Tag Archive for: professional women

Rupal Shah: Principal, PGIM Fixed Income

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Rupal ShahRupal Shah describes her journey, which includes taking uncomfortable (but intentional) leaps in her career, finding her voice, staying challenged, humble and authentic, and dedicating her time to the service of others.

“Create the greatest, grandest vision possible for your life and career because you become what you believe.”

Big Leaps to Follow Her Own Compass

Shah’s parents immigrated to the U.S. from India with master’s degrees and not much else. Her childhood is defined by watching and learning from their hard work and sacrifice. “My parents’ determination and perseverance are in my DNA. They each worked multiple jobs and navigated innumerous obstacles as foreigners in a new country. They had a vision of a life they wanted to give our family and they manifested that vision.”

She lives by the lessons that her parents taught her with their actions. Similarly, Shah paved her own career path, learned from her mistakes and was able to navigate the challenges she faced along the way on her own. “Create the greatest, grandest vision possible for your life and career because you become what you believe.”

Shah recounts, “Each step of my career taught me meaningful characteristics about myself and helped me make my next leap.” Shah spent some of her earlier years in back-office roles within Goldman Sachs, ultimately transitioning to an analytical role within the sales and trading division. Simultaneously, she was getting her MBA part-time at New York University’s Stern School of Business. Despite the hectic schedule, she learned the importance of networking with people around the firm to learn about their roles. It was through these conversations that she was able to determine where she wanted to lead her career path.

“The time spent networking paid dividends and those relationships are my currency,” she says. Post graduate school, after 32 interviews and various naysayers, Shah was given an opportunity to cover strategic relationships within Goldman Sachs’ Asset Management Division, despite various senior professionals deterring her from applying for the opportunity.

“The firm told me they were taking a leap of faith on me. As appreciative as I was of the opportunity, I felt like the underdog. If nothing else, this motivated me to work harder to succeed. There were many times during my career where I was told I couldn’t, or I shouldn’t, or I wasn’t included. I would tell myself that I do not need a seat at that table, I will just build my own. I realized I needed to trust my instinct, and rather than any firm taking a leap of faith on me, I would take leap of faith on myself.”

“Your career is your own. Make sure you’re the one driving it.”

As an Indian American woman in fixed income, Shah has had to reach beyond her comfort zone and override both self-doubt and conditioning, to find her voice. While the context can be intimidating, she realized she had to stop putting up extra hurdles for herself and trust her instincts.

“In my culture, we were raised to not challenge or question anything. We were taught that respect was blindly listening to your elders. But I saw time and time again how this learned behavior would be a detriment to my career,” says Shah.

“In my first few roles, I was scared to ask questions or challenge others. I remember having hard days and I would not speak up when there was something that needed to be said. These situations continued over the years, and I learned that what I had to offer was valuable. I forced myself to develop a voice and really stick to what I believe in and be authentic in that. More than ever, I know my voice matters. It’s been a long path to get here but I see the rewards of taking a view and sticking to it with certainty.”

When thinking back on the journey, she’d encourage her younger self to develop that confidence sooner. “The young women we interview today are so confident and impressive, and I love seeing that.”

Staying Challenged

Shah’s mantra is “if you’re not challenged, you’re not growing.” She continuously asks herself if she feels comfortable in roles. If the answer is yes, she knows she is not evolving. “Comfort becomes shackles to growth. I always want to step so far out of my comfort zone that I forget how to get back.”

Recently, Shah was given the opportunity to build the third-party insurance business for PGIM Fixed Income. Shah has had to push herself out of her comfort zone and trust the strength and skills she has developed over the years. “It’s rewarding to have been able to forge a path that truly will be successful for our firm. I’m incredibly excited to strategically build something new. I’ve been blessed with great opportunities to build and create throughout my career, but this is certainly a new frontier. Thinking of new ideas, strategies, products, building a new team and learning different concepts is challenging and exhilarating.”

“It is important to stay humble and authentic to yourself to be a strong leader.”

Since Shah joined PGIM Fixed Income, she has been involved in recruiting, hiring, and retaining talent. “Our people are our biggest asset. Hiring, training, and nurturing our talent is our greatest responsibility. When people come to work, they should love being here. I want people not only to feel motivated about their work product but also by the work environment,” says Shah. “I’m a huge believer that each person is treated like an individual and should feel empowered. I really nurture my relationships, and that’s a huge part of my leadership.”

“I’ve worked for some truly inspirational people that have shown me the type of leader I want to be. I picked traits along the way and found the style that I felt truly represented the person I am. I lead with kindness and respect, I am the first one to admit when I am wrong, and I embrace that we are all continuously evolving.” Being an authentic leader helps garner mutual respect amongst the team and her leadership is what Shah deems to be her greatest success.

The Most Rewarding Work

As a mother of two, Shah navigates a thriving career, being a fully present mother, running marathons and co-running a charity. Shah says, “It certainly is not easy, but if it’s not hard, it’s not worth it.”

Orphan Life Foundation is the charity Shah co-leads. Her contribution involves supporting orphaned children in India and Burkina Faso from providing basic human needs such as food, clothing, bedding, etc to larger projects such as installing water filtration systems and providing bikes as transport to school.

As a child, Shah’s parents took her family to India every two years. They would visit an orphanage near her father’s hometown and contribute to support the children. The trips were so much more than visiting family.

“It kept me close to my roots, truly humbled me and filled me with gratitude for the opportunities I would have ahead. Those trips really define who I am today,” Shah says. Her charity work continues this tradition, including visits to India.

Shah is currently working on setting up a mentor program between the orphanage in Burkina Faso and a local school in Newark that she has spent time with over the years. She wishes to gift her own children the relative perspective of gratitude for the life they have, the hard work and effort it takes to succeed, and awareness of helping others who were not born into the same.

“This is what I do for me,” says Shah. “I love my career, my family, and the impact I can make. It’s all so exhilarating, but nothing really rewards like this.”

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Sheri Crosby Wheeler: Vice President, Diversity and Inclusion, Fossil Group

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Sheri Crosby Wheeler“I just thought to reach out and find the true picture of the world,” is how Sheri Crosby Wheeler describes leaving her Texas hometown, Brownwood, where she grew up economically disadvantaged and without African-American professional role models, for university and then law school.

Speaking of her background, she says, “I feel like it has given me the grit, the resilience, the fight, the get-up-and-go that I have to this day. I won’t see myself as ever being down and out, and I won’t stay in a ‘woe is me’ place, not for very long.”

The determination to seek possibilities beyond her circumstances has been vital to Crosby Wheeler’s career trajectory from law to diversity and inclusion (D&I).

When Mentors Are Absent

Throughout law school and her legal career, mentors were missing, and she didn’t know how to reach out.

“I wish at that time I knew that if you’re gonna go down a path, you should talk to people who have been down that path already so they can steer you clear of the potholes and the explosions,” she says, for example missing out on a judicial courtship. “I was just very much ‘I know how to do it’, because before that, I had done it all on my own.”

In the absence of mentors, “I crashed and burned, stumbled and failed,” Wheeler says, “I didn’t do well at my first law firm. And for someone who was used to doing well up to that point, it was kind of earth-shattering.”

Getting back up, however, taught her to take risks and eventually to leap paths.

Vicarious Mentorship

In lieu of mentors, Crosby Wheeler has “professionally stalked” role models she admires. This once led her to eventually join the law firm of a lawyer she followed for nearly a decade. Today, her “professional crush” is Vernā Meyers, VP, Inclusion Strategy at Netflix, who like her, holds a law background.

“I’m watching them from afar. What did they do? I’m gonna try that,” she says. “I tell people that the mentor you think you want to have may not be accessible to you one-on-one. They may not necessarily have the time in their day and career to mentor you, but that doesn’t mean they can’t be your secret mentor.”

Daring to Reinvent Herself

“Now initially, I will say I was fighting it,” recalls Crosby Wheeler about her desire to leave litigation. “I was like, no. I have chosen law. I’m gonna push, I’m gonna strive.”

But there came a moment as a contract lawyer when the work no longer felt aligned, and she realized “something has got to give.”

“In my mind, I always knew,” reflects Crosby Wheeler. “I didn’t know when, I didn’t know how, and I didn’t know where I would be going.” That willingness to stop pushing uphill and embrace the uncertainty of career change is a defining moment she is proud of.

After resolving to change paths, an opportunity appeared and became the shift that led to subsequent bigger moves, including three entirely new opportunities that landed on her D&I responsibility at Mr. Cooper, before moving to Fossil Group in 2021.

Sponsorship and Networking Are Essential

While lacking early on, sponsorship was ultimately key for Crosby Wheeler in reaching where she is now, particularly those people who looked at her, saw the potential and extended her the chance to expand into entirely new areas.

“If someone hadn’t put their skin in the game, I wouldn’t even be in this role,” says Crosby Wheeler.

Crosby Wheeler is now passionate about mentoring others. “To remember when I’m going forward, to continue to reach back to young attorneys, to other professionals,” she says. “To the extent that I can, I do. I know how important that is because some of that was missing in my journey.”

She also swears by a consistent network of friends and colleagues who can pick up the phone to support each other.

“I tell young professionals to right now start building that network. And don’t look at the network as what they can do for you,” she says. “Look at the network as what you can do for them. What can you give them? How can you help them? That is how you build a stronger network.”

“Real Good D&I, Not Feel Good D&I”™

“Now I am seeing that direct impact – the ability to positively impact people, businesses and communities,” Crosby Wheeler says of her D&I experience. “What underlies diversity work, and some legal work, is fairness and justice – and that’s a theme that has been a common thread throughout my life. That is what really speaks to me in this work.”


With racial justice issues at the national forefront, Crosby Wheeler sees this as a moment for companies to advance equity like never before. 

“More people are focused on it, caring about it, and understanding the importance,” she observes. “More people are willing to have the conversation. That’s what we’ve needed all along.”

“It can feel uncomfortable, but there is growth in discomfort,“ she says. “I don’t know about you, but I like to grow. I like to change. I like to get better. It’s just like people going to the gym. Your muscles are sore because you worked them. There was some discomfort there. Same thing. You’ve gotta work your D&I muscles for you to grow, for you to get better.”

Crosby Wheeler is observing a shift to “Real Good D&I, Not Feel Good D&I”™.

“‘Feel Good D&I’ can also be considered performative,” she says. “‘Oh yea, we just had this potluck and we put up a statement, woo!’ Well, that’s not changing things for people. That’s not changing systems, policies, procedures, laws, so ultimately it’s not changing things.”

An example of “Real Good D&I” is a company being transparent about where they are on the journey, and creating sustained organization-wide accountability to shift it.

“Having accountability that recognizes that it’s everyone’s issue, that it permeates the entire organization. That it’s not ‘that department over there, they’re doing this’.” she says. “No. Everybody is doing this, because this runs throughout the whole company. That’s what it takes – everybody working on it.”

Because “Real Good D&I” is sustained effort and change, it’s hard to gauge by quick metrics.

“It’s not like regular business operations where you’re looking at numbers, where it’s dry and objective,” Crosby Wheeler presses. “This is people, emotions, and feelings involved as well. So you’re trying to change hearts as well as minds. That’s not simple and that’s not easy and that’s not quick.”

Sourcing Growth From Adversity

Crosby Wheeler boldly chooses the experience of being fired from a legal job early on in her career as a key moment in her character development.

“It let me know that I can come back from a mistake, from what I thought was the worst thing ever.” she says. “I remember saying at the time ‘now I’m gonna find out what I’m really made of,’ and I did. I hope that I can exude that for other people to take in, and know they will also be okay too.”

And she does.

By Aimee Hansen

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Happy Martin Luther King Jr Day 2021: Celebrating Black Women at Work!

Women at WorkMartin Luther King Jr. has been recognized as an “icon for democracy,” and today is a time for people from every race, ethnicity, and culture to celebrate. As we look back on the past year, we hope that you find inspiration from the incredible black and African American women we have profiled and want to share with you again today. Together, we can create a stronger foundation for a better workplace in the future.

If you or someone you know should be nominated to tell their career story on TheGlassHammer around our digital campfire in 2021 to inspire others, we would love to hear from you.

