Unlocking Customer Success: Building Relationships and Driving Growth - an Interview with Lara Barnes
I had the pleasure of speaking with Lara Barnes, a seasoned Customer Success executive with a distinguished career at Microsoft, Facebook, Oracle and Sitecore.
Lara shares her journey of building impactful Customer Success teams, emphasizing the importance of understanding the entire customer journey and key metrics for retention and growth in the SaaS industry.
We also explore Lara's personal development over the past six months, highlighting her newfound clarity and aspirations for executive leadership roles. This conversation provides valuable insights for female leaders aiming to build their focus and drive significant business outcomes through customer success strategies.
Key Takeaways:
Importance of Customer Success (00:02:30)
Discussion on understanding the customer journey and building value realization frameworks.
Consequences of Poor Customer Success (00:03:30)
Lara explains the risks of not guiding customers effectively, leading to churn and ultimately exposure to a de...
From Holding Back to Flying High - Interview with Rachel Madorsky
In this insightful Fearless Female Leader interview, I had the pleasure of speaking to Rachel Madorsky, a thought leader, clinical therapist, and coach, about her transformative journey and teachings.Â
Rachel shares her experiences of overcoming personal and professional obstacles, emphasizing the importance of self-love and small, actionable steps for growth. We discuss the concