Women Leaders Must Dive In, Not Just Lean In (Part 2)

In Part 1 of my interview with Deloitte’s Maritza Montiel, Deputy CEO & Vice Chairman, and Jennifer Steinmann, Deputy CEO and Chief Talent Officer, they addressed many issues that women face in their quest to advance into leadership roles.  Topics included:  knowing when you have encountered a defining moment, the importance of mentorship, overcoming barriers and the notion of asking permission.

In Part 2, we dive deeper into these and other issues as the two leaders discuss how to make risk your best friend, being courageous and getting discovered, having a generous purpose to support others, change management and leading to leave a legacy.

Glenn Llopis: As a leader, at what point does risk become your best friend?

Jennifer Steinmann:  I would say that you have to make “calculated” risk your best friend.  Let me give you an example of what I mean.

For our senior leaders – partners and directors – senior managers, and rising leaders, we have a series of courses called the C-suite program.   One is the “Art of Empathy,” where leaders look at how their brain is wired through brain chemistry mapping. There are typically four quadrants that people fall into, or four types of people: Integrator, Driver, Innovator and Guardian.

People can lean toward one or two of these or be spread across all four. When thinking about risk, you would look at these factors when putting together a team. You want to balance your thinking with others on the team.

You can look at this as taking a calculated risk.  A decision can seem risky, but if you’ve done all the leg work leading up to it and you’ve got a good team and a lot of data behind you, you can show that what you’re about to undertake is not as risky as it might have seemed..

Also, if you work on areas where you are strong and that you are passionate about, that’s another form of making calculated risk your best friend.

Llopis: How do you translate that into a best practice for women, where risk is not your enemy and calculated risk becomes your best friend?

Steinmann: It’s actually riskier to allow others to feel that they can dictate your actions as a leader. Providing an opinion and their advice is one thing – you need those things but you also get to decide what to do with it.

The three most important things to remember are:

  1. Do the work.  When you have confidence that you know the subject matter and you have a solid team around you, you can say: “I know this and I have a vision of where we should go with it.”
  2. Have somebody you can go to who you know has your back. For me that person is Maritza.  You need someone who knows when to push you gently and then let’s you go do your thing, or is there when you need a harder push or to talk you down off the ledge.
  3. Know that with the alternative – not moving forward – no one gets ahead. You’ve got to take the steps and the risk and push yourself. Don’t do someone else’s bidding because then you’re implementing someone else’s vision and whether or not it’s successful, you’re no longer the master of your fate.

Llopis:  It’s easier to move forward when someone has your back.  Dive-in…but have a life jacket.

Maritza Montiel:  To that I would add, you get what you want out of life by helping other people get what they want.

Besides the business of the firm, part of my responsibility as a leader is to help develop and mentor other leaders. This is equally as important as the successes you have with clients or building the business or transforming a broken process. Your brand is intrinsically connected to what you’ve accomplished as a leader but just as importantly to what you have helped others achieve.

Llopis:  Besides being a mentor to Jennifer, how else can you help other women advance?

Montiel:  I decided I would have “no shame” in promoting and trying to further women and minorities in the firm. Until we added another woman to the executive committee, it was just me. It became a personal goal of mine to break the barriers and get another woman a seat at the table.

We had one candidate (with 3 autistic children) and  the debate focused on the question of how is she going to be able to handle it – instead of on her abilities. This is when you have to be willing to risk your personal brand – by saying “trust me, they can do this job” and singing their praises.

Sometimes you have to throw a body block to help someone get to the next level. Be shameless, and don’t wait for a man to do it. The legacy I’m most of proud of is the people I’ve been able to help.

Llopis: What advice would you give a woman with high potential, someone on the fast track, on how to earn the right to have a mentor or sponsor? Especially if they don’t yet know or live their own identity.

Montiel: That’s like saying to someone: go find love. It’s not something you can just put on a to-do list and then go select the people you want to approach as mentors. It’s something that best happens naturally over time.

I always wanted to work for the people I could learn the most from, even if they were hard to work for. Usually the two go hand-in-hand. Gravitate to the best minds by volunteering to work for them and then grab the opportunity to learn from them. Always go to the job well-informed, read everything you can and prepare well for the opportunity.

What I said earlier (about getting what you want by helping other people get what they want) applies here as well. Support those you work for by being a problem-solver and helping them accomplish their agenda. At the end of the day, people want to surround themselves with people they can count on, that will deliver exceptional work, that will try their hardest, and do whatever it takes to help them be successful.

