A quest to understand human potential for success in a corporate world
By Marianne Abib-Pech – Head of Finance and Commercial- EMEA
Have you ever wondered what it would be like to get the top job in the company of your dreams?
Have you ever imagined how it would feel, being the new kid on the block, to enter the boardroom for that very first meeting?
How anxious would you feel being there ?
And how would you feel if in this situation you were aware that you had beaten the odds by a country mile. That you were one of only 3% of women in European boardrooms….that as a woman you would be helping to build a more balanced corporate world… a new world?
When I became aware of this extraordinary imbalance, I knew at once that I wanted to understand what potential there was for all women to make these individual journeys to success. I went on a quest to find the women who had ‘made it’ – from the scary corporate Amazons to the caring, nurturing, softer skilled women. I wanted to learn from their stories, their dramas, to collect their experiences, for my own understanding initially, but then quickly with the intention to bring a testimony, a ray of hope to us all.
I wanted to ask them to explain their journey to me and to analyse their success. I wanted to understand whether they had fully reconciled the constant wearing of skirts and high heels. I wanted to know whether they had managed to bring the whole of themselves to the office, to be the passionate, caring women they truly were and yet still make it into the boardroom. I wondered what advice they could give to make the journey of others a little easier.
On my travels I was blessed with 35 special encounters, 35 amazing women from different industries, roles and age groups. These encounters painted an incredibly complex canvas of what makes a career: the path, the rhythm, the
inflection points, the setbacks and the leaps of faith.
It was a revelation; the diversity indeed, but even more so the similarities of their journeys, aspirations, and the almost universal four cornerstones of their success:
- Talent and self confidence
- Diversity of experience
- Supreme understanding of their environment
- Passion, passion, passion
I was amazed. Nothing gender specific was ever mentioned, as if the issue was not really there…
What if we have never positioned the problem correctly in the first place?
What if we could design a universal recipe for success in the corporate world, regardless of gender, background, or even race? This recipe would be built on three simple key elements:
- True self awareness
- Deep understanding of the macro and micro environments
- A strategy based on controllable events?
Would that be a dream?
Would that be unrealistic or would it lead to more diversity in the boardroom?
I strongly believe so.
Would this help build a better and more sustainable corporate world ?
By Marianne Abib-Pech – Head of Finance and Commercial- EMEA – BHP Billiton
CFOevent 