Please enjoy these articles in which each amazing professional gets to tell their story and how each individual has had to navigate the journey as women of color. There are themes like the  importance of self-advocacy, sponsorship and organizational commitment to reducing barriers and systemic issues. In particular, Black women already face more barriers to advancement than most other employees, and now, they are shouldering much heavier burdens. Black women are more than twice as likely to say that the death of a loved one and incidents of racial violence across the U.S. have been overwhelming challenges during the pandemic. According to the Women in the Workplace study, now Black women say they cannot bring their whole selves to work and are more than 1.5 times as likely to say they do not feel like they have strong allies at work.

LeanIn and other sources suggest that to better support Black women, companies need to take action by addressing these distinct challenges head-on and fostering a culture that values Black professionals in the workplace. Companies need to emphasize that discriminatory behaviors and microaggressions against Black women will not be tolerated. Also, giving Black women a voice in shaping new company norms, can provide unique perspectives and experiences when creating a more inclusive workplace culture.

      1. Veronica Willis, Investment Strategy Analyst at Wells Fargo Investment Institute

Willis discusses a career shift into investment strategy, finding her own stride as a leader, and what the remote working environment has taught her so far.

“I’ve learned a lot of strategies about productivity during this working-from-home time due to COVID-19. I’ve also learned a lot about what really is high and low priority, so now I know what to focus on and I will take this back to the office with me.”

      2. Melanie Priddy, the Chief Talent Officer at Katten

Priddy speaks about the value of connections, the need to merge professional development with diversity, and the importance of self-advocacy.

“At the end of day, relationships are the key to everything, regardless of what industry you’re in, or what your profession is.”

      3. Beverly Robinson, Client Service Consultant at Abbot Downing

Robinson discusses how she is a woman both of influence and advocacy.

“As an African American woman in Corporate America, I’ve learned that I cannot afford to be thin-skinned when my ideas are usurped, re-mixed or claimed by others. There’s an art to being a woman of diversity, inclusion and advocacy.”

      4. Afua Richardson-Parry, Senior Medical Manager at Pfizer Ltd.

Richardson-Parry had always strived to be a hands-on person, prone to learning new things in keeping with the pace of a dynamic and changing healthcare ecosystem.

“Knowing what you’re best at and what others can and should do instead of doing it all yourself allows you to be your best.”

      5. Shani Hatcher, Financial Advisor at Wells Fargo Advisors

Hatcher shares how taking a compassionate approach to wellbeing and family time, especially during the current pandemic, has become extremely useful.

“The best thing about my job is helping people. It is humbling that I can be there for my clients during difficult times, I don’t want them to feel alone. I, too, am an individual and a mother dealing with the pandemic, so I tell them we can get through this together.”

      6. Devlyn Lorenzen, Business Support Associate at Wells Fargo Advisors

Lorenzen talks about how a turning point in her career helped her develop a renewed confidence and determination.

“Take charge of your own narrative and find people who will speak up for you.”

      7. Kacy J. Gambles, SVP Regional Manager of Investment and Fiduciary Services for the East Bay and San Jose California Regions at Wells Fargo Private Bank

Being an African American executive, Gambles discusses her journey in the financial services industry and how proud she is to be navigating the journey as a woman of color every day.

“Be bold, be brave and just be you. Don’t shrink to please the people around you.”

      8. Melandee Jones Canady, Delivery Executive at AARP

Over the years, Canady has learned that if you’re not upfront about letting people know your accomplishments, it opens the door for others to create your narrative on your behalf.

“I wish I had been more vocal early on; I was a doer quietly performing my work, until someone pulled me aside and said I needed to start broadcasting more of my achievements.”

      9. Claudine A. Chen-Young, Partner at Katten

Chen-Young shares her attention has shifted focus toward mentoring and sponsoring women associates in meaningful ways on a broader scale, an emphasis she continues today.

“What drives me is the impact I can have on other people.”

 

We look forward to hearing from you and hope that the spirit of Martin Luther King Jr. will inspire us and the words of Maya Angelou will be something we live by today and always because there is so much truth to her proclamation of “When you know better, you do better.”

Walk the talk! Everyday.

 

Contact Allie@theglasshammer.com if you want to be considered for a profile or editorial submission

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Veronica Willis: Investment Strategy Analyst, Wells Fargo Investment Institute

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Veronica Willis“I’ve learned a lot of strategies about productivity during this working-from-home time due to COVID-19,” says Veronica Willis. “I’ve also learned a lot about what really is high and low priority, so now I know what to focus on and I will take this back to the office with me.”

Wells Fargo’s Willis discusses a career shift into investment strategy, finding her own stride as a leader, and what the remote working environment has taught her so far.

Moving Toward Investment Analysis

A Chicago native, Willis graduated from Washington University in St. Louis, majoring in mathematics with a concentration in statistics and a second major in Spanish language and literature.

After joining Wells Fargo in 2012, she put her quantitative prowess into application in researching and running quantitative models for developed and emerging countries, commodities and currencies.

From working in heavy quantitative analysis, she began to investigate the strategic side and felt herself pulled in that direction.

“I realized the writing side was interesting to me,” says Willis. “I began to explore the research and strategy side, especially around commodities. And while the quantitative work still mattered, I found my interests were going in a different direction.”

In 2015, she began to move into research and recommendations around asset allocation with the head of asset allocation, bringing strategic market insight into advising investors on how to minimize risk and maximize success, in alignment with their investment goals.

Currently she is part of Wells Fargo Investment Institute, focusing on clients of Wells Fargo’s Wealth & Investment Management division —where much like bridging the rich diversity of her two university majors, she combines an aptitude for quantitative and qualitative insight.

Becoming a Leader

Willis is proud of the new tax efficient asset allocation models that launched on December 1, a project she worked on throughout this year and for which she took the lead.

“It’s been a great opportunity to show my leadership abilities,” reflects Willis. “It’s really amazing we were able to get this completed in this complicated year.”

As she takes on new leadership opportunities and challenges, Willis is coming into stride with the gear-shift that rising to leadership asks of her.

