Maximize Impact and Influence: Use your voice

Maximize Impact and Influence - Part 2 Use your voice
Maximize Impact and Influence - Part 2 Use your voice

Yesterday I posted part one of my philosophy to Maximize Impact and Influence – Find your voice. Finding your voice and discovering your perspective on things is the first step in making a personal impact on the world.

Today, I am sharing part two – Use your voice

Once you find your voice, you need to use it. Have you ever been in a meeting where everyone is agreeing on whatever is being discussed, and you’re thinking, “Wait a minute. Am I the only person here who thinks this is the wrong move?” Did you say something, or did you hold yourself back?

I’ve talked many times before about everyone having their own unique perspective. Based on your background and your lived experiences, you inherently see things differently than others. That perspective is valuable. So, share it! That’s why you were invited to the meeting. Build-up the courage and the conviction to speak up. Sharing your opinion may lead to conflict. But don’t let that stop you from leaning-in, because disagreements lead to innovation.

Of course, learning how to use your voice effectively is easier said than done. It takes many people outside of their comfort zone. So, here are 5 things to help you overcome the challenge:

  1. Give yourself the freedom to be yourself and the grace to fail
  2. Get over your fear of being yourself
  3. Silence the negativity in your head
  4. Get comfortable with being vulnerable and be willing to poke fun at yourself
  5. Let go of the expectations others have placed on you

And make sure you practice. Like anything, the more you use your voice, the more effective you’ll become. Start in small groups where you feel safe sharing your opinion. You’ll get more comfortable bringing your opinion to the table. And as you practice, your voice will grow stronger, your confidence will build, and your opinions will become clearer.

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Maximize Impact and Influence: Amplify your voice

Maximize Impact and Influence - Part 3 Amplify your voice
Maximize Impact and Influence - Part 3 Amplify your voice

Over the last two days I’ve shared 2 parts of my philosophy for how to maximize your impact and influence.

Part 1 – Find your voice

Part 2 – Use your voice

And we conclude with part 3 – Amplify your voice, and the voices of others

As you become more comfortable sharing your voice, crank up the volume. Share your perspective with the world! Go back to those questions that helped you find your voice. What are you passionate about? What do you want to accomplish? What do you want to be known for? Take your answers and use them to propel your team or influence decision makers, help create change and make a difference.

I decided a few years ago that something needed to be done to bridge the gender equity gap in the technology industry. As I said in my recent TEDx Talk, We need to bring at least 4 million more women into tech to reach gender parity at 8 million. So, with the help of other dedicated women, we started The Women in Technology Network and the Women in Cloud organization. We’re using our individual voices for a collective mission. And it is incredibly fulfilling to share my experiences and amplify the voices of others to create change.

So, how will you use your voice? If there’s something you’re passionate about, I encourage you to think big and be bold. Be courageous with your voice. You can be the spark that drives people to take action.

  • Find your voice
  • Use your voice
  • Amplify your voice

Taking these steps was a game changer for me. It can be for you too. Investing the time in finding your voice will help you maximize your influence and your impact on the world.

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BeCOME an Agent of Change | Outreach

TedX Quote image - When you post a job, do you screen out candidates or do you screen in for diversity?

In 2016, @Enavate, an IT organization focused on Microsoft Dynamics, was at a crossroads. Revenue was down and the leadership team was unsure about the company’s future. During a meeting, a bleak report from the company’s Chief Financial Officer triggered something in the mind of Enavate’s CEO @Thomas Ajspur. 

 “I had forgotten why I started the business, which was to create an amazing place to work that inspired our team members. So, we made a conscious decision to focus less on the numbers and more on our culture and our people.” 

 As Enavate’s leaders set out to turn things around, they realized it wasn’t just a revenue and culture problem they had to solve. They had a gender equity problem too. Only 20% of the company’s workforce were women. So, they changed their hiring practices—not by creating policies to require diversity, but by changing their approach to recruiting. 

 Instead of hiring based on skills or “people they knew,” hiring managers were expected to look at candidates for who they were as individuals. They started hiring for quality rather than skills or expediency. That approach has doubled the number of women at Enavate. 

 “I‘m proud of getting to 40% gender equity, but I’m not happy. We need to get to a 50-50 split,” said Ajspur. 

 This is the kind of intentional leadership I was talking about in my recent TEDx Talk, BeCOME an Ally: How to achieve gender equity. It’s going to take the kind of allyship demonstrated by the leaders of Enavate to bring 8 million more women into the technology industry. That’s how many more we need to reach gender equity in high tech. 

 How do we get there? We need to scale. We need force multipliers. We need more men and women to become agents of change. That’s why I developed the BeCOME framework, which is made up of four actions every one of us can do to help move the needle:  

BeCOME, Connect, Outreach, Mentor, Empower

In a recent LinkedIn article I talked about Connection, and how critical it is for us to open our networks and create access points for women to connect with business leaders and with one another. The allyship demonstrated by the leaders at Enavate exemplifies the second action we all can take: Outreach. 

 Outreach is about examining your recruiting and hiring practices. When you post a job, do you screen out candidates, or do you screen in for diversity? And what about the suppliers you work with, or the vendors you hire—can they do more to create access for women? 

 A few years ago, I challenged the leaders in my own organization to stop hiring for expediency and to intentionally go outside the company and generate truly diverse candidate pools—and then ensure a diverse panel conducted the interviews. We were all inspired by the high-quality of diverse candidates that emerged. It changed the culture of our organization, and as a result, the gender diversity in our team improved dramatically.  

TedX Quote image - When you post a job, do you screen out candidates or do you screen in for diversity?

There’s something special that happens when you have gender equity in your team. There’s more collaboration. You get new ideas and fresh perspectives. And as an organization we’ve become more empathetic. More vulnerable. More human. We talk about our feelings and we’re more open about our opinions. We aren’t afraid to share what we think. Overall, we’re just a healthier organization because we have equitable representation.

Pushing for gender equity in the workplace isn’t just the right thing to do, it’s the smart thing to do for your business. According to research by the Boston Consulting Group, organizations with diverse leadership teams have 19% higher profitability. They have greater levels of employee engagement, and higher levels of customer satisfaction. When you think about it, that makes sense. A diverse leadership team is creating products and services that better reflect their diverse customer base, right?

Enavate has experienced that first-hand. The company has doubled in size since making the conscious decision to change the culture of their company and move toward gender equity in their workforce. Today, 40% of its team members and 40% of its leadership team are women. And Enavate is now one of Microsoft’s largest Dynamics partners in the United States.

“We have an obligation as a company and to society to help people who have a harder time getting access to roles in technology,” said Ajspur.

By creating a culture of diversity and access, Ajspur says Enavate is now a favored destination for top IT talent, “It’s well known that you can be a person here, not just a number.”

To Thomas, and everyone at Enavate, thank you for being allies and leaders. Thank you for being agents of change.

Be sure to watch for my next #BeCOME LinkedIn article where I’ll share another way all of us can drive for gender equity in tech and become agents of change, through Mentorship.

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