Nurturing the Next Generation of Leaders

Last month I was honored to be recognized by HITEC100, along with fellow SAP colleagues Anamarie Franc and Ada Agrait, and many other Hispanic leaders in the technology space. It means a lot to be recognized, not only for the job we do, but the broader role we play representing the Hispanic community. On a personal level, the recognition has given me time to pause and reflect on what more I can do to support the development the next generation of leaders, especially in a time when you hear more about quiet quitting and the great resignation than you do about developing and engaging employees. Here are three things I am committed to.

Recognize that diversity takes many forms

While it may seem rhetorical to talk about diversity under the auspice of a diversity award, diversity comes in many forms. There is, of course, gender and racial diversity but also diversity of culture, ability, age and so many others. In a global company, exposure to a diverse group of people comes with the territory but truly embracing others’ viewpoints and learning from them is a different – and critical – skill to helping develop the leaders of tomorrow. Diversity of thought also prompts you to listen and learn constantly. With all the geographical regions I’ve worked across, I still find that in a professional environment, we all have a common foundation to get the job done. We may be driven by different things that are based in our different cultures, but when we connect to achieve the same goal, I find that we are all very similar across the board. That said, different perspectives and different points of view always enrich the work we all do every day.

Find passion and purpose in your work

For Generation Z (those roughly born between 1997 to 2012), the importance of social causes remains high as a draw to one company or another, with diversity, equity, and inclusion ranking top on their list of social concerns too. They want to work for companies that have values akin to their own. I couldn’t agree more with the Gen Zers, even though I was certainly not born in those decades. For me, working at SAP aligned to my own purpose. I have been supporting Junior Achievement globally for over 20 years and SAP partners with the organization by providing mentors to inspire young people to create their own future success. As the old proverb goes, “If you give a man a fish, you feed him for a day. If you teach a man to fish, you feed him for a lifetime.” Following your passion allows you to bring a new perspective to your work but it also may inspire others to do the same and, at the same time, create an environment others want to be part of.

Create opportunities for building trust in the team

At the start of my career, I had a manager who took a chance on me. He gave me an opportunity to succeed knowing I could fail forward, but I know now he also took a risk in the situation. My success was his success. This taught me at an early stage in my career that, as a leader, you get more from your team when you empower them to do what’s right and trust in their instincts. Sometimes a corporate vision can be rather intangible but when its personal – and trust is personal – it’s easier to rally around. I’ve tried to instill that same view as I lead teams and expect others to trust our people to do the right thing too, creating an environment where things are fair and equitable and ensuring that I am clear on my role to support our team to be successful, and not the other way around. ?

There is still much to be done to engage employees as the last few years have certainly taken their toll on everyone. But I hope that leaders around the world are all thinking about what we can commit to in order to sustain our businesses in the future and bring up the next generation of leaders that will take it forward.?