“As a leader, I’m excited to learn how to take the lead in projects, how to manage peers and take ownership,” she says. “That can be a fine balance if you move from working with people as peers to then being in charge of a project. I struggled a little with the shift at first.”

However as she ventured into this territory, Willis quickly gleaned?? that real leadership is never a one-size-fits all approach, but a matter of listening and attentiveness.

“I think the key is to figure out how people want to be managed, style-wise,” says Willis. “Some people want autonomy and to be left alone. Some people want a lot of check-ins. As a leader, you need to meet them in the style that is best for them.”

Willis is now enjoying expanding her experience in people management.

“I want to be a leader who develops people on the team,” she says, “I want to guide them in their careers, especially now in this remote work environment, as teams are geo-diverse, and there’s just not the opportunity to catch up in the office as there once was.”

Attuning the Work-Life Balance

Willis finds that the remote workplace has prompted her to increase mastery of her time management and prioritization skills.

“I’ve learned time management working from home,” says Willis, who produced a massive amount of intensive research during the volatility in the spring. “I used to pull long days and check emails outside of the office constantly. I realized when I was working from home that I had to draw some boundaries and stop at a certain time.”

Stepping away from the office, Willis has found it easier to curtail the 24/7 availability habits and instead create a better work-life balance.

“It’s very easy to stay logged in, checking and replying to emails, long after the work day has finished,” says Willis. “I’ve learned it’s okay to turn off the work phone, and I plan to continue to have the off-time delineation when we go back to the office.”

Mentoring and Supporting Others

During the first year of her career with Wells Fargo, Willis had a formal sponsor who advocated for her and still does to this day.

Willis has found that mentorship is very valuable in building up her transferable skills, and she wishes to pass that support onto others.

“My mentor helped me find my voice to help others and build my skills,” she says. “I mentor people who are now going through the same program that I myself started my career in.”

Outside of work, Willis also serves on a young professional board at the Saint Louis Crisis Nursery, focused on stopping abuse and neglect of children. She supports the organization in creating a safe space for kids to come and providing help-line support for overwhelmed parents in need.

Be Willing to Discern and Expand

If she could say anything to her younger self, it would be to practice discernment and own your ‘no’s’ as much as your ‘yes’s’ in alignment with valuing your time and professional goals.

“It’s okay to say no to some requests,” she reflects. “I was always saying ‘yes’ early in my career, and I would tell my younger self to be more selective, especially if you’re trying to build a specific skill-set.”

Her advice to others is not to let your past interests or roles define the latitude of your future possibilities.

“Don’t necessarily box yourself in — you don’t have to be what you studied in college. You can explore new things that interest you and that you have passion around,” Willis encourages. “It’s okay to build those skill, and then it’s okay to follow your passions and grow.”

 

Risks

All investing involves risks including the possible loss of principal.

 

Disclosures

Wells Fargo Investment Institute, Inc., is a registered investment adviser and wholly-owned subsidiary of Wells Fargo Bank, N.A., a bank affiliate of Wells Fargo & Company.

The information in this report is for general information purposes only and is not intended to predict or guarantee the future performance of any individual security, market sector or the markets generally. 

The information contained herein constitutes general information and is not directed to, designed for, or individually tailored to, any particular investor or potential investor. This report is not intended to be a client-specific suitability or best interest analysis or recommendation, an offer to participate in any investment, or a recommendation to buy, hold or sell securities. Do not use this report as the sole basis for investment decisions. Do not select an asset class or investment product based on performance alone. Consider all relevant information, including your existing portfolio, investment objectives, risk tolerance, liquidity needs and investment time horizon.

Wells Fargo Wealth and Investment Management, a division within the Wells Fargo & Company enterprise, provides financial products and services through bank and brokerage affiliates of Wells Fargo & Company. Brokerage products and services offered through Wells Fargo Clearing Services, LLC, a registered broker-dealer and non-bank affiliate of Wells Fargo & Company. Bank products are offered through Wells Fargo Bank, N.A.

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2020 Year In Review: Are We Ready for the Bigger Questions in 2021?

2020 Year in ReviewThe world turned upside-down in 2020 as the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic event altered our daily lives and conversations on a collective level.

In this annual year in review, TheGlassHammer considers the major updates that we’ve witnessed for women, diversity and inclusion.

Women’s Representation in Leadership in 2020

First of all, a quick glance at leadership statistics. Based on 2019, an “all-time record” of 37 women were represented among Fortune 500 CEOs, three being women of color. Nearly 93% of top companies are still steered by men, with few black men present.

The Global 500 includes 13 businesses run by women, none being women of color. Over 97% of the world’s top businesses have men at the helm. When it comes to boardrooms seats globally, women held 16.9% of seats though research cites women’s board presence as a business imperative.

Although VC-backed founder teams that include women hire 2.5 times more women, raise more in capital and generate more revenue, 2020 has brought a dip to the already marginal amounts of Venture Capital funds going to women founders (only 1.8% as of September 30th, down from 2.6% in 2019)—with industry speculation that funders are ‘playing it safe’ within their staid networks.

Korn Ferry also observed that global firms have in many ways leaned towards freeze mode rather than opportunity and innovation during the “giant pause,” especially in leadership.

Meanwhile, continued lack of women in tech and tech leadership contributes to rendering women invisible by design in our world.

COVID-19’s Big Impact on Gender Equality

Though many women we’ve interviewed have felt fortunate for the work-life integration of remote working and the Zoom living room office, this sudden shift was brought by collective trauma and simultaneous to at-home care-taking and education responsibilities.

More broadly on a global scale, we’ve tipped into a staggering regression in gender equality that is getting lost in the conversation.

The World Economic Forum declared COVID-19 “the biggest setback to gender equality in a decade.” UN Women reported that “While everyone is facing unprecedented challenges, women are bearing the brunt of the economic and social fallout of COVID-19”—which is widening the gender poverty gap and the gender educational gap.

Women are disproportionately employed in the industries most impacted by the pandemic, and their jobs are 1.8 times more vulnerable than men’s, according to McKinsey’s study of pandemic gender impacts.

While women make up 39% of overall employment, they accounted for 54% of job losses as of May 2020 – an employment exodus so overly female that it’s been dubbed a “shecession.”

