on to study math and actuarial science at Howard University. After completing actuarial internships at CIGNA, Nationwide, and Deloitte, she realized she wanted more client interaction, and took a position as an insurance broker at Marsh in Washington DC. As part of the firm’s Risk Analyst program, she developed a keen interest in Multinational, and within months of attending training in Atlanta, Georgia, she started working for the Multinational Client Practice as an International Property and Casualty broker.
Now Mohammed is a team leader and Multinational Advisor at Marsh, and co-leader of Pride@Marsh (the company’s LGBT affinity group). Mohammed has also become a sort of Middle East insurance expert. She recounts one of her proudest achievements as her work in this area.
“One of my defense clients had an auto fleet in Afghanistan, Iraq, Lebanon and other Middle East countries where certain local coverages were contractually needed. You can imagine in this economy it was a great challenge getting insurers to even offer these coverages, much less consider the aggregation risk concerns and cost,” she explained. “Fortunately with the expansive Marsh network and partners in London and the Middle East, I was able to find a solution for our client.”
“But I really have two jobs,” she continued. “My day job and my ‘gay’ job.”
“My day job of advising clients on what’s going on with international insurance and trends that can affect them is very exciting. Sharing knowledge with my teams and being part of a dynamic environment means that I’m always on my toes to see what works, how to improve, and how to change,” she explained.
“Balancing compliance with international regulations and cost analysis for international insurance programs are of key interest to me. With increased global scrutiny and the poor economy, there is greater tax activity by local governments when there is non-compliance with the insurance regulations. In some instances there are also hefty fines and penalties, including imprisonment, that our clients may be exposed to, so helping to explain international insurance regulations is key.”
“In my ‘gay’ job,” she continued, “we are also on the verge of change. With my co-leader Cris Castillo-Brizard, we have re-energized the LGBT group at Marsh called Pride@Marsh. We are getting involved in community and education. We are creating ties to business in ways that have never been done before. I am very proud the Marsh leadership is behind us and continues to do the right thing.”
Lale Topcuoglu, Portfolio Manager, Managing Director, Co-head of Global Investment Grade Portfolio Management, Goldman Sachs Asset Management
People, Voices of Experience“When I look back at my career, Goldman Sachs has been a land of opportunity for me,” she added.
How did she rise so quickly? Topcuoglu said one of the skills she’s glad to have learned in her career is the ability to negotiate. “Nobody really teaches you this,” she explained. Getting a sense of how your company really works is also important for career growth, she continued. “I learned pretty quick on the job, if you can understand how organizations work, the administration, it will help you.”
Finally, she said, learning self awareness was important for her advancement. “Be aware of your little professional quirks,” she said. “Sometimes I make knee jerk responses, and I’m learning to start with a yes, instead of a no.”
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35 Under 35: Angela Best, EMEA Group Tax Controller, Nomura
35 Under 35According to Angela Best, EMEA Group Tax Controller at Nomura, one of the lessons she wishes she had learned earlier in her career is to be more open to new experiences. “It’s to be less serious and enjoy life – not to be frightened to make mistakes,” she explained.
After graduating from the University of Kent, Best began her career at an accountancy practice, and when she received her chartered accountancy certificate, she moved to the investment banking industry, working in tax. “It was a smooth move,” she said. “I haven’t encountered any stumbling blocks.”
“When Lehman happened in 2008, I saw an opportunity that I was unlikely to encounter again.” Nomura acquired parts of Lehman Brothers’ Asian and European investment banking, fixed income and equities division, she explained. “It was the opportunity to marry two very different cultures together, however, it wasn’t just the people factor, but also the new working practices. It was a very challenging and unusual time.”
In fact, Best says her most interesting roles have involved working through technical projects in the context of change. In her last role, she led a team designing how a unit of previously outsourced work would be brought in house. “As part of it, we had to recommend the software we’d be using – which meant presenting to senior management, performing due diligence, and selling how it would work in house.”
Participating in the team brought her significant visibility with senior management, she explained. “I had to prepare and present our cost benefit analysis – it was very exciting.”
Currently she is working to coordinate with Nomura’s Indian service center, and enjoying the unique opportunity to learn about a new culture. “Within my department I look after European taxes. There’s a lot of reconciliation work that we’re looking to offshore to India,” she explained.
Best said she is paying keen attention to the challenges the banking industry faces. “There are reputation issues currently. It’s something everyone in our industry should be following, just to see where the industry is going.”
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35 Under 35: Toni Mohammed, Client Manager, Marsh USA
35 Under 35One key element in career advancement, according to Toni Mohammed, Client Manager at Marsh Inc., is being assertive about your goals. “I would advise young women to not be afraid to ask for what you want, work hard, keep pushing, and be patient.”
The other, she said, is building relationships. “This industry has a lot to offer. It’s also a very small world, so leveraging your networks early on will help you get to where you want to be.”
“I like to say I’m a child of insurance,” she said with a laugh, explaining that her mother worked in the industry for 25 years in Trinidad. “I kind of grew up in the industry.”
Born and raised in Trinidad and Tobago, Mohammed came to the United States on a scholarship, and went on to study math and actuarial science at Howard University. After completing actuarial internships at CIGNA, Nationwide, and Deloitte, she realized she wanted more client interaction, and took a position as an insurance broker at Marsh in Washington DC. As part of the firm’s Risk Analyst program, she developed a keen interest in Multinational, and within months of attending training in Atlanta, Georgia, she started working for the Multinational Client Practice as an International Property and Casualty broker.
Now Mohammed is a team leader and Multinational Advisor at Marsh, and co-leader of Pride@Marsh (the company’s LGBT affinity group). Mohammed has also become a sort of Middle East insurance expert. She recounts one of her proudest achievements as her work in this area.
“One of my defense clients had an auto fleet in Afghanistan, Iraq, Lebanon and other Middle East countries where certain local coverages were contractually needed. You can imagine in this economy it was a great challenge getting insurers to even offer these coverages, much less consider the aggregation risk concerns and cost,” she explained. “Fortunately with the expansive Marsh network and partners in London and the Middle East, I was able to find a solution for our client.”
“But I really have two jobs,” she continued. “My day job and my ‘gay’ job.”
“My day job of advising clients on what’s going on with international insurance and trends that can affect them is very exciting. Sharing knowledge with my teams and being part of a dynamic environment means that I’m always on my toes to see what works, how to improve, and how to change,” she explained.
“Balancing compliance with international regulations and cost analysis for international insurance programs are of key interest to me. With increased global scrutiny and the poor economy, there is greater tax activity by local governments when there is non-compliance with the insurance regulations. In some instances there are also hefty fines and penalties, including imprisonment, that our clients may be exposed to, so helping to explain international insurance regulations is key.”
“In my ‘gay’ job,” she continued, “we are also on the verge of change. With my co-leader Cris Castillo-Brizard, we have re-energized the LGBT group at Marsh called Pride@Marsh. We are getting involved in community and education. We are creating ties to business in ways that have never been done before. I am very proud the Marsh leadership is behind us and continues to do the right thing.”
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Voice of Experience: Sarah Walker, Executive Director, Enterprise Data & Services, Global Head IT & Data Operations; Securities Reference Data, Morgan Stanley
Voices of ExperienceThroughout her life, Australia-born Sarah Walker, Executive Director of the Enterprise Data & Services Group at Morgan Stanley, has demonstrated a devotion to solving problems and efficiency. Energetic and direct, she described how she entered the world of IT after becoming frustrated with the indirect pace of her university education.
She entered university intending to study journalism. “I wanted to be a writer,” she explained. “But I quickly decided I hated university! I thought I could pick up a book and learn anything they were going to teach me on my own. So I convinced my parents to say yes to me dropping out if I could find a job.”
“I think they only said yes because they thought I would never find one!” she said with a laugh. But, she continued, she did find work. “It was the early ‘90s and I got a job doing operations reconciliation work at Citigroup in Sydney. I had a big computer sitting on my desk, yet everything was still being done manually. I thought, ‘why are we doing this with a calculator and pencil and paper?’”
Walker turned her computer on, and worked out a way to turn the 8-hour ordeal into a 1-hour process. “From then on, I’ve been hooked. My career has been about making processes more efficient and solving problems.”
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Why LGBT Inclusiveness is a Business Matter for Everyone
NewsI am delighted to introduce our 2012 Pride month coverage on theglasshammer.com, starting with this week’s profiles of LGBT women.
Our profiled women this week are also the panelists at our event in London on the 26th June called “Managing Multiple Identities at Work.” The event is part of our career management series exploring social identity and how it relates to building your network and advancing in the industry.
I am sure at this very moment, there are readers who are shaking their heads and saying, “If you work hard enough, it doesn’t matter who you are.” I would beg to differ. Our very existence on the web would suggest that competence alone does not get women to senior management.
Most of the research around gender issues at work is done around straight white women, and in fact, adding degrees of difference from the so-called “norm” (such as being LGBT [PDF] and/or being multicultural) to the mix often creates additional barriers to advancement, due to harmful stereotypes that, incredibly, are still alive and well in 2012.
This is where a supportive company culture motivated by good leadership, along with the right sponsors and a powerful network, can play a huge role in ensuring the success of talented people of all stripes. It’s only when everyone accepts that we aren’t all the same and are able to “own” their social identity that they can begin to understand that privilege is usually greatest for those who find themselves in the dominant group – the group which gets to set the societal, and consequently, the workplace norms.
