Shades of Leadership

Women's Choice: Career OR Family?

The recent news about the Harrison Butker commencement speech at Benedictine College has caused an uproar in the popular press. My inbox has been blowing up from people who know me as an avid Chiefs fan and a professional woman, asking me how incensed I must be that “Butker is telling women to stay home”, and that he was “boo’d by the audience”. I have to admit I got on the “WTF Harrison Butker” bandwagon for a few days, but this morning decided to listen to the speech in its entirety, and here are my takeaways on the topic of women:

 

• A very small portion of his comments were on the topic of women and their responsibilities/choices; most were comments on the role of leaders and the role of the church.
• He does not “attack working women” as headlines state.
• He does state that in addition to thinking about their careers and promotions, most women are probably looking forward to marriage, kids, and family.
• He pays emotional tribute to his wife who chose to be a homemaker after getting her college degree.
• There were a few boos, but far more applause after he spoke of his wife.

 

Harrison Butker is very open about being a conservative Catholic (attends only Latin mass), so I was certainly not surprised that he made very conservative comments to an audience of a very conservative campus. I’m not going to debate positions on every topic he mentioned in his address (I’m not Catholic so certainly can’t comment on the division in that faith on political issues of the day).

 

As this is a blog on leadership, I’m choosing to share my thoughts on the leadership, or lack thereof, in the field of journalism in reporting and writing headlines, and the biases those continue to fuel regarding the choices women have.

 

The press vitriol regarding the Chiefs’ HOF kicker demonstrates the desire for today’s media to fuel a divided nation by misrepresenting and lying about what public figures say. They count on social media addicts, who only read headlines, to push these lies further, fueling division, hate ,and disdain. More importantly, the false media headlines further ossify a dangerous bias in our society, that if a woman enjoys being a mom and wife that we must not be committed to a professional career.

 

Shortly after we got married and moved into our first home, Joel and I attended a neighborhood party. I was speaking with a woman who was probably in her 50’s then, who asked about what we did. I told her my husband and I had just started our careers…he as an engineer for a Chicago consulting firm, and me as a salesperson for Amoco.  She seemed intrigued and asked me how long I planned to work. I told her I was hoping it would be a fruitful career. She then made the bold statement, “Well, women like you don’t deserve to have children.”

 

Wow.

 

That was my first introduction into the “either/or” mentality of what women should be able to do.

 

Similarly, as I began my career, I came across people in the business world who believed in the popular 80’s narrative of Mommy Track which believed that working women who chose to have kids should be put on a slower track at work because of their commitment to family.

 

Wow again.

 

(Ironically, “Daddy track” seemed to be an accelerated career path as men who weren’t married at the time were not considered as stable and committed to their careers.)

 

I know many women who have achieved a great deal of success both at the office and in their homes. When we get together, we speak about our professional challenges in the workplace as well as what we are cooking for Thanksgiving! We ask one another about our kids and grandkids and are excited about mutual professional promotions and appointments, and doors we can open for professionals – both men and women. I would say that to a person, each of us gives credit to the supportive spouse and/or family that has helped along the journey, and privately we can cite many personal sacrifices made and risks taken to achieve our current lives. We share in our concerns that although progress has been made for women in the workplace, there are still many biases, conscious and unconscious, that we must continue to fight. I believe our society needs both men and women in the professional workplace, but that does not excuse us from being fully engaged parents at home.  

 

Since when did we decide our personal choices on how we live our lives need to pass the scrutiny of popular press? Why do we allow the media to dictate that women should only choose one path when we’ve never held men to that same standard? It's not an either/or. It's a "what and how". What a woman chooses to do should be her choice. What a couple chooses to do should be their choice. My role as a professional woman and experienced mother is to help create options so that people can make those choices and have opportunities to succeed on the paths they choose.

 

As I now watch my two children start their families and careers, these are the kinds of conversations they must have with their spouses. I’m thrilled to know they are making these decisions together, and mutually supportive as they choose the path is best for them. There isn’t a right or wrong answer. They only thing that matters is that they contribute to society through their professional choices and how they raise the next generation.

Leadership and AI Governance

This week I had the opportunity once again to attend the annual 2023 NACD Summit in Washington, D.C. It’s something I attend every year, schedule permitting, to learn from amazing plenary and breakout speakers, reconnect with colleagues, meet new directors, and speak to aspiring directors who will sit in boardrooms of the future. Of the 20,000+ members of NACD nationwide, we generally have around 1,500 attending every year in person, and a few hundred who sign up for the virtual option.

In addition to hearing from leaders of the organization, plenary speakers on Day One included Matt Devost who spoke on tech disruption, Ian Bremmer on timely topic of geopolitical recession and crisis, serial entrepreneur Jon McNeill who inspired the audience with his thoughts on board excellence and management interaction, and Doris Taylor who floored the group with her story of growing a human heart. Each topic, as disparate as they might have been, drove home the immense responsibility board leaders have in how we guide, coach, challenge, and support our organizations in the world of public, private, and nonprofit companies.

Every year I attend and participate in this Summit, I find myself inspired by the incredible level of commitment these directors have toward continuing education and learning. Key to excellence in board service is the ability to stay current and relevant about today’s challenges so that we are best equipped to bring an informed and valuable perspective into the boardroom. CEOs and executive teams today are faced with significant challenges. Shifting workforce demands, strategic complexities, and digital innovation are taking place against a backdrop of exponential change and disruption. The days of board meetings consisting of a line of management presentations each followed by short Q&A on only the slides presented are short-lived if not extinct. Instead, fulsome conversations, grounded in current perspective and experience, are needed to help senior executives make the right decisions around strategy, talent, and capital allocation.

I had the pleasure of participating in a panel that covered the topic, “How Boards Govern Artificial Intelligence”. The panel included Helmuth Ludwig, Benjamin van Giffen, Debra Everitt McCormack, and me, representing the perspective of academics, professional services, and of course, directors in the boardroom. Engagement in the standing-room only session was lively, and Q&A was energetic as we addressed some important aspects of how AI impacts organizations. Some highlights:

Strategy and Risk

As machine learning and generative AI influence data that we collect, analyze, and from which we draw conclusions, there is no doubt there are business models that will be significantly altered or perhaps even eliminated. We are all inundated by inbound suggestions for products and services based on our past behaviors. The concept itself is nothing new…companies have been buying mailing lists for decades, hoping that the predictive power of data can increase hit rate on sales. What is new is the speed at which information can be gathered, the type of information that is now available, and the low barriers to entry that now exist thanks to the digital world. In manufacturing environments, AI will be a powerful predictor of equipment downtime, supply chain management, and obsolescence due to incredibly fast pattern-matching that human judgment might preclude.

The architecture of a company’s business model could/should fall under strategic scrutiny in examining the impact of AI. Are the changes incremental or is the business itself threatened? Does the advent of machine learning threaten the nature of what we do (is this an Amazon moment) or do we harness it to improve on a strong architecture that is sustainable?

Workforce implications

A June 2023 McKinsey Global Institute Report indicates that by 2030, activities that account for up to 30% of hours currently worked in the US could be automated. Alternatively, in that same period of time, the study suggests that more than 5 million more health care positions will be in demand (approximately 3 million on top of today’s 2 million shortfall), as well as an estimated increase of 23% in STEM related positions. AI will also likely create new positions that don’t exist today.

Organizations will undoubtedly be faced with the task of retooling the workforce as more mundane or repetitive tasks become automated, and higher-value activities requiring collaboration, problem solving, or innovation are more in demand. This will also have a huge impact on hiring practices as more companies are reportedly dropping requirements for a college degree. Against a backdrop of shifting workplace culture, these changes will elevate the importance of the CHRO in the organization (much more than just covering compensation and benefits) and increase the value of having that perspective in the boardroom. If you haven’t already, I’d put “human resource experience” on that board skills matrix!

Compliance and Internal Control

As the value of generative AI is considered in our enterprises, there will no doubt be an increased concern around its use and access. Cybersecurity risk will elevate and, in some instances, result in increased regulatory control and compliance requirements. There is no doubt that the quantity and sophistication of hacking and phishing scams will increase in both our professional and personal lives.

Companies and boards need to also understand the implications of using tools like ChatGPT. After all, generative AI by definition learns, and so it will include record of its actual use by individuals and organizations (i.e., do you allow employees to use it while at work?). Protecting IP and sensitive data will be paramount to maintain a competitive edge and retain critical talent.

The question of bias is also one that warrants increased focus. Software that is biased will only exacerbate inequities that might currently exist. If the reliance on AI goes unchecked, organizations can unexpectedly “hardwire” bias into decision making regarding strategic options, compensation, and talent selection.

Capital Allocation

One of a board director’s greatest responsibilities is helping to prioritize and allocate the use of capital. As generative AI opportunities arise, there are no doubt efficiency projects that need investment; current IT systems and plant/equipment must be adequate to integrate AI input. Systems required to forfend increased cyber-attacks will need to be installed. Additionally, there are areas of growth and experimentation that organizations should explore to understand the potential that AI can bring. Businesses and functional departments alike should think about how machine learning can improve decision making. Can a manufacturing plant better predict maintenance downtime as a result of AI input? Can the HR department use AI to better anticipate unwanted attrition based on workload, absences, or decreasing engagement? How can marketing better understand changing consumer habits and emerging preferences? In many instances AI can uncover patterns and trends that aren’t picked up due to complexity, time, or bias.

As with all other capital allocations decisions, projects need to be prioritized so AI is not seen as an ancillary activity and first to get cut when the budget cycle faces challenge. If AI is seen as strategic rather than tactical, the likelihood of giving it the right priority level increases.

Our panel was only one of dozens, in addition to plenary sessions, where directors got our brains stretched and our paradigms challenged at the NACD Summit. Continuing education for directors is no longer a luxury we enjoy, but a responsibility we have in order to best serve our boards, investors, and stakeholders. I so appreciate being surrounded by professionals who are equally committed to continued learning and support for one another!

Until next year!

The Importance of Discomfort

I recently had the pleasure of moderating a fireside chat with Toby Redshaw on an NACD Philadelphia Chapter program entitled, “The Acceleration of Tech and its Impact on the Board”. The topic of technology has been in the boardroom throughout my 20+ year tenure as a director. What started as a conversation around systems integration moved to that of cybersecurity. Today, with the advent of generative AI and 5G, that conversation now moves from the functional role of technology to one of becoming a strategic driver. There is no doubt in the next 10 years technology will create tectonic shifts in strategy and displace many of today’s successful companies.

The challenge in boardrooms is how to facilitate the dialogue and create a culture around the board table of learning, curiosity, challenge, and excitement around the role that technology has on our companies. The pace of change in what is being called the 4^th Industrial Revolution will undoubtedly sharpen understanding of customers, redefine relationships with suppliers, overhaul logistics planning, and identify new efficiencies in organizations. All of this requires a different conversation (and perhaps participants?) in the boardroom and a willingness to wade into uncharted waters.

It won’t always be comfortable.

It got me thinking about the role that “discomfort” plays when it comes to learning and leadership. Ever since childhood, we’ve all known that discomfort is what causes growth; when we learn, fail, visit new places, or meet new people, we are thrust into feelings of uncertainty and discomfort as we grow. For those of us who have raised children, we know that watching a child fall off a bike is always followed by the words, “just get back up and try again”.

We are conditioned to accept that there are stumbles along the way.

When our kids complain that they can’t do their homework, good parents work with them until they clearly understand the content being taught and watch them emerge feeling satisfied and even confident of the mastery.

We accept that learning requires struggle.

Yet as we advance in our professional lives leading companies as executive and board directors, things often change. We strive for success, and once we have achieved it, we often find ourselves creating environments of familiarity and routine that gives a sense of security and comfort as we examine strategy and measure performance. Particularly in successful companies, we tend to reward steady incremental improvement, provide assurance to investors of expected results, and punish those who make mistakes when they try new approaches or hold new ideas. The term “if it isn’t broken, don’t fix it” is a mantra that underscores this default behavior…and keeping the ship on an even keel pays the greatest literal and figurative dividends.

This new age of technology is going to change things. If it hasn’t already, it will cause great discomfort in boardrooms as competitors and new entrants define new products and ways to market. With the advent of AR/VR and generative AI – available in record time – new products and offerings will challenge legacy business models. Access to receiving information and ability to quickly disperse it will challenge reputation management and stakeholder communications. Some jobs will be eliminated, some new ones created. Evolving technology coupled with seismic workforce changes will wreak havoc with those boardrooms hanging on to the way things have always been done, and to the comforts of how strategy has been discussed in the past.

The landscape is littered with companies run by those who failed to recognize the need to be “uncomfortable”. Examples of this are numerous as we’ve seen many leaders fail to accept changes taking place. Industry behemoths like Kodak, Sears, Motorola, Borders, Nokia were toppled as they failed to accept the sunsetting of a successful business model or product. Leaders got comfortable, and legacy company boardrooms, often filled with directors who had significant industry experience, were accustomed and far too comfortable with how the business had become successful.

The importance of welcoming “discomfort” is key to any boardroom wishing to be successful in their endeavors. The understanding of technology cannot be outsourced to experts or even to one single “technology expert” on the board. The advent of generative AI and machine learning requires a level of tech literacy that will be critical to set strategy and to compete effectively. It will indeed force many to step outside of our comfort zone and learn new things. For those directors who are hoping just to hang on long enough to meet their “mandatory retirement age”, I suggest earlier board refreshment is imperative. Investors and stakeholders cannot afford to have boards that are too staid and unwilling to accept discomfort in this period of seismic change.

The Key Ingredient to Expat Success

I had a wonderful reunion last evening in Honolulu visiting a former colleague with whom I worked in China almost three decades ago. At the time we had just completed negotiating a joint venture in the PRC, and I needed to identify someone who could work with the JV partner (a Chinese electric company) in a structure where we were the 49% minority partner of an LPG import terminal. I looked at a list of folks in my company who had the right skills (worldly different than mine), and who possessed the right mindset to work with our JV partner.

Over a delightful dinner conversation with this friend and his wife (whom he met in China during his assignment) we reminisced about our experience as expats, the early days of the joint venture, subsequent challenges, and how, after more than twenty-five years, we looked back on one of the most formative experiences in our professional careers with great appreciation. This morning, upon reflecting on our conversation, I found myself feeling tremendously grateful, and happy to know that decisions made so long ago contributed not only to my friend’s very successful career, but to a retirement he is now so well-deservedly enjoying.

When I think back to those days when I was deciding on “which name to pick” to join me in China, I realize that above all other characteristics, I leaned toward “attitude” even more than “aptitude” when it came to my selection. In all cases (I chose three expats to join me in our first venture in the PRC) individuals were smart and experienced, but above all, possessed some important characteristics that were key to success as an expat.

Innate curiosity/Appetite for adventure

The willingness to embark on an overseas assignment requires a level of curiosity and adventure outside of one’s comfort zone. As exciting as it might sound, there are very few people who are willing to leave the comforts and stability of life in the US, board a plane (in some cases such as mine with a family in tow) and set up life in a location that doesn’t have the conveniences or trappings of life back home. If married, this requires a spouse or partner who is willing to do the same -- as a foreign assignment is experienced by more than employees themselves. Oftentimes the challenges experienced by a spouse are far greater than those of the employee as networks, support, and friendships have to be rebooted in the new location, not to mention language and culture barriers that the office environment can help overcome.

Respect for host country culture

As a guest in a foreign country, the importance of respecting the host country’s culture cannot be overestimated. This is particularly true for western business operating in the east, but even nuances of English-speaking countries can be underestimated by American expats. Nothing sets you up for failure more than demonstrating ambivalence for a country’s culture or disrespect for social norms. Taking time to genuinely understand culture, showing respect for history, having patience to hear and appreciate stories goes a long way in establishing much-needed trust to forge strong business relationships.

Adaptability

One of the most important characteristics of being a successful expat is adapting one’s style and business thinking to an approach that works in the new location. How business strategy is formulated, approved, and operationalized can be dramatically different than how it’s done back in the headquarters country. This is probably one of the greatest challenges for expat executives as in many countries the “road to success” can be tremendously opaque and legal constructs and regulations can significantly impact approval processes and market access. Oftentimes those back in headquarters can’t understand why things take so long, or why expats seem to face challenges that to them should be easy to overcome. As expats, the importance of adaptability, thinking on the fly, and adjusting our approach caused us to serve as “translators” far beyond those issues involving language.

In selecting candidates for expat assignments, many executives turn toward aptitude and experience, but in my case, all whom I chose had never lived outside of the US. In hindsight the characteristic that made difference to their success was the attitude they brought on the journey to learn, to explore, and to grow. If I had to do it all again, I don’t think I’d change a thing. Attitude trumps aptitude every day…you can train for the latter, but not the former.

The Importance of Board Refreshment

I recently stepped off from a large public board. Some question my judgement – after all, getting on a board is something so many are trying to do. Why would I ever decide to exit voluntarily? The answer is simple: I’d been a director on the board for 16 years, and although the company had changed significantly (4 different CEOs, numerous changes in directors, a large successful merger, and countless small bolt-on acquisitions and divestitures), it felt as though it was time to step aside and let others serve. As one who speaks publicly very often about the importance of board refreshment, it also seemed like it was time to practice what I preach.

The topic of board refreshment is one of the most important subjects of excellent board governance today. As companies face exponential change through technology and digital disruption, increased societal expectations of enterprise, and shifts in workforce dynamics, boards of directors should be constantly evaluating whether those sitting around the table have the best collective set of skills to serve the stakeholders and advise the executive team. Refreshment, however, is the most difficult thing to do because of one reason: It’s virtually impossible to ask a director to step down.

In addition to increasing the size of their boards to add new directors, many boards employ one of two tools to help them refresh their membership. According to a Fortune article, 70% of S&P 500 companies (up from 50% in 2015) use mandatory age limits to sunset director service. 6% of the group use term limits to facilitate board churn – a number that has stayed relatively flat over the same period of time.

Both tools, however, are suboptimal, and are likely used to avoid that difficult conversation – suggesting that a director’s skills are no longer as valuable to the board based on the direction of the company. I say they are suboptimal because times have changed, and the use of “mandatory retirement” carries over from a model of board service that is downright antiquated.

As one who has been a board director for almost 20 years, I’ve seen a great deal of change. We aren’t too many decades removed from the days when sitting or recently retired CEOs in the same city often sat on one another’s boards. Directorships were a sign of mutual respect and admiration, and a natural outgrowth of executives who ran around in the same social, philanthropic, and civic circles.

