Femme Lead

Send us a textIn this interview we converse with Anja Monrad, the woman that leads Dell Technologies in the Central & Eastern Europe region, covering 31 countries, from Israel to Poland. This episode focuses on marketing communications and Anja's journey from starting as a graduate in IT sales to becoming an executive, all through planning her career. Having joined Dell as Marketing Director for the Nordic countries in 2000, Anja has since pursued an international career within Dell Marketing holding various regional and global roles. She has been in charge of Dell’s CEE business since 2013.Anja oversees Dell Technologies entrepreneurship initiatives for Europe, the Middle East, and Africa. She is an ardent promoter of female entrepreneurship and has been recognized among the top inspiring women in the Nordic tech scene.Anja is a member of the Danish IT association board and Chairman of the IT association’s Steering committee for Female IT Executives. In 2018 she has been appointed the chair of the Digital Skills and Jobs Coalition Governing Board at the European Union. Anja's journey is full a wisdom and in the 45 minutes of the interview, we follow her upbringing, the decisions she made to pursue a career in marketing, and how she built her career by creating one opportunity after another, finding sponsors within the company and taking on more responsibility when there was no one else to do the task. Quotes:‘’Life is too short for companies who are not supportive of a diverse & inclusive culture. If good talent disappears, companies will change. But you don’t have to waste your time while they figure it out. Try and change the environment, but if it doesn't work, pack up and go somewhere else.”“Ask for help: Go ask again and then go and ask somebody else. Ask for sponsorship. There is a difference between asking for mentoring and then asking for sponsorship in the organization. Go and ask for help from people who have influence.“You can follow Anja Monrad on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/anjamonrad/ Episode Timeline:02:48 Did you plan your career? Did you know you will become an SVP?05:00 Were there role models or anything in your upbringing that made you want to decide your path?07:00 Is there anything you wish you knew before deciding your path e.g. university? 08:30 What do you tell people who feel they are running out of time to building their careers?13:30 What was a lesson prior to joining Dell that helped you decide on your path? 19:20 What was the best piece of advice you received navigating the first year of your career?21:30 What were some of the obstacles in navigating your career?25:00 What do you tell women who feel their promotion paths are not going the way they want?28:20 Is there something you would have done differently in your career knowing everything you know now? What about if the company you’re in does not support your path? 31:55 What was the biggest surprise of your career?33:26 What is the most rewarding activity of your career?34:30 What do you tell people who feel the pressure of always looking for a new position?38:37 Were there any situations where you had to go “through fire”? How do you navigate difficult situations?43:15 Final thoughts on seeing your job as part of your life, it is a marathon. Your job is NOT your identity. 

Send us a textIn this episode, we discuss the field of business development, how to work with high-level clients, how to communicate, and what questions to ask. The journey to navigate the corporate setup can be paved with challenges if the relationship with your customers is not strong. Ana Sarbu shares pieces of advice on how to build fruitful partnerships with business partners and ensure their needs are listened to and met while providing the service Palantir is best known for: the world's leading software for data-driven decisions and operations.Ana has been living between the US and Europe for the past 12 years and is now based in London, UK. She graduated magna cum laude from Georgetown University in 2012 with a double degree in Foreign Policy and Russian and is currently working in business development for the Silicon Valley technology company Palantir Technologies (https://www.palantir.com/). She is passionate about offering young people in Eastern Europe the same educational opportunities that she’s had abroad. While in college, together with her friends, she co-founded Aspire Education – an organization focused on discovering, developing, and connecting young leaders in Eastern Europe by offering them opportunities to engage with Ivy-league professors, inspirational speakers, and mentors.Follow Ana Sarbu on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ana-sarbu-51a53728/ Check out Aspire Education and find out more about the program: https://www.aspireacademy.ro/ Resources from Ana:o   Podcast: NYT Rabbithole – about the effects the Internet has on our lives https://www.nytimes.com/column/rabbit-holeo   Books:§  “In Extremis” about the life and work of war journalist Marie Colvin; an impressive figure, courageous and fragile at the same time.§  For some foundational work: "Plato’s Dialogues", especially Apology, Phaedo, Republic, Phaedrus, Symposium.o   Speech: Angela Merkel tv speech at the start of coronavirus: https://ga.de/ga-english/news/angela-merkel-s-speech-about-the-corona-virus-in-full_aid-49639811; Video with subtitles: https://nymag.com/intelligencer/2020/03/angela-merkel-nails-coronavirus-speech-unlike-trump.htmlo   Method: take time to reflect on yourself; write down a few things you wish to accomplish over the next years and put them in a box / a jar; set your mind to them. Revisit them in a few years (wait at least 3 years) and see how many you’ve accomplished. Then repeat the exercise. Episode Timeline:03:40 What does your role of business cultivation mean?05:50 What does business development mean to you?08:36 How to research and connect with peers in your field.13:30 What should people know when interacting with clients on a daily basis?16:50 What questions do you ask your clients when starting to work together?19:00 Using ‘prioritization’ in your personal life. What is it that you truly prioritize?24:48 What do you think about the expression 'the customer is in charge'? How do you tackle situations when you know you need to advise your customers differently than they want?27:43 How did your upbringing influenced & kick-started your career in Silicon Valley?35:25 What is the most rewarding aspect of your current role?39:00 What is Aspire Education? How is a program such as Aspire impacting the professional & ed