Diversity should not simply be relegated to the diversity department to “sort out,” nor is diversity a matter of taking a Noah’s Ark approach so commonly seen in the form of box ticking and compliance. We all play a part of what makes up a company’s culture, as culture is really how work gets done beyond the organizational chart. That is why we welcome men as gender champions to our upcoming event, as well as straight allies to come and be active in their support. It’s also why I’m delighted to announce that we will be offering leadership development courses around diversity and inclusion through our consulting and research arm Evolved Employer.
LGBT issues, as with gender and ethnicity issues, are business issues, and we must stop asking these groups to prove their legitimacy. The business and talent benefits will come if relationships are built in an inclusive way. However, that is not to say that we want everyone to “suck it up and fit in.” Otherwise we are encouraging assimilation and ultimately group think. All that energy around fitting in could be used to innovate products and invigorate business relationships.
Let’s not apply the golden rule of treating others the way that you wish to be treated, and instead, treat others how they themselves want to be treated. The competitive advantage will go to leaders who can spot who gets silenced at work, and who will prevent unconscious biases from being rewarded.
I hope we can be the role models that the next generation wants and needs us to be.
Leadership Lessons You Learned on the Playground
Expert AnswersI have reached the stage of my life where my friends are becoming parents daily. We often discuss how they plan to raise their kids and the lessons and values that they hope to instill in their children. After these discussions, I cannot help but reflect why some of those lessons from early childhood are so important throughout your life. Life is a journey, and the best lessons learned on how to be successful along that journey come from the lessons on the playground.
When I reflect upon my childhood, often my mother was so protective of me. When she heard of a fight at school or someone making fun of me, she sought to protect her cub. She never hesitated to reach out to the opposing parent and negotiate an apology or solution to the brawl. She acted instinctively on guard because her child was at risk. However, she failed to let me learn how to defend myself appropriately, work out my own issues, and stand up for my beliefs.
As the only boy and youngest cousin, often my brother was coddled to the point where he strutted along like the little prince. In his eye he could do no wrong. But occasionally he made a mistake or two and deflected with, “Well, I am the boy.” He did not have the ability to recognize a mistake, apologize, and rectify the situation. Learning how to make amends and maintain your composure is a skill of a winner.
I remember joining a soccer team and fearing that if passed the ball onto another team member, they might not receive the ball. This fear of trusting my teammates drove me to excel as a singles tennis player. But it did not solve the main issue – I needed to learn how to work well with others. As a professional, trust is the key element of teamwork. Sometimes we may not agree with the style of play of our teammate; but because that person is on our team, we need to put forth the effort and let them know that we have their back and respect them even when our opinion is different.
My parents so wanted me to succeed in my elementary school days that I now believe that they guarded the path with bumpers as a precaution in case I should fall. This path was so strictly guided that there was little room to be misguided, to accidentally get lost, or to test out different routes. It was sufficiently cushioned that I did not have to learn how pick myself up and keep moving because it was always moving for me. I suppose that it would have helped me develop a thicker skin to handle rejection and alternative choices sooner. Life will not always go according to plan. Sometime I need to redirect energy focused on what went wrong towards the direction of getting back up, dusting myself off, and moving forward to accomplish my goal even if it takes longer.
Often on family vacations we would play card games like “go fish” or “old maid” on rainy days. In these games I played to win and occasionally I lost. Instead of viewing those instances like a setback, I stormed off in a huff looking for excuses to blame my loss and hide my embarrassment. Instead of retreating, I lacked the self-confidence to enter a competition with the knowledge that sometime winning is not always possible and with an ability to shake the competitor’s hand when in defeat. Sometimes what matters is having a winning attitude and doing everything possible to work towards that goal. Establishing self-confidence early in life is so important in order for one to head into any situation with the appropriate attitude in order to move on regardless of the situation’s outcome.
I recognize that being a parent is one of the toughest roles that a woman can fulfill in her life. I often wonder what kind of mother I will be. I hope that when the opportunity comes that I remember these lessons above as a guidebook to raise a strong and confident child.
Addressing Work-Life Challenges in Asia
Work-LifeAccording to the latest report by Catalyst, work-life fit is a key issue in Asia – for women and men. In fact, the research – which polled almost 2,000 high potential employees of US or European multinationals working in Asia – revealed that 89% of women and 91% of men said work-life fit was “very important” to them.
On the other hand, only about half of respondents said work-life fit was “easy.”
As companies become more global, Catalyst says, they need to begin devising work-life strategies that work in the context of local cultures. The authors, Laura Sabattini and Nancy M. Carter, explain, “As with other workplace strategies, implementing work-life programs requires the thoughtful integration of a global approach and local customs to ensure the strategies make sense in employees’ day-to-day lives.”
While men and women reported similar views toward work-life fit in the research, the authors believe that the issue is more salient for those companies looking to get the competitive edge by attracting and retaining more women. They write, “Hiring skilled women can provide a competitive advantage for global companies, especially in countries such as India and China, where women’s economic and workforce participation is on the rise.”