In a world of incremental growth and expanding global opportunities, this model seemed to work. There wasn’t much strategic disruption, M&A was not nearly as common, and boards were essentially “rubber stamp” meetings as evidenced by the preponderance of golf and/or fishing afternoons, and board meetings often held in enviable locations around the world. When directors joined boards toward the end of long and successful careers (around age 65) this probably made sense; 10 years on a board preserved independence and leveraged relevant, current executive experience.

However, in today’s environment, the practice of using age limits to refresh boards seems outdated and not fit-for-purpose. As some directors are now joining boards in their 40’s and 50’s, using a 72 or 74-year age limit to mandate board retirement means that people could serve on a single board for decades. It also assumes that once someone achieves that age, they are no longer fit to serve or valuable to the conversation in the boardroom. Frankly, this age limit seems not only irrelevant but ageist.

Similarly, board tenure policies are also a one-size-fits-all approach. Instituted primarily to ensure director independence, it assumes that over time, directors get too stale and perhaps too comfortable with the CEO and executive team. However, in the age of disruption and significant M&A activities, there are seldom companies that look the same as they did 10 years ago – with the same leadership and business portfolio. With the amount of change that companies experience, it may be wise to have some institutional knowledge that longer-serving directors can bring - particularly if there have been numerous changes in the executive suite.

I don’t get to just point out the problems. As a former boss once told me, “Anna, if you take a brick out, you have to put a brick back in.” So, here’s my brick back in.

Adjustments need to be made in two areas: (1) The expectations of director candidates themselves, and (2) The intentions of the board and governance committee.

Director Expectations

Put simply, directors should not expect board service to be the equivalent of Supreme Court appointments. We are not on for the rest of our lives (or until we are deemed physically or mentally unable to serve). Directors should join boards with the understanding that they will likely serve  a number of years – until the strategic needs of the enterprise require new skills around the table.

Board directors should continually work to sharpen their skills as directors. This is particularly true for directors such as me, who have retired from full-time work. We are not “in the game” on a daily basis, and the world is changing significantly. With the pace of disruption, the impact of technology, the focus on sustainability and social imperatives, directors who are not lifelong learners will find themselves unable to add much value going forward. The good news is that through many professional publications and organizations such as NACD directors can sharpen their toolkit through in-person seminars and virtual webinars where they can network with subject matter experts to help them stay relevant and impactful in boardroom discussions.

Board and Governance Committees

A board and its governance committee should commit to maintaining a board that is designed for balance between fresh perspective and institutional knowledge. To achieve this, governance committees should consider the model of thirds: One-third of the board having less than 5 years tenure, one-third between 5-10 years, and one-third over 10 years. By doing this, the board can be deliberate about bringing in new perspective while maintaining institutional knowledge to ensure investor confidence.

This elevates the importance of board and director evaluations . A board should have a structured process for directors to provide input on the board management process, how every director contributes, and what additional skills might be needed. Doing this every year (or every other year) prevents the sudden realization that there is a gap. Such a process, coupled with a strong strategic understanding, informs directors of whether they have the optimal set of skills and experiences in the boardroom.

A strong governance process also necessitates communication of what board leadership requires of its directors. When a director is onboarded, it should be clearly communicated that although their experience and skills are highly valued, they are expected to continue to grow their capabilities as directors over time. Adequate funds should be set aside for director education and membership in organizations to improve director effectiveness.

As with all good teams, the true value of a board is measured in times of difficulty and challenge. Those events can happen suddenly, and when they occur, those sitting in the chairs around the table are responsible and accountable for helping steer the ship wisely. In my experience, there is nothing better than looking around the table in those moments and think, “this is the right group of people to handle this”. I’ve also felt the opposite, when in a difficult time, I’ve thought “I wish we had a few different brains around this table”.

Board refreshment requires outstanding leadership that is willing to institute a healthy board structure and culture, and courageous leaders who are willing to have those difficult conversations of asking people to wind down their service. With heightened scrutiny on board governance, expectations of directors both individually and collectively, and increasingly complex strategic challenges facing organizations, the collective talent around the boardroom is becoming ever more important.  Although change appears to be happening slowly, I have no doubt that strong board leadership is on the rise today as more directors weigh in on this important topic.

Self-reflection

The cleanest state you’ll ever find my house is on the day before I leave on a business trip. On that day, you’ll find me emptying out the laundry bins by working the washer/dryer all day, vacuuming the floors from grass clippings and leaves that the dogs have brought in, clearing the dishwasher of any clean dishes and loading it with anything remaining in the sink, and dusting furniture. As I made this observation last night (I’m on a plane to NYC as I write this) to my husband of almost 40 years, he curiously asked me, “Why do you do that?” I’ve had the luxury of being married to a stay-at-home dad since our kids were 6 and 3, and he has done more than his fair share of the housework. But for some reason, I still possess some degree of guilt that I’m off on a business trip to New York today, so yesterday I spent much of the day cleaning house.

As one who speaks regularly about the unique challenges women have in the business world, one of my greatest bits of advice is for women to be forgiving of ourselves. However passionately and convincingly I might be about this message, I realized last night that I fall under the same patterns that I try and coax other women to escape.

I could blame my late mother – who never seemed to stop, cooked like a gourmet Chinese chef, and whose house was always immaculate. But my mom also worked outside the home, has been gone for over a decade, and I’m sure there were days where the house wasn’t perfect. As far as I recall, she doesn’t visit me in my dreams asking me why my linens aren’t pressed and why we eat out so much. Furthermore, I’m over 60, so at some point I need to own my behaviors, right?

What I suffer from is a self-imposed expectation that I believe many women possess, which stems from some latent guilt about the following: I chose to have a professional career – but that should not excuse me from the role of homemaker.

I don’t think men do this. If I were to poll the men I see tonight at a business function, I seriously doubt many of them (if any) spent Sunday cleaning house. If they did, I doubt it was because they thought, “Oh I’m leaving on a business trip tomorrow, so I better get my house chores done!”. Maybe it’s just me…I don’t know if other women have these issues (or if you’re a man, if you notice your wife does this). We are known to exhibit this behavior during the third trimester of pregnancy… nesting, they call it, as our biological selves prepare for the birth of a child. But I’m a grandmother now, so that’s no excuse. I need to take a page out of my own book and listen to the advice I give to young women at the start of their careers.