Send us a textDr. Ghina M. Halabi is the first person to obtain a doctorate in astrophysics from a Lebanese university, a Space Scientist at the University of Cambridge, Programme Director at Cambridge Judge Business School's Entrepreneurship Centre, and the founder of She Speaks Science. Through all of her initiatives, she aims to make science accessible and women in STEM more visible, one story at a time. In this episode, Dr. Ghina discusses the role of astrophysics in science, gender biases in showcasing science as a career option for girls, and steps to change the narrative so that more women join STEM fields (Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics).Throughout her career, Ghina believed that she had more to offer to the world and strived to receive the Award for Doctoral Studies at the American University of Beirut, becoming the first person to receive a Ph.D. degree in Astrophysics from a Lebanese university. Moreover, she was a postdoctoral research associate at the Institute of Astronomy, University of Cambridge, UK, where she investigated the evolution of stars and the formation of elements.Passionate about women in STEM, she founded She Speaks Science, a platform that features stories shared by contributors in science from around the world: "We want to increase active engagement with science by inspiring young people into STEM, and to make STEM inclusive by promoting women and minority scientists. Our vision is a world where all scientists are valued, and where science is at the heart of society not a luxury or accessory."In 2019, Dr. Ghina was featured in Postscript Magazine as the Muse Urania, in an issue that aimed to deconstruct mythological muses & reimagine them as modern #WomenofColour. Episode Timeline:Introduction & Astrophysics starting at 02’:00:02:19 Introduction to Dr. Ghina M.Halabi00:03:36 Astrophysics: Research focus at the University of CambridgeCareer Path starting at 9’:00:09:40 From the mountains of Lebanon to obtaining the first Doctorate from a Lebanese University00:12:22 Inspiration for career path and steps to forging your own path00:15:40 The importance of role models in science00:17:50 Conversation about biases in STEM00:27:15 Initiatives taken to showcase role models in science00:32:02 Reimagining Greek Muses as Women of ColorAdvice section starting at 35’:00:35:33 Advice for the scientific path and tackling underrepresentation00:39:00 Invitation to join the "She Speaks Science" missionConnect with Dr. Ghina M. Halabi: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ghinamhalabi/Resources:She Speaks Science: http://www.shespeaksscience.com/Interview with Women Making Waves: https://soundcloud.com/user-603229904/dr-ghina-halabiInterview with Interplanetary Podcast on Wormholes: https://www.interplanetary.org.uk/post/157-ghina-halabi-wormholes Postscript Magazine Feature of Dr. Ghina M. Halabi as the Muse Urania: https://www.instagram.com/p/BvZJG4bgc4l/

Send us a textIn this interview, Madalina Petrescu M.D. is sharing what it truly means to live a heart-centered life. She goes beyond the traditional healing of the physical heart and dives deep into living life from your heart. She talks about how to live an aligned life, a whole, and balanced life, what true health really means, involving all aspects of self including physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual. Madalina has always been attracted to the space of the heart and the healing arts, becoming a cardiologist in 2004. She currently works at Swedish Medical Center, in Seattle Washington. She holds leadership positions in advanced imaging of the heart and has served as faculty at national conferences on cardiovascular topics. Her own personal challenges led her on a life journey into the heart, awakening her to the deeper meaning of conscious living and to what true healing means. She is also a Certified Consciousness Parenting Coach and an international best selling author. She is a certified practitioner and facilitator of heart-opening modalities such as Reconnective Healing, and Kundalini Activation Process.Madalina shares her authentic life journey, how she came into her profession as a cardiologist, the walls she hit against, and how she discovered that her greatest challenges turned out to be the greatest gifts that led her on the path into her own heart connection, truth, and wisdom. In the process, she shares the pearls of how it is possible to show up to the world and serve others by first honoring oneself so she can serve from a full and overflowing heart. She is married to Cris and together they have two beautiful daughters. She loves connecting with nature through outdoor adventures such as hiking, camping, and much more. She also loves to travel, explore cultures, and engage in spiritual practices and heart-centered healing modalities.Madalina co-authored 3 books that became international best sellers:1) Ignite your Female Leadership. Thirty-five outstanding stories by women who are inspiring the world through feminine leadership.2) Ignite your Parenting.  Real-life, heartfelt stories to help parents find balance and joy in raising happy children.3) Ignite Love. Real-life stories of defining love and manifesting more of it in your everyday life.Resources: Louise Hay "You Can Heal your life".Wayne Dyer.Michael Singer "Untethered Soul".Eckart Tolle "The Power of Now".Paulo Coelho "The Alchemist".The Tao Te Ching, also known as Lao Tzu.

Send us a textHow do you decide to start a business that would serve women in the financial industry? The answer? You quickly realize that women are underrepresented in the financial markets, and they generally retire with 35% less wealth than men. In Denmark, the number is 43% less for women. Anna-Sophie Hartvigsen is the co-founder of Female Invest, Northern Europe's leading financial educator. The goal of Female Invest is to help women become better at investing and managing their personal finances. They do this, among other things, through video courses and coaching sessions.Since Female Invest was founded in 2017, the company has helped 25,000 women across 33 countries become better at investing.In this episode, Anna-Sophie will tell us more about Female Invest, the company's missions, and vision, how did she decide to start a business, what are some of the challenges she had to overcome, as well as learnings she gathered.Recently, Anna-Sophie won the Cartier Women's Initiative Awards in Europe, the world's largest startup competition for women entrepreneurs. and previously she was featured as Forbes 30 under 30. On top of that, Anna is a TedX speaker, and she often speaks about the financial gap and ways to move the needle and educate women about their financial future. Upbringing02:20 - Cartier Women's Initiative Award06:55 - The ecosystem of learning about investment08:20 - The reason for starting a company: What are the drivers for starting a business?Career Path13:00 - Milestones of building Female Invest 14:30 - Navigating the entrepreneurial journey16:34 - The mission of Female Invest: Closing the financial gap17:25 - Gender traits in investment20:35 - The way Female Invest is educating women about investingAdvice 25:19 - Thoughts on starting a company: "You do not need a lot of starting capital"28:50 - Lessons learned from the Female Invest journey so far: "Do everything thoroughly from the beginning"31:00 - A team set up for success: The organizational structure of Female Invest33:07 - Plans for expansion: Global reach.ResourcesFind Anna-Sophie on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/anna-sophie-hartvigsen-46352611a/ Follow Female Invest: https://www.femaleinvest.com/Anna-Sophie's TedX Odense Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=enfUZR5Un9w&ab_channel=TEDxTalksThe book written by the Co-founders of Female Invest (Danish): "Klar - Parat - Investér": https://www.bog-ide.dk/produkt/4431022/emma-bitz-klar-parat-investerCartier Women's Initiative Award: https://www.cartierwomensinitiative.com/candidate/anna-sophie-hartvigsen

Send us a textThis episode of the interview podcast focuses on the field of learning and development. Alina Cristina Buteica is a professional with years of experience in the learning space, having built the department for Africa's first billion-dollar company, Jumia. 1. Upbringing and education section: Alina Buteica is a graduate of 3 business schools and has lived in 17 countries on 3 continents. With such an amazing life story, Alina will focus on her journey into learning and development and how she stepped into a deeper level of personal growth, how to live a sustainable life, and leave an imprint in the organization and teams you work with.  Her journey in Africa started as a trainer for a large shipping and logistic provider for the continent. For one year, she was training employees on standardizing their new identity and processes across the organization. 2. Career Path section starting at 11':·       How to relate to different countries - be open to conversations and show trust.·       Stay humble and grounded.·       Have a mindset of "everybody has an interesting story to share."·       Go towards where the challenge is - this is an effective learning method.·       "The ones who work the hardest get to have the most incredible experiences" but they also get more on their plate.·       It is possible to research, design, test, and develop a project on your own, but it is essential to stop and reflect on what you did.·       It's good to learn to say "yes, and" e.g., "yes, and I also need this level of support" to accomplish a task.·       Invest in your personal development so you can build a profile that supports all aspects of your life.3. Advice section starting at 38':·       "Start from where you are."·       "It is important to take the path that you enjoy, not necessarily the path that we have been thought is safe."·       "Nurture: There are periods of contractions and expansion for the universe, such as seasons or cycles of our body. Give it time to rest and restore." Alina is now focusing on career and mindset coaching and holistic leadership working with executives to build transformational leadership programs for large organizations through her own company, Growth Hives: https://growthhives.com/She expanded her portfolio towards personal development, including energy healing & activation programs, and life coaching. You can follow Alina on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alinacbuteica/Resources from AlinaLeaders to follow: Tony Roberts, Liza NicholsLink to the book co-written by Alina: https://www.amazon.com/Ignite-Your-Female-Leadership-Thirty-five-ebook/dp/B07TW9MQPJ

Send us a textBrittany Arthur is an expert in innovation and design thinking, and through her company, Design Thinking Japan, she bridges the world of innovation and organizational change.Brittany organically developed the ability to connect her love for Japan with her passion for processes and customer-centricity. She has a double degree in business and Japanese, as she identified that this is the field she wants to pursue as it outlines her passion for people.Career Path Section at 10’: What is design thinking? Design thinking is a methodology based on human centricity, meaning building a product based on the user's need. In this iterative approach, you work for people to bring them better goods and services. Popularized in the West in the early 2010s with IDEO, Stanford's d.school, and the Hasso-Plattner Institute in Germany, the methodology reached Japan maybe 5-6 years later. From there on, Brittany decided to become the liaison between this methodology and the Japanese market, as she possessed both the skills and the passion for this endeavor.From there on, through her practice, Brittany helps companies to achieve their innovation aspirations in Japan. She continues to adjust the processes and listen to the market, as well as develop as they go along.  The differentiating factor in Brittany’s career path was her ability to speak Japanese. Looking at the development of the field of design thinking and what her peers were doing, she had a moment of epiphany where she asked herself: “If I won’t do it, who will? If I do not try and move the needle and do work in Japan, who is?”Where does design thinking fit in an innovation strategy for companies?Design thinking is an "and tool": use whatever you have AND design thinking. In a company, it plays along in 2 ways. On one hand, it is the ability to build a creatively confident workforce and on the other hand, it is the ability to create new business opportunities. What are some of the challenges of working with design thinking in Japan?When you are introducing something "new,” a Western concept, what you need to do is create an analogy that will make it more familiar to the Japanese. For example, in Japan, businesses do not take risks as much as in Western cultures at the beginning of a process, but when committed, they will invest all their resources.How to use design thinking for your career?"Take a moment to realize you can design your career. Write down a plan, pivot quickly, and gather feedback. It is not something you need to leave to chance."Advice Section at 29':31:00: "Rather than act as a subject-matter expert, simply document your experience. As early as you can in your career, become connected to an idea. Think about what do you want to be known for and make it a part of your everyday life.”What does it mean to live a non-linear life?If you live a non-linear, meaning living abroad, working in a new industry, your life is going to look different. "My life is for me, every element that makes you special contributes to living your non-linear life. Your job is to show up for your community, for your industry, for yourself. Your life will look different from your neighbor, which is ok because they took a different path." Resources: Dan Pink & Sir Ken Robinson Follow Brittany on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/brittanyart/Discover Design Thinking Japan: https://www.designthinkingjapan.com/Brittany's podcast:  https://podcasts.a