They add, “Global enterprises have the potential to influence employment practices–across both borders and continents, creating work environments that foster greater consideration of employees’ unique work-life challenges and that are more inclusive of women.”
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Women Abroad – How to Get the Most from an International Assignment
Managing ChangeRosalie L. Tung is all too familiar with the challenges that women face when it comes to international assignments. As the Professor of International Business at Simon Fraser University in Canada, Tung has devoted countless hours to researching and writing about these challenges, but they may not be what you think. In her groundbreaking work Female Expatriates: The Model Global Manager?, Tung asserts that women are actually ideal candidates for overseas assignments and the challenges they face have little to do with the difficulties of being in a new country, but rather in the difficulty they experience actually getting the opportunity to work abroad.
The percentage of women in international assignments increased from 3 percent to 16 percent in the late 1990s. Throughout the 2000s, the percentage increased, though very slowly. Most recent studies have either put the percentage of women in international assignments at or slightly below 20 percent. Tung sites three factors outlined by Nancy J. Adler that are commonly provided by companies for the low deployment of women in international assignments: women don’t want overseas assignments (due to family considerations), other countries don’t want female expatriates in business dealings, and women lack the skills or competencies to succeed. These are “misconceptions” and as Tung wrote in Female Expatriates, “As long as women remain under-represented in international assignments, they will continue to lack the opportunity to acquire one of the critical competencies required of global leaders.”
This is more than just being denied one job opportunity; it’s more like being denied vital experience that can drastically change the course of your career. As Tung points out, the continued globalization of industries has led to a quest by organizations worldwide for global leaders who can help their companies survive in highly competitive work environments. In a global economy, people with global experience are pivotal to an organization’s competitive edge and women have often been excluded from promotions and leadership positions because they appear to lack one of the critical competencies identified for such key roles: a global mindset.
Once again, women find themselves in a Catch-22: they can’t move forward unless they have experience working internationally, but they’re not given the opportunity because of unfair assumptions about their competence and willingness to work abroad.
Fortunately, some women are chipping away at these misconceptions – and providing key strategic advice on navigating the challenges of taking an international post.
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Challenging Stereotypes at This Year’s NCWIT Summit
Managing ChangeUnderstanding and breaking stereotypes was a hot topic at the National Center for Women and Information Technology (NCWIT) Summit last week in Chicago. The NCWIT was established in 2004 with support from the National Science Foundation to increase the amount of women in computing and technology. NCWIT does not consider themselves a women’s network rather a change leader bringing men and women together to recruit, develop, and retain women in information technology.
One of the speakers at the Summit was Dr. Shelley Correll, a professor at Stanford University who studies how gendered expectations shape the everyday experiences of men and women in achievement-oriented settings. She spoke on the value of understanding biases and stereotypes within the hiring process.
Dr. Correll began her presentation referring to a study about the number of female musicians performing in orchestras. A study co-authored by Cecilia Rouse, an associate professor at Princeton University, and Claudia Goldin, a professor of economics at Harvard University, confirmed the existence of sex-biased hiring by major symphony orchestras and illustrated the value of blind auditions.
According to Correll, females only represented 5% of the musicians that played in symphony orchestras in the 1970’s. When blind auditions were introduced, musicians played behind a screen so the sex of the musician was hidden, 50 percent of the musicians that moved on to the second round of auditions were females. Today, females make up 25 percent of the musicians in symphony orchestras.
“This study points out two things,” said Correll. “The first is that gender stereotypes bias the evaluations of individuals in ways that are often male advantaging. The second is that these biases can be reduced or eliminated.”
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How Telling Your Story Can Make You A Better Leader
Ask A Career CoachOne of my clients is taking on a new CEO role. The company has gone through some tough challenges and changes and she wants to find a way to connect with the people that she will be leading in a way that is authentic. She wants to lower the collective high blood pressure in the room that typically results when new Management comes in. Most new CEO introductions are about the challenges the company faces, the new CEO’s strategy for success (i.e. let me save you from the mess you’ve created) and what the new CEO needs from the employees (your jobs may be safe if you all just do what I say). When people are anxious or wondering whether they will have a job on Monday, how well do you think that goes over?
My client decided to take a different tact. Her goal is to really connect with the employees in the company, to learn from them what works and doesn’t and to enroll them in helping her find the solutions. And there is no better way to connect with people than by telling your leadership story. Here are five steps you can take today to articulate that story and start sharing it to more powerfully connect and engage with others.
Those of us who experienced story telling in our families, or around a camp-fire as children, understand the impact stories have on our experiences and the very formation of who we are and our values. There is new research from neuroscience about the power of story-telling to shape our brains as reported in this New York Times article.
So, here are the five steps.
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