This strange phenomenon I seem to experience every time I plan a trip is primarily a personal issue I need to work through. I have not only the means to hire help, but more importantly, the wherewithal to keep from driving myself (or my husband) crazy. But it does give me pause to think about why we continue to find challenges for women who choose to work outside of the home, and why many of these challenges are unique only to us? We’ve had many examples of success, and increased role models over the years, and businesses show improvement when women are at the table. So why are there still struggles, feelings of guilt, and continued debate over how to overcome the odds?

A woman’s career is not ancillary by default. Choosing to have a career is a personal decision. It is an outgrowth of a belief that due to your investment in education or experience, you can contribute to society outside of your home, and that by doing so, you will reap monetary rewards that will give you more life options. If you are a single parent, you have no choice. Until your children are old enough to support themselves, a responsible adult finds a job to earn a wage and provides for the family. If you’re in a marriage or partnership, the choice of whether both of you work is a joint decision. If one person works, the other assumes the lion’s share of the chores at home. Note I didn’t say all – because the stuff at home never really ends and requires more than one to keep everything going. If both people work, then both manage a home, and both raise the kids. Sounds simple, right? But it doesn’t always work that way. As evidenced by the disproportionate number of women who are opting out of work in the post-pandemic era, it seems in many cases the women’s career is considered “ancillary” even if she has equal or higher earning potential. If you find yourself in this situation, have an honest conversation with your spouse or partner. Be careful not to let your career disruption/termination be a default decision.

Stop trying to be what the outside world tells you to be. If you believe everything you read and watch, women are expected to be nothing short of a superhero. If we have professional careers, we should be as outstanding as the most successful Fortune 100 CEO (note that women who fail are always singled out because there are so few). If we own a home it’s supposed to look like it came out of Architectural Digest, or better yet, you built it like those people on HGTV on which the women somehow sport perfect manicures as they nail 2x4s into the wall. If you have a family, you should emulate Martha Stewart and be making bread from scratch, and helping your kids with holiday crafts (don’t you dare skip Easter eggs or holiday cookies even for a year). All the while, your face and body need to be worthy of appearing on the cover of Cosmo Magazine, or you have “let yourself go”. Ridiculous, right? But I assume most women reading this are nodding their heads. The important thing to remember is that each of the above media links targets a specific audience…we’re not supposed to be ALL of them at the same time!! We need to give ourselves a real break…

Stop trying to prove yourself to anyone.  Whether it’s proving yourself to your parents, alive or deceased, other family members, friends, or even naysayers, let it go. Define what happiness is for yourself or yourselves and make that your goal. When my husband quit his career to stay home with our kids, there were undoubtedly people who were disappointed and even those who snickered. We didn’t care. It was the best decision for our family, and we never looked back. With the exception of my strange house-cleaning ritual, there are no negative residual effects, but only happy choices we’ve made ever since. In my experience, watching those who seek only “success” as defined by others seems to almost always result in dissatisfaction and regret. Don’t fall into that trap.

So as I wing my way to my business meeting in New York today I have time to reflect on my own advice. I will refrain from feeling a need to get all my chores done on the day before my next trip. If I’m successful, I’ll at least work it over two or three days before I hop on the plane!  

Leadership and Courage

As we usher in yet another New Year, a story hits the airwaves this week that causes me to believe that 2022 should be a year dedicated to seeking courage in the boardroom. We have spent a great deal of time in recent years talking about the importance of empathy, compassion, and listening – all of which are important leadership traits. Equally important is knowing when to take a difficult position – one that bucks that system, causes discomfort, and perhaps results in conflict and disagreement. Without courage change doesn’t happen. Without courage complacency can take hold. Without courage, the wrong people can stay in power.

The first Theranos trial is concluding. As of today, Elizabeth Holmes is found guilty of 4 of the 11 charges filed as the jury continues to deliberate. How did this woman successfully deceive her investors, her board, and her business partners? The trial is about her, and the alleged crimes that were committed. But where is the accountability for others? Titans of industry and politics who sat on her board never questioned her lack of data and her secrecy. Not a single director challenged or questioned her integrity. In spite of individual achievements in politics, military, and business, none of them cared enough to have the courage to ask uncomfortable questions. Had they done that, damage could have been mitigated, careers resurrected, and even lives saved.

As one who has served on numerous boards, I believe in the importance of collegiality. It’s important for directors to have trust, respect, and generally like one another. In times of challenge, camaraderie is important to weather the storm. Equally important is the character trait of personal courage. There have been many instances where crisis has been averted because someone at the table dared to say, “Is it just me or does this seem strange?”. Chances are that concern is held by more than one person. Being that one person who possesses the confidence and courage to speak up is never easy.

The higher you sit in an organization, the more difficult this becomes. I’m not surprised that the whistleblowers in this situation (as is most often the case) are those in lower levels of the enterprise. They see the real day-to-day. They know how people behave and when they are allowed (and not allowed) to know details. Board directors show up 4-6 times a year, listen to  prepared presentations, and can be comfortably made to think that everything is on track and headed for success. The Theranos board was made up of people who should have known better. They were duped. So how does a board prevent this from happening?

Leadership

Strong board governance recognizes the importance of balancing collegiality and challenge. Pre-meeting communication and preparation facilitates the right kinds of conversation and active understanding of the organization that can mitigate being “blindsided” as the Theranos board embarrassingly experienced.

• Whether you are a Board Chair or a Lead Independent Director, the importance of having one-on-one conversations in between board meetings is crucial. We all know that outcomes can be different when someone has an opportunity to bring up an idea in an individual conversation versus in a group. Teasing out concerns and hearing speculations can often be much easier in a private phone call than while sitting around a board table.

• When a concern is expressed by multiple directors privately, it needs to be addressed on the agenda. This could be a deep dive into a topic that requires more understanding. This could be a walk around an office or plant to examine working conditions. This could be a dinner with executives at different levels to test organizational culture. Shared concerns that are ignored create the sense that some opinions matter more than others.