Send us a textHow to find your path? How to understand what is in store for you by listening within? A tough question, it appears. However, with the right advice, you can find a way to unlock your potential and have a fulfilling career. This episode focuses on emotional intelligence with the incredible Antesa Jensen. She founded Adventure Awake, a company focused on human-centric innovation through transformational experiences. She helps people take something that exists within us, empathy, and use it to fulfill one's path. Antesa is an expert that sees the ability to communicate on behalf of your emotional experiences as an opportunity to sense the room, feel what is needed at the moment, and take action on that.Can anybody sense the room? Yes. As Antesa says, emotional intelligence is a skill that can be broken down in a way people can understand. Still, we are not aware of it as it is not taught or prioritizes in society and education: “It is a scientific fact that we are receiving that information, but we might not be cognitively recognizing it.”For the next 40 minutes, you will be taken on a journey of discovery. Take the time to look within and hear what you are supposed to focus on in order to reach your potential and live the life you really want. This episode will be a reflection for some of you. I hope you listen deeply to the pieces of advice Antesa shares and use it as a starting point for rethinking some of the reasons why you are doing what you are doing. Remember, "you have the right to change your mind.” Enjoy! Resources:Check out Antesa on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/antesa/ Find more about Adventure Awake: https://adventureawake.com/Listen to more interviews with Antesa: http://www.antesajensen.com/resourcesCheck TedX RushU Chicago: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=157dYGJGWj0&ab_channel=TEDxTalksEpisode Timeline:03:37 - Intro Antesa05:35 - What does it mean to be an emotional intelligence expert?09:01 - Can we attract what we want?15:40 - How to approach the subject of happiness regarding one’s life or setup. “If you are saying something but your body is transmitting something else, it creates cognitive dissonance for the listener.”21:45 - How to start listening to yourself and discover the next thing for you29:00 - How to prepare for your transition into a new career goal33:55 - Advice for leaders who want to use emotional intelligence for their professional development39:20 - The change-making ideas. 

Send us a textThis episode is an introduction to the podcast on female leadership and role models, Femme Lead with Alexandra Ciobotaru. The narrative follows the reason for starting a podcast and the aim of this initiative. After joining different community events and many initiatives in the technology field, I decided that a podcast will bring to light my passion in an open format for everyone to listen to. The podcast is focused on showcasing female role models from communities around the world. I aim to share with all of you that there are incredible women around us who deserve to be heard and have a lot of wisdom to share. I hope that by doing this, I will inspire especially young women to see themselves as leaders, scientists, engineers, vice-presidents, and presidents of the professional world.The podcast will focus on 3 chapters: Firstly, we will discuss upbringing and education. Secondly, we will immerse ourselves into career paths and how did guests decide to tackle some of the challenges they encountered in their professional journey. Lastly, the advice section, my favorite, dabbles into authentic pieces of advice that guests wish they knew or have learned throughout the years. Follow the podcast on social media platforms, rate it, and leave your thoughts. Website: https://www.femmeleadpodcast.com/podcast Spotify: https://bit.ly/Femme-Lead iTunes: https://bit.ly/Femme-Lead-Podcast RSS: https://femmelead.buzzsprout.com/ Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCZxWWj6_En5aGa3LwCnt6ig I genuinely believe that when you help one person, you help everyone they touch, so I hope that after listening to this podcast, you will be inspired to take charge of your next career move and your life.