“As COVID-19 has disproportionately increased the time women spend on family responsibilities,” write the McKinsey researchers in Harvard Business Review, “women have dropped out of the workforce at a higher rate than explained by labor-market dynamics alone.”

In the US, women are taking on 1.5 to 2.0 extra hours of family responsibilities per day – including at home education responsibilities. For many the multiple changes are off-setting mental health, physical well-being and work-life balance.

A Deloitte Global research survey which polled 400 working women around the globe found that 82% found their lives had “been negatively disrupted by the pandemic” and 70% of those women were “concerned about their ability to progress in their careers.”

Deloitte found that among women who had experienced shifts in their daily routine from the pandemic, 65% had more household chores and a third had bigger workloads. Among these women, those shouldering 75% or more of caregiving responsibilities tripled (from 17% to 48%).

The research also found that women without caregiving responsibilities were experiencing different kinds of stressors, more likely to feel they needed to be always “on” and available at work (53% vs. 44%).

These women reported feeling overwhelmed more so than their caregiving peers (58% vs. 41%) – which highlights a need for women to create their own healthy boundaries despite the normalized, technology-enabled business culture of 24/7 availability.

Both teams of researchers push for policymakers and business leaders to “take action now” to curb the impact on women, as the “do nothing” scenarios show far graver gender equality and economic impacts.

Women’s Leadership In Headlines in 2020

While the floor is being seriously shaken on gender equality on a global level, women have featured in the leadership headlines of 2020.

The death of U.S. Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg (RBG) on September 18th, amidst the presidential election campaign, closed a 27 year stint and preceding judicial legacy that included redefining gender roles, challenging sex-discrimination, supporting women’s reproductive rights, voting for same sex marriage and confronting other social inequities. The loss of RBG has thrown the future balance of the highest court decision-making into question.

In RBG’s words, ”Women’s rights are an essential part of the overall human rights agenda, trained on the equal dignity and ability to live in freedom all people should enjoy.”

The Supreme Court replacement was a woman considered to be of conservative ideology, Amy Coney Barrett. This gives us pause as it is a great example of the conflict that arises when we try to hold competing ideas in our head. In this case the happiness of another woman in the seat adjacent to the notion that she may not rule in the interests of women’s rights with a track record to show such tendencies.

Meanwhile U.S. Senator Kamala Harris collected yet another breakthrough first in her expansive leadership career when she became the first women US vice president-elect this November.

As a multiracial woman, she will also be the first Black person and person of South Asian descent to hold the office – with hopes that she may become the first women US president.

And it’s no surprise that Catalyst CEO Champions for Change who pledged to support women and women of color into leadership are leading in bringing more gender and racial equity into leadership.

Where Do We Go In 2021?

A paradox of the events of 2020 is that some conversations have become so divisive they can barely be approached, while other social injustice topics have finally been put on the table where we cannot look away from them—especially, systemic racism.

If we want real change, more conversations need to be put on the unavoidable table, no matter how much vulnerability they bring up or how hard they are to confront, within and between us.

As a culture, we are arguably becoming more conscious of the many aspects of cultural social architecture we have been complicit in accepting as normative – down to the level of making visible the microaggressions that uphold racism.

Many top executive women who have spoken to us this year are emphasizing taking diversity and inclusion out of its departmental silo. As a side dish discussion, it’s at best lip service.

What will the leadership numbers look like when we review the board and executive levels of 2020?

And regardless, we are still talking year after year about top business leadership in the 90th percentiles of men and far too few people of color, as we report on “record highs” that are only micro-progress.

Can we talk about that?

Right now, we are witnessing a drop in women employment so fast that it’s crippling any progress on global gender equality. A few women making headlines in leadership will not offset that.

Do the ethics of companies and leadership still carry a paradigm that depends on this gap?

Can we talk about that?

As we enter into 2021 having already adopted the language of the “new normal,” the question increasingly becomes what do we want to make it?

Will we be willing to make the invisible even more visible? What questions are we willing to ask? Instead of being caught in crisis response, are we ready for real cultural re-envisioning?

What values are at the center of a “new normal” and where is it taking us? What connects us, what divides us, and can we find our way back home?

Where do we need to stop telling the same narrative and further stand up, from within ourselves?

Are we ready to find out, together?

By Aimee Hansen

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Afua Richardson-Parry, Senior Medical Manager, Pfizer Ltd.

Afua Richardson-ParryAfua Richardson-Parry had always strived to be a hands-on person, prone to learning new things in keeping with the pace of a dynamic and changing healthcare ecosystem.

She didn’t set out to be a “Jill of all trades,” but rather to be adaptable and flexible. However, this drive shaped a sense of focus that sharpened when she came across a quote that really spoke to her; “Know your strength, staff your weakness.”

“That has changed my perspectives on teamwork and delegation in both ‘work’ and ‘play’ contexts,” she says. “Knowing what you’re best at and what others can and should do instead of doing it all yourself allows you to be your best.”

Keeping a Focus on Patient Needs

Richardson-Parry pursued pharmaceutical sciences because she was interested in research and exploration into how the body works and possible interventions to combat diseases. “I can say that now with almost 18 years in the industry, my desire to make an impact in healthcare has and continues to be positively fulfilled,” she says.

After earning a post-graduate research degree, Richardson-Parry began her career at the UK Department of Health – specifically the executive branch dealing with medicines regulation and licensing (MHRA). She then moved into the pharmaceutical industry, working within regulatory affairs and rising quickly into senior executive roles with increasing responsibilities.

Now a senior manager within medical affairs, compliance, governance and strategy at Pfizer, she appreciates her role as one that brings her close to healthcare professionals—and more importantly patients—through various educational initiatives. She views this as a great professional achievement – seeing the fruits of her passion for making a meaningful difference in the lives of patients through collaborative partnerships that help to optimize their health.

“I have had the privilege of working with and supporting leading experts, academics, healthcare professionals and clinicians, such as doctors, pharmacists nurses and specialists through a series of online and digital educational resources to enhance clinical practice and patient care,” Richardson-Parry said.