• On the topic of culture, this is an obvious area where Theranos directors failed. It wouldn’t have taken much to figure out something was amiss. I’d venture a guess that they rarely met with executives other than the CEO and COO. Some companies I work with institute mentoring relationships between directors and executives. Others create special committees to address operational issues, which leverage directors with specific expertise to spend time with operational leaders dealing with particular business challenges. Both of these offer an easy opportunity to get a sense for how it feels to work in an organization.

Board Makeup

I’ve always told my CEOs that their Board of Directors are their most important (and least expensive!) group of advisors. With the right people sitting around the table, there should be no business challenge someone hasn’t gone through or thought through. Having the right set of skills and perspectives around the boardroom is essential in providing support, encouragement, inspiration, and challenge to an executive team.

• Theranos’ board of directors, assembled by Elizabeth Holmes, was a who’s who in powerful men at the time. And yes, they were all men. Kissinger, Shultz, Perry, Nunn, Frist, Kovacevich, Foege, Roughhead, Bechtel, Mattis were all blue-chip names that attracted confidence and investment. None of these individuals had experience in the field of pharmaceuticals, and none of them had experience in how start-up businesses worked in Silicon Valley.

• Pulling together a list of blue-chip CEOs and leaders ensured for Holmes that the “default” of the collective group was to keep the conversation at a very high level. I doubt any of these men had spent much time with the “rank-and-file” of their organizations in a very long time. It is doubtful any of them made time to mentor Theranos executives or have conversations about anything in detail who was more than one level below the CEO. They likely had no interest or understanding of the working culture.

• A lack of diversity of the board assures a board culture of mutual comfort and collegiality but maximizes the probability of “groupthink”. The men on the Theranos board were probably thrilled to be in one another’s company and didn’t have to deal with anyone who hadn’t achieved the level of orbital success that they had. Being the “odd man out” in a conversation would have been uncomfortable and questioning anything presented by the CEO would have made one unpopular in the fraternity.

Importance of stakeholders

I always believe that as a public company board director, I have an accountability to shareholders, and a responsibility for stakeholders. As a result, I’m tremendously interested in how shareholders are faring in the performance of the company, and I dedicate equal time to the interests of stakeholders. 

• Creating regular means of connecting with employees – via employee meetings, mentoring programs, speaking to special interest groups creates opportunity for two-way dialogue between directors and employees. Building that trust and creating forums for transparency gives insight into the culture and areas of priority.
• Learning of how talent development is managed and measured provides an understanding of the importance being placed on long-term strategic success and succession. If this is lacking and empty executive positions are always filled by outside candidates, there is undoubtedly an ambivalence about career satisfaction and upward mobility.
• Asking for metrics regarding customer satisfaction in an organization can inform a board about attention being placed on service and quality control. Revenue retention and customer loyalty measures are great indications of this stakeholder satisfaction.
• Partnership evaluation for strategic alliances provides a window into how well an organization is working in channels of strategic growth and revenue expansion. Theranos’ alliance with Walgreens/Boots was always tenuous at best. A simple request to probe this relationship could have indicated red flags.

In any situation where bad leadership results in people getting hurt, the absence of these above-mentioned governance practices can still be overcome by personal courage. Being willing to be the “lone voice” that questions a comfortable narrative isn’t easy, but tremendously important. In an ocean of conformity and comfort, it’s essential to have at least one person who is willing to question and challenge. The value of that individual is tremendously high and can begin conversations that others want to have but who feel less comfortable to initiate.

Be the brave one in your boardroom.

Shortcuts to Board Leadership - Part Two

In 2018, I published a  blog entitled, “Shortcuts to Board Leadership” as I was getting quite a few requests (and still do) about how to accelerate one’s journey to board service, particularly in the private/public company sector. I’ve shared it with numerous people who have hopefully gleaned some insight from my two primary points: (1) Establishing a clear personal narrative about your uniqueness and (2) Becoming top-of-mind with those who nominate candidates.

Oh, and the punchline: There are no shortcuts.

Since that time, the pressure to diversify boards has increased even more. The continued threat of strategic disruption calls for more relevant skills around technology and cybersecurity. The social unrest incidents that took place in the summer of 2020 highlighted the need to increase opportunities for people of color. An elevated focus on ESG calls for voices in the boardroom that can help shape the strategic agenda of an enterprise’s role to the wider community. Finally, the changes brought about by the COVID-19 pandemic further advantages boards which have directors in touch with the changing desires and preferences of today’s workforce.

As a result of these factors, the traditional practice of considering only C-suite executives for board service is being questioned. More general managers, division-level CFOs, SVPs of technology, those with specialized industry skills, and individuals with only experience in academia or the public sector are weighing the possibilities of becoming directors. Particularly in the interest of diversifying gender and ethnicity, recruiters and governance committees are giving consideration for more specialized knowledge and perspective. I know this because of the calls and referrals I’m receiving from both recruiters seeking to widen their network and from individuals who seek those opportunities.

What was once a role only available to sitting/former CEOs, CFOs and a scattering of C-suite executives is now a possibility for those slightly lower in organizations. But as a result, the odds of finding those coveted board seats are becoming even more difficult as the net gets cast wider than it ever has in the past. How can candidates truly stand out amid the thousands of resumes being circulated to sitting directors and recruiters every day?

Although most companies have on-boarding programs, those are generally designed to familiarize new directors to the business of the enterprise. Because directors in past decades have been selected primarily from board-facing executive roles, it has been unnecessary to train individuals on the actual role of a director; they’ve all known how a board feels and operates because they've spent a great deal of time in the room. New directors today who might not have had board-facing roles (and have only presented to the board from time to time) should nonetheless have a strong understanding of the duties of directors and be able to participate as a full director from Day One of board service.

Fiduciary responsibility and oversight of strategy and enterprise risk continue to be among the primary role of the Board of Directors. Understanding these areas of a director’s role is critical, and a candidate can increase his/her advantage to be prepared. There are a few great programs that can prepare executives for board service; many are offered by university business schools or organizations that serve the board community. In the United States, the premiere organization for board governance, NACD, offers a comprehensive director certification. As an item-writer for the foundational exam and now a member of its  Corporate Directors Institute oversight board, I can attest to its rigor, thoroughness, and relevance.  Internationally, the Institute of Corporate Directors of Canada, and the Institute of Directors for the UK  both offer good background for board service and assessment of board readiness in their respective markets.