Llopis: And that want their success to continue.

Montiel:  Exactly.  So take the time to let mentorships come naturally and connect at a human level. Know that seeking someone’s help and advice is the greatest honor you can give them. You are telling them that you value their opinion. This is why women shouldn’t be shy or afraid to seek that person or persons out.

But also understand that mentorship is a two-way street. There’s got to be something in it for them and you need to be a part of that.

Llopis: How do you get discovered?

Montiel:  Have the courage to say what everyone else in the room is thinking but not saying. Courage is one of the primary things missing. Everyone has a moral compass but not so much the courage to always do the right thing. When you’re talking about advancing women or minorities, or taking risks on people, you have to have a lot of courage and say you’re going to do this because it’s the right thing to do.

You also have an obligation to help people be better and to help make them better. Leaders come in all shapes and sizes and styles. I can think of accomplished people that others gave up on, but those that had the courage to speak up can point and say:  “Look how much they’ve grown.”

Steinmann: I lean more toward sponsorship, because sponsors can open more doors for you from a career perspective. To get noticed, you have to do the work, really well, and there’s no shortcut for that. Don’t be afraid to do tactful self-promotion.

There’s a difference between fearless and reckless, and sometimes people think speaking your mind is reckless. It is not. It requires courage and in order to get anything meaningful done, especially in a large organization, you have to have some measure of fearlessness.

When you do get noticed, it’s important to be open about sharing what you’re trying to do and making it mutually beneficial. When you’re working with someone on a hard problem, and you’ve helped them achieve something in their leadership capacity, it is a two-way street and now you’ve earned the right to get noticed.

You’ve also earned the right to ask for something, especially when the offer is put out there. I’ve seen women get shy when asked what they want to do next – when now is the time to share the plan you have in mind.

Llopis: The marketplace now demands these things, and it falls under change management.

Montiel:  I lot of people don’t see it yet. The “burning platform” is not visible to leaders who haven’t experienced the right amount of pain. Those are the ones who are going to be left behind.

It’s an issue that has been ten years in the making and it’s only going to get more challenging. Organizations that can’t figure out how to attract and retain the best and brightest will cease to be competitive in the future.  It’s that simple.

That’s why we focus so much on Diversity & Inclusion, because we know that the demographics of the U.S., of the world, are changing – and you need all kinds of people in the boat, the very best people.

And the very best people can go anywhere. There’s never been unemployment for highly-talented performers. They’re recruited by multiple companies and can pick and choose where they work.

Llopis:  How do you go about attracting the best and the brightest to your organization?

Montiel:  The objective is to convince them that your organization is the place for them to be, by creating a “best place to work” environment and working at it every day. It’s not a matter of programs but of culture and fostering an environment that allows people to express themselves. Understanding that the individual is unique and recognizing things like cultural heritage and giving people permission to be proud of that and to express who they are.

But for many organizations, the burning platform isn’t there yet because the slow economy gave people a temporary pass.

Steinmann:  Though some haven’t realized it yet, the burning platform is there. The minority is now the majority. The women and minorities in our ranks will soon be over 50%. That’s a major shift, the burning platform.

Our clients expect individuals who can bring multiple experiences and a diversity that resembles them. You have to make those changes. We were the first professional services organization to launch a women’s initiative, and then a diversity initiative.

Flash forward to today, and it’s all one initiative called Inclusion that has multiple tentacles and broader focus; it’s less programmatic and has become part of the DNA of our organization. Now whether you’re the 50-something white male or the 20-something Latina, there is something that holds us together, that enables people to see where they have common ground.

We’re now working on some new research we call, “Uncovering Talent, A New Model of Inclusion.” We want people to bring their whole selves to work. To bring all the great ideas they have inside them, instead of worrying about what makes them different, or hiding – “covering” – a major part of who they are.

Llopis:  As they dive-in to new leadership roles, what is the key take-away message that you would leave for other women leaders?

Steinmann: Leader-up!  You get more out of life and out of work if you have the courage to bring your authentic self to all you do. Authenticity gives people a sense that they belong, that they matter, and that what they do matters.

Montiel: Dare to be extraordinary. To use a golf analogy, women don’t often get to hit the ball from the red tees.  But the course is the same, the rules are the same, so if you dare to be extraordinary, you will get noticed. Ask yourself in everything you do, does this meet the definition of extraordinary? Make that your North Star, and you’ll end up being an extraordinary leader.