Working With Others to Learn More, Achieve More

Over the years, Richardson-Parry has had the opportunity to mentor and be mentored in personal and professional life settings. She has found being able to coach or encourage someone in the right direction is rewarding. Equally, being championed by fellow colleagues has tremendously bolstered her understanding of the business and corporate world. “In addition, I believe my career has progressed because of having a sense of purpose and focus. I live to better understand why I am here and what I am supposed to bring to this world. Also, having a strong conviction in my values and beliefs is just as important to me as being confident, hard-working, positive and resilient. Above all I have a personal desire for growth in every season of life.”

In addition, she cites former UN Secretary General Kofi Annan, Dr. Martin Luther King and Michelle Obama as some of her goal role models – both for their outlook on life and their sense of optimism even in the face of adversity and challenges.

Closer to home, she has found value in company networks that are designed to create a more diverse and inclusive work environment, which she finds essential for business as well as personal growth. “When women connect on professional and relational aspects, it can help ensure that they are well-represented in leadership, while having the freedom to balance family life and other social initiatives”, Richardson-Parry says.

She recently has been able to co-lead colleagues in the UK in continuous dialogue about race and ethnicity at work. She confirms that diversity and inclusion is a key focus of all levels of senior leadership at Pfizer. Through her local networks and workstreams in the UK, she joins a group of dedicated colleagues who are passionate about raising awareness about race and ethnicity at all levels of leadership.

“With a group of passionate allies, we are leading the conversation to effect lasting change so people feel confident to talk about racism and injustice, as well as create opportunities where all colleagues can thrive and progress in their careers, whilst bringing their best selves to work.”

Richardson-Parry, in collaboration with colleagues at Pfizer, continues to build lasting partnerships within academia and among clinicians through digital educational resources that may help them to manage patients with chronic disease and within the context of the current pandemic.

While she initially held the view that the corporate pharma world might tend toward being business- and transaction-driven, with little opportunity for the patient’s voice to enter key decision making, she soon learned that was far from the case. “Throughout my career in the industry and especially in my current role, I can share plenty of examples that attests to a strategy that puts patients right at the heart of everything that we do.”

by Cathie Ericson

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Pamela Yoon, Vice President & Portfolio Manager, RBC Wealth Management/RBC Dominion Securities Inc.

Pamela YoonPamela Yoon finds her business incredibly rewarding, although also challenging.

“I encourage newer professionals that the first few years will always be tough so you have to adjust for playing the long game,” she says. “It’s like training for a marathon and while it can be hard to stick with, it pays off.”

Building a Successful Business From Scratch

That long game has worked for Yoon. She joined the banking world right out of university without knowing much about it. In her 23-year-old mind, she saw starting as a teller as the traditional route to success. But a friend recommended that she try something different; he had an opening for a junior assistant position and even though she didn’t know exactly what it was, she knew she would catch on quickly. Yoon didn’t grow up in a household where they discussed financial markets, but she found the field fascinating and never looked back.

Yoon studied how the most successful people in the office made their way and realized that at the time, all the assistants were women, and all the brokers were white males. However, she loved the client interaction and asked the office manager if she could be considered as an investment executive. He rebuffed her, and her friend recommended that she join him at BMO Nesbitt Burns, which at the time had the best rookie training on the street. “I was persistent and aggressive to get hired even though there were no job openings,” she says.

After starting from scratch in 1996, today Yoon has built a $200 million business. It wasn’t easy, she says. Born in Malaysia, she came to Canada for university and is proud she could build a successful business despite no family connections or friends with money, which is a challenge in a business built on relationships. Her solid client foundation has helped her realize success as the field has pivoted from one that used to be primarily transaction-based to a fee-based holistic wealth management approach that covers full financial planning.

Now she is able to concentrate on growing her business from current clients and referrals. “I wish I had done something else first to build a network, as my start was a little slower than many, but with my current experience, I can now grow much faster.”

Helping Women Assert Their Role in the Business

Despite that early experience, the challenges and obstacles she sees are largely in women’s minds, Yoon says. “They might tell you that a certain role is not for you, as happened to me early on, but you have to push back.” She especially finds that in a business like hers where you are judged by performance, you don’t have to deal with glass ceilings or bosses denying raises because everyone is on par. “If I produce more than a man, I have that option.”

It’s one of the reasons she finds it puzzling that there aren’t more women in the business. In addition, she feels that women’s skillsets are well suited to success. “They have more of the emotional intelligence that is important in this business to help people plan, and they ask good questions to help families make hard decisions around their money, Yoon says.

Giving Back to Aspiring Students

Yoon is still very active at her university, where she graduated with a degree in economics. For the past six years has hosted a forum in her board room (which will be virtual this year) where students are invited to tour the firm and ask questions. There, too, she sees the disparity as it is almost always a ratio of 20% female and 80% male.

She also serves as a guest lecturer in behavioral finance and last year announced the inaugural “Pamela Yoon Award for Economics,” which is open to anyone pursuing a CFA (Chartered Financial Analyst) or CMT (Chartered Market Technician). “I truly feel that I want to give back and create a legacy.”

Despite her many professional obligations, Yoon stays busy and balanced. A weightlifter and road cyclist, she is also a self-taught chef and enjoys spending time with her two teenage sons.

She finds her work very rewarding. “I want to empower more women to take control of their finances,” she says, adding that Vancouver, Canada, where she lives, is a region that’s very real estate focused, so she is trying to educate people about the possibilities in the stock market. “I see many get lost, and so it’s important to explain the market in plain language and give them confidence to approach their financial life with full confidence.”

by Cathie Ericson

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Shani Hatcher, Financial Advisor, Wells Fargo Advisors

Shani Hatcher“The best thing about my job is helping people. It is humbling that I can be there for my clients during difficult times, I don’t want them to feel alone. I, too, am an individual and a mother dealing with the pandemic, so I tell them we can get through this together,” said Shani Hatcher, a San Francisco-based financial advisor at Wells Fargo Advisors.

“I want my clients to make informed investment decisions and to let them know it’s okay to feel helpless or angry. This is a time to be compassionate regarding the expectations we have for ourselves.”