The competition for board seats will only become more intense in the coming years. As the scrutiny of enterprise continues to grow in our society, having the right voices around the table becomes increasingly more critical. Positioning yourself as a qualified director with unique experience and perspective is the key to standing out from the ocean of candidates vying for slots. For those who haven’t held significant board-facing jobs, the attractiveness of your candidacy can be increased by investing in preparation. That combined with the two points I made in my initial blog will get you as close as you can to a shortcut.

College Advice and Business Reflections

I had the pleasure of hosting a virtual event for my college alumni club today. Every summer, at about this time, Joel and I host a pizza party inviting all of the Houston-area freshmen preparing to attend the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign to meet one another as they get ready to head for campus. It also gives them a chance to meet local alumni group officers to ask questions in preparation for their upcoming experience. Given that we are living in the world of COVID-19, this year’s event was held in the Zoom Room, of course. Of the 18 new students attending UIUC this year from the Houston area, we had only three who could join us, but with 5 alums also on the call, it was a wonderful conversation we shared for about an hour.

After the requisite brief introduction by all participants, we opened up for questions from the students. Every year when this event occurs, I find myself mentally wandering back in time, thinking about how scared I was heading out of state to a university of about 40,000, where I wouldn’t know a single undergraduate student, and starting a new chapter of my life. And every year during the conversation, I find a yearning to return to campus and having a chance to relive that wonderful chapter all over again!

The students’ questions this year covered a broad range of topics: What electives did you take? Where did you study? What do you think of study abroad programs? How many years did you live in the dorms? What meal plan do you recommend? How heavy of a coat should I take (extremely important when you are from Houston!)? Where did you hang out in your free time? It was enjoyable for the alumni on the call to spend some time reminiscing as our time away from campus life ranged from single digits to over 40 years!

In the final minutes of the call, I asked each of the alumni to give one bit of advice – with the advantage of having 20/20 hindsight – based on anything they wish they had done more of (or less!) during their time on campus. I found the reflections poignant and sensible, and definitely advice I wish I had received when I first ventured away from home for college. Not surprisingly, I realized much of the advice can be equally relevant to how leaders at any stage in our careers think about opportunities and circumstances as we move through our different life chapters.

Be prepared to work hard to stay on top

• The advice to the students was to realize that even though they might have been one of the smartest kids in high school, they need to understand that the definition of excellence was about to be reset. The difficulty of acceptance into UIUC’s Grainger College of Engineering (they are all engineering majors), means they are about be surrounded by some of the brightest minds from all over the US and abroad. The importance of being prepared and diligent, staying ahead on coursework is key to excelling in college.
• The parallels of this advice for leaders are great. Leaders who fail to recognize the importance of continued learning and improving skills are sure to far behind. The work only begins when you land a new job. Particularly in the environment of constant change that we find as the new normal, the importance of this advice cannot be underestimated. Staying still today means falling behind – quickly.

Trust your intuition, but don’t rely solely on it

• The advice to students was that although being good at thinking on your feet and figuring things out on the fly might have worked in high school, not being organized in your daily college life will backfire. You can’t rely on just figuring things out – you need to be deliberate about applying discipline to everything you do.
• The importance of balancing intuition and disciplined information-gathering is key for any good leader. Instincts are important – especially when it comes to reading a room, sensing a challenge emerging, or even in problem-solving when something just “doesn't seem right”, but great leaders understand the importance of being disciplined in gathering data, learning the facts, and preparing thoughtful steps in executing strategy.

Study (travel) abroad

• The question of whether study abroad programs are worthwhile always seems to come up when speaking to rising college students. It’s wonderful that many universities are encouraging undergraduate students to have this experience as such programs grow the student in both a professional and personal capacity. The advice given was to definitely pursue an opportunity, consider appropriate timing (in the context of requisite coursework), and to start planning for it early.
• The importance of business leaders having a global perspective is paramount – whether or not you run a business that goes beyond your country’s borders. The impact of global events and disruption plays a huge part in managing everything from supply chain to reputation management. Geopolitical imbalances, unexpected natural disasters or pandemics, and military insurrections can quickly change an organization’s ability to operate successfully. Increasingly diverse workforces call for leaders who are enlightened about ethnic and cultural differences. With the rise of the importance of ESG and in the world of instant communication, naiveté about global issues can have irreparable consequences.

Find opportunities for experience beyond just classes

• At a university as large and diverse as UIUC, the experiences that await incoming freshmen are almost more than one can imagine. We recommended that in this unique time of life – when you have a sole purpose of learning – that students take full advantage of resources and opportunities available. Taking a diversity of elective courses, meeting different kinds of people, and allowing yourself to be truly “who you are” and not living up to a set of artificial expectations are important during the college years.
• For too many leaders, intellectual exploration ceases when they begin a professional career. It becomes far too easy for executives to be comfortable in their habitat and surround themselves only with the “job at hand”. They fail to venture outside where there is more to learn, and where the options for solutions are far greater. Leaders who fail to grow beyond their job descriptions suffocate innovative thinking and weaken both peripheral vision and the ability to see a future that might be different from where they stand.

Be aware and take advantage of brilliant people who surround you

• Recognizing the importance of relationships and networking, my one regret was not taking advantage (perhaps not truly valuing) the tremendous amount of brainpower that surrounded me during my time at UIUC. Failure to seek wisdom of professors during their office hours and not having more conversations with advisors (other than figuring out how many more credits I needed for graduation) are my greatest regrets from my college days. As I look back now, I realize that at any given time at UIUC, there are more than a handful of Nobel laureates or Pulitzer Prize winners teaching on faculty, and brilliant adjunct professors who have extensive experience running businesses. Too many students go through their college years without tapping into perhaps the greatest resources that universities can offer.
• In the business world, we know that it’s all about relationships and tapping into expert knowledge. The amount of thought leadership that is available today through publications, podcasts, and video recordings is endless. With the convenience of the internet, it is virtually impossible to find the answer to a business challenge that someone hasn’t at least thought about or actually experienced first-hand. Similarly, great business leaders understand the importance of capitalizing on their personal networks. Nothing can easily be accessed without someone opening a door. The better you know an individual, and the more you have invested in that relationship, the quicker someone is willing to reach for that door handle to help you out. I find that the common expression of it being a “small world” is due to someone who has invested in their network over many decades.

