“Everyone’s journey is different. Everyone’s skill set is different. Everyone’s secret sauce to success is different,” Betsy Rafael, GoDaddy Board Member and former Chief Accounting Officer Apple said at the GoDaddy Women in Tech speaker series.
Rafeal shared her inspiring recipe about discovering your secret sauce through leadership, collaboration and mentoring.
While not everyone might consider themselves in a leadership position, everyone has the opportunity to contribute in their own special way and ensure that what they are doing within the company is moving in the right direction. This goal can be accomplished through strategic focus, getting things done and quality communications, Rafael said.
- Strategic Focus – Rafael said that whether you are an individual contributor or a member of a team, there is an opportunity for leadership. For team leaders, make sure that you are in alignment with your team and the employees are working on the same goals and vision.
- Getting things done – If production is down or seems stagnant, try something different to get things done, Rafael said. People get in a rut and routine and it might be time to bring your ideas to the forefront and try something new.
- Communications. Rafael emphasized that as you work with larger teams, having a communication plan is key. “I’m about having a plan and being thoughtful about the what, when, who, the forum and how, you communicate,” she said. “Good communication isn’t something that happens unless you have a plan.” As for those employees who have a good idea or a creative way to get work done “It’s not enough to have a great idea that your company needs to be focused on if you don’t know how to communicate it – verbally, writing, and articulating what you are trying to say – it doesn’t work,” she said.
Collaboration comes down to the ability to maximize quality and output through your teams. Rafael stressed the power of one’s network and the ability to work with many type of people with various skill sets and personalities. Collaboration maximizes when people can execute a goal together, individuals understand the processes of other departments and using their network to get things done, she said.
- Results through others. It comes down to having the ability to work with everyone – you don’t have to go out for a beer with them or hangout on the weekend, but collaborating with others is critical to production, she said. “People who are most effective get along with others and tend to get more things done. Whether it’s upstream or downstream, it takes others to get things done.”
- No one process owner. “You have to work with people with cross functions and [figure out] how to work with cross functions,” Rafael said. What’s important is to keep your eye on the bigger goal and generate this holistic lens of delivering your product and service to the customers together, she said.
- Who do you know? The more people you know, the easier it will be to get help and get things done, Rafael said. Your inter- and intra-network can make a huge difference in accomplishing your and the company’s goals. “Think about your collective network to help you get things done. The more people we know and positive interactions, the more you’ll be able to be effective.”
As you grow in your profession and skill set, Rafael encouraged everyone to find a way to mentor- it’s become a must do for her. “I feel a sense of responsibility as a leader to help others,” she said.
While individuals might not know how to go about mentoring or believe they could be a mentor, Rafael said that mentoring can take many forms: it could be providing feedback to a co-worker and helping them through a project, helping others in general or being an advocate for someone. “Mentorship can be formal and informal. Don’t be afraid to take those risks with friends and families and find those opportunities to be helpful,” she said.
Learn more about GoDaddy and their Women in Tech initiatives at AZ Tech Beat.
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