Hatcher loves her job and sharing her knowledge to educate others. She began her career in financial services immediately after she graduated from Duke University in 2001 and took the Series 7 exam, also known as the General Securities Representative Exam shortly afterwards. In 2005, she joined Wells Fargo Advisors as a client associate to a team of financial advisors. Shani reveals that her path to where she is today consisted of choices that gave her good work-life balance in order to raise her children as a single mother.

“Spending time with my kids was as important as financial success,” she added. “I loved my assistant job because I was well compensated and it was relatively stress-free. I had the ability to be active in my children’s lives.”

Her approach to wellbeing and family time, particularly during the current pandemic has become extremely useful.

“I think that we need to try to treat ourselves and others with compassion,” Hatcher said. “I believe, despite the pandemic, we should expect the same level of motivation and productivity to occur. That said, it’s advisable to adjust our expectations and to be open about our feelings, particularly with our kids.”

Relationships, both personal and professional dominate thematically for her, as she truly enjoys getting to know people.

“The old paradigm that a financial advisor is merely a stock picker is far from what we do. We utilize a more collaborative approach. It is about knowing your clients—really listening to them articulate their goals and fears in order to propose the right investment plan,” she added.

Hatcher also sees the value in mentorship. She believes mentoring relationships can be practical and cites her mentor as helping her to get a pay raise while inspiring her to make the leap from client associate to financial advisor. Interacting with other female financial advisors who are successful gave her the confidence she needed to leave her salaried role for a commission-based position.

Timing is Everything

Born in the San Francisco Bay area, Hatcher was selected to attend a private boarding school in Pebble Beach for high school. She then attended Duke University and started interning at Merrill Lynch during her junior year. During her first post- graduate job, she obtained the licenses needed to become a financial advisor. Due to the dot-com bubble and September 11th terrorist attack and resulting market decline, she pivoted to become an administrative assistant to a team of investment managers at RBC. That role led to another administrative role at Citibank and in 2005, she launched her career at Wells Fargo Advisors.

Hatcher knew when the time was right to take her career up a notch.
“I always looked at my career development from the perspective of whether I was content or being complacent. I trusted that it would become clear when the time was right to become a financial advisor. I knew that there was a demand for more representation of not only women but also African Americans in the industry,” she said.

When her children were a little older and she found herself not feeling challenged in her role, she knew it was the right time. This coincided with the Women’s’ March in Washington in 2016, which made her feel empowered and confident in the timing.

She added that she is a member of a multi-generational household, like many of her clients. She knew the importance of planning towards the future and understood the dueling financial goals of the Sandwich Generation, as was managing her mother’s retirement plan while still funding her own retirement and saving for children’s college education.

Changing Role of the Corporation

Hatcher believes that Wells Fargo Advisors tries to mindfully ‘walk the walk’ on diversity and that she is proud to work there.

“I’ve been lucky to have both female and African American managers,” she said. She believes that the firm is working hard to have more diversity at every level of management.

She added, “People tend to discount how corporations can impact change, yet in the past few years, we have seen how companies can stand up for important issues and support their communities through donations and partnerships with great non-profit organizations.”

On Black Lives Matter, Shani comments:

“It is an emotional issue for me as a mother of a black son. For me, it is very real–it’s not a concept or a theory. I had to have ‘the talk’ about how to interact with the police when my son started walking home across town when he was only 11-years-old.

“For me, there is a real sense of helplessness that I can’t protect my son 24/7,” she said. However, Hatcher is hopeful that change is happening and will continue to gain momentum as attention to racial inequity and social justice increase. She noted that Wells Fargo has worked to provide resources to address the issues and providing safe spaces for people to talk about their experiences and feelings about race.

She added, “I am thankful that the difficult conversations are being had. I believe that the only way progress can be made is by raising awareness and all of us uniting together in the fight against injustice.”

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Cathy Yoon, Special Counsel, Financial Markets and Funds, Katten

Cathy Yoon“Keep an open mind. Just because you start your practice one way doesn’t mean you’re wedded to that,” says Katten’s Cathy Yoon.

“When I mentor college and law students as they start their careers, they always ask how I ended up where I am today, and I tell them it’s ok if you have no idea what you want to do because you’ll figure it out.”

Finding Her Niche

As the oldest child of first generation Korean immigrants, Yoon says she faced a lot of pressure from her parents to choose a “good,” well-paying career.

But after graduating from Swarthmore College as a history major, Yoon wasn’t sure what her career path would be. A friend was a legal assistant at a large law firm, and that prompted her to consider enrolling in law school. She attended New York Law School and after passing the bar went to a law firm as an associate handling corporate transactions and working primarily with private equity firms and hedge funds.

Her early legal training paid off. After three years, Yoon was recruited by one of the largest global financial services institutions in the world and became a managing director and senior counsel handling corporate legal matters, including acquisitions, divestitures, strategic initiatives, FinTech and other minority investments and other general corporate matters. During her seven-year tenure there, the Dodd-Frank Act was enacted, designed to prevent another financial crisis by implementing various reforms impacting how banks operated. This included restrictions on large financial institutions from growing by way of acquisitions or ventures and such restrictions started to impact Yoon’s practice.

At this point, Yoon pivoted and looked into what the smaller strategy groups were doing and started to move away from working on large corporate transactions and focused on more strategic initiatives such as representing the financial institution in several enterprise blockchain consortiums, where it joined other companies in the development of blockchain technology. This experience introduced Yoon to emerging technology in the financial services space, and the more she learned about blockchain and other forms of distributed ledger technology, the more interested she became.

She reached out to her network of colleagues and friends who were dabbling in it and eventually left the financial institution and joined a blockchain advisory start-up. “Until now I had gone the safe route, with a large law firm and financial institutions, and then I jumped headfirst into start-up life,” Yoon says. She wore many different hats—in consulting, business development, strategy and marketing, as well as acting as general counsel. “You pitch in where you need to,” she says, adding that she probably learned more about the intersection of business and law during this period of time than her entire career before this point.

Last year, Yoon joined the Financial Markets and Funds practice at Katten where she focuses her practice on assisting clients with navigating the legal, regulatory and operational aspects for their FinTech offerings and products.