As the Zoom call ended today, I’m sure the alumni on the call felt as I did; that they would like to take some time to return to the life of a university student, knowing what we know now. Upon reflection, however, I realize that we always have the ability to take the advice we gave to the 18-year old rising freshmen and apply those lessons to our everyday lives. Go Illini!

 

 

Positivity

 

In conversations this past week, I was asked by three different people, “How are you staying so upbeat and positive with everything going on?” It was an interesting question, and when I was asked for the third time, I realized it was worth thinking about. Life is a challenge these days as we face a pandemic, racial strife, economic downturn, energy industry impact (I live in the Houston area), ugly politics during an election year, etc...and yet I’m feeling pretty positive and hopeful.

No, I haven’t taken to drugs or increased my alcohol consumption, nor have I crawled into a hole and avoided reality! But in the past few weeks, I have made it a point to take some deliberate actions to stay positive and hopeful. I realize that I impact not only the mood of my household, but as I serve on boards and speak to numerous executives and thought leaders across industries during the day, I impact many who all benefit by hearing more words of hope and optimism as they navigate challenging waters.

As I think about what I’ve done to stay “above the muck”, these are some practices I’ve adopted:

Understand my role in this pandemic

I’m not an epidemiologist, health care worker, nor do I work directly in the healthcare field.  I have no expertise about this virus. My role is as a citizen. I have a healthy respect for this virus, understanding that although the vast majority of people who come in contact with the virus do alright, I’d rather not contract it, nor do I want to give it to someone inadvertently. As a result, I stay home as much as possible, and when I go out, I wear a mask.

I do not need to know absolute daily numbers of how many people test positive or how many have died in every state or country. I have a good general idea and know where trends are heading. Therefore, I don’t spend time worrying about what mistakes were made yesterday, which political camp is inflating or deflating statistics. I adhere to guidelines prescribed by experts and follow local authorities. I pray that really smart people are working on a vaccine but know it might take time.

I also know that information is readily available. There are reputable sources that are publishing these, so I don’t need to be the 500^th share or tweet to inform.

Limit my media consumption – particularly social media – particularly Facebook

In case you didn’t notice, news is depressing. As a result, I don’t consume more than I need. I watch/read enough to carry on conversations with people so that they know I’m not a luddite, but I don’t need to debate things that (1) won’t change or (2) people really don’t care what I think about. I do continue to maintain deep knowledge about the topics for which I care and understand, and I am cognizant about topics on which my opinion matters. I’ve also discovered that picking the right forum to espouse my thoughts is important if I want to have a constructive conversation.

As the forums go, Facebook has become the most depressing. I joined years ago to get in touch with old friends and catch up on one another’s lives. My “memories” lookback shows how my involvement on this platform has evolved. Having gone through the stage of “cute kids” and “parental bragging rights” – I still love my kids but they’re adults now so they’re on their own to talk about how cute they are – I’m now in a life stage where I have this strange dilemma of “what do I tell people about”. Realizing it’s easy to fall into the narcissistic habit of asking people to “like” my life, I’ve found myself posting far less than I did years ago.

So on the topic of how to stay upbeat, I took the FB app off of my phone and iPad (leaving Messenger on because I have people in my life who use it regularly). When I do get on via my laptop, I allow myself to scroll until the first negative/critical/lecturing comment about ANYTHING, and shortly thereafter, I close the app.

Generally, my scroll time is about 30 seconds.

I don’t have the time or energy to engage in debate with people who don’t want to hear contrarian views, and I find myself starting to dislike people I actually thought I liked. I love informative posts – news and updates – but I cringe when people are directive and condescending. I found many posts/comments around racial equality to be tremendously insulting and hateful. I’d never before seen the level of vitriol and resentment on the site. I know I’m missing cute kids and puppies, but it’s okay…I catch them if they appear on my scroll above the hate and negativity, and the lack of my “like” doesn’t make them any less special.

It’s not that I don’t have an opinion on important matters, but I don't think I’m going to change anyone’s opinion on masks, politics, ethics, diversity, or sustainability on Facebook. Change happens in real conversations and social media is not a real conversation. Real conversations have consequence and dialogue; if I say something negative, I have to answer to a response. People don't have to do that online; they can anonymously call someone an idiot, and never have to answer to their victim. The danger of those comments and headlines getting shared over and over gives people the impression that the majority of the human species are jerks.

I don’t believe we are.

For my needs, I find LinkedIn to be a much better platform for sharing/receiving thought leadership. It hasn’t been taken over by people who want to name-call or lecture. On the few occasions I’ve seen it, people are quick to call out inappropriateness, and it seems to work. I find for my blog posts LinkedIn garners many more comments, shares, and suggestions, and is (unsurprisingly) reaching an audience that cares more about the content.

Look for goodness and beauty

You don't have to look too hard to find great stories that are taking place these days in spite of our challenges. Gestures of caring for the elderly, the amazing innovations happening on so many fronts, stories of survival, and overcoming incredible obstacles give me strength and affirm my belief in goodness. Those are most of the stories I choose to share.

In nature I find beauty and amazement. Finding live video streams of animals in their habitat or of nature walks and majestic mountains remind me of the amazing planet on which we live. Taking a walk and noticing animals and birds in my neighborhood gives me a sense of gratitude that I get to quarantine in a beautiful environment during the pandemic.

Find time to do new things

In spite of more hours on videoconference calls and in meetings, the inability to travel and my reduced online hours have yielded a windfall of free time. As a result, I’ve increased my book reading, piano time (re-learning some old and learning some new), bike-riding (before Houston summer temps arrived!), and I’ve fallen into the great habit of getting in touch with old friends by phone – since everyone is home and easy to find!

All of those activities result in far more positiveness than negativity.

 

One of the most important attributes of strong leadership is to maintain a positive and inspirational outlook in challenging times. Being deliberate about understanding our sources of stress and scaling back on activities that bring us down is vitally important.  That helps us focus on aspects of our lives that bring feelings of happiness and gratitude from which others can draw hope and inspiration.

Give yourself a break from too much bad news and social media. Look for goodness and beauty. Find old and new and fun things to learn and do. Get in touch with friends and people who will lift you up. The magic formula is in there somewhere!