Practicing law has been much more exciting for Yoon as many of her clients are on the cutting edge of technology and trying to operate in a space with a great deal of legal and regulatory uncertainty. “It’s a journey we are on together and it’s gratifying when my clients can articulate the value I bring. They say things like, ‘You really get it. You’re going beyond giving legal advice and thinking about the strategy. We enjoy working with you because you don’t just tell us no, but instead you help us understand the risks using the lens of our specific business model,’” Yoon says.

Mentoring the Next Generation

Yoon seizes any chance she can to serve as a mentor. One message she always tries to impart is that networking should be a thread that weaves throughout your career. “It’s never too early to start,” she tells younger professionals. Even today when most networking is virtual, there are numerous ways to reach out, including being visible on LinkedIn by sharing updates or chiming in with your opinions and experiences.

One of the places she is able to reach younger women is through her work on the advisory council of the GlamourGals Foundation, which fosters intergenerational connections between teen leaders and seniors to alleviate the issue of elder isolation, while offering networking sessions and leadership conferences to volunteers.

Yoon is part of many diverse groups and networks where the primary goal is to make sure there is proper diverse representation on boards, at conferences and in open positions. Since emerging tech is largely a male-dominated field, she likes to lead by example in the space, which is why she focuses on mentoring. “While I’ve always had terrific mentors and sponsors, I had always hoped there would be more opportunities to meet people from diverse backgrounds,” she says. “I appreciate I can be that person for others.”

by Cathie Ericson

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Anilu Vazquez-Ubarri, Partner, CHRO at TPG

Anilu Vazquez-UbarriThroughout her career, TPG’s Anilu Vazquez-Ubarri has often been the “first” or “only” in many situations.

While she is proud of breaking barriers, she says her goal is to not be the last one or the only one.

“I want to change perceptions and help people realize that differences bring varied perspectives that make our whole corporate culture stronger.”

And, she admits, sometimes that comes with a sense of loneliness and second guessing. “Occasionally, you may question whether you have the opportunities you do because you earned them, and upon reflection, you realize that you not only earned them, but likely worked harder than anyone else to get them.”

Building an Impressive Career that Helps Others Rise

Vazquez-Ubarri began her work in corporate law, where she became familiar with the dynamism of people matters and M&A, interests that led her to a role at Goldman Sachs in employee relations. Joining right before the financial crisis, her thinking about business was completely transformed as she saw firsthand the criticality of strong leadership in surviving any situation.

She subsequently held a number of human capital roles, always with a bent to the talent side, eventually being named Managing Director, Global Head of Talent & Chief Diversity Officer. Two years ago, she joined TPG as the firm’s first Chief Human Resources Officer to help build out the HR function and continue to improve on what was already a great firm culture. She was promoted to Partner in 2019.

What she finds most rewarding is building functional teams while developing robust talent management practices that focus on ensuring they have the best person in each role. “It has become common to combine talent management with diversity to accelerate progress,” Vazquez-Ubarri says. “I redesigned this function at TPG to help the firm think more broadly about people matters and the positive impact that a diverse, equitable and inclusive culture has on performance and engagement.”

Currently she is in the final stretch of a two-year strategy to reimagine the people culture, in part by reinforcing a focus on effective managers and feedback. “We are re-defining the traits of a good manager and the behaviors that lead to good management to maximize performance and engagement,” she says. At the same time, the firm is bringing diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) to the forefront and also considering it in the role they play in capital allocation, the companies in their portfolio and their whole ecosystem. “We are challenging ourselves to continue to be leaders in our space,” Vazquez-Ubarri says.

Of course, additional priorities emerged as the pandemic raged, and the firm had to figure out what these goals mean in the context of disruption and new platforms for interactions. To that end, she has been leading the firm’s crisis management efforts and focusing on the health of employees and their families to keep them engaged even when remote – enabling them to continue to maximize their impact for stakeholders.

Working remotely would appear to be more challenging as they navigate weighty topics such as racial injustice, but Vazquez-Ubarri says the remote environment has created an ‘equalization of perspectives’ that has allowed teams to have candid conversations that might not have otherwise occurred if they had been in offices and hopping on planes.

“We held over 30 roundtables about racial injustice and our role as a firm and individuals to be change agents. In an interesting twist of fate those conversations were better enabled by technology.”

Developing Talent at All Levels

Vazquez-Ubarri believes in identifying people early in the pipeline and letting them know there is a path for them. Simply put, she wants to encourage people to plan to stay rather than plan to take their career elsewhere.

“Too often companies talk about top performers behind closed doors, but you need to let women know they are valued,” she says. For that reason, TPG closely monitors the talent pipeline to look two to three years ahead of promotions in order to better develop talent by considering what they have accomplished, finding the gaps and holding their managers accountable.

“I think that’s the most interesting feature of how we are looking at this. Our managers know that if they have a talented member of their team and don’t identify potential issues early on, that is a failure on their part,” Vazquez-Ubarri says. “We have to clearly articulate that we are invested and put our focus on ‘stay’ interviews so they don’t become exit interviews.”

Considering the upcoming Hispanic Heritage Month, she mentions her focus on energizing the Hispanic population to help each other rise in the corporate environment. “We have a lot to offer with our diverse cultural background, and it’s important for companies to get to know and understand this talent base, which I believe is underutilized.”

Vazquez-Ubarri spends a lot of time coaching and mentoring women and Latinos who are looking to develop their careers and advance within their fields. “I am excited to see so many women achieve success in industries that normally have not been welcoming,” she says. “I hear them say that they like it here and are going to stay. I am quite optimistic for the state of women in the workplace and for the very important role we have to play in the world in general.”

She also serves on boards that are focused on justice and civil rights for the Latino community, but also have educational and networking components. These include ALPFA (Association of Latino Professionals for America) and the Latino Corporate Directors Association, with whom she proudly partners to make sure that Latinos are represented on boards.

“I spend a lot of energy and capital on mentoring and challenging Latino professionals to stay in the game and move up the corporate ranks by making their voice heard and pursuing leadership opportunities.”

Independent of industry, role or level of seniority, Vazquez-Ubarri says it’s important to “run to the fire.” In other words, she says, don’t be afraid to go after things that are complex. “That’s where change happens, where you learn the most, and have the opportunity to become a trusted advisor.”

by Cathie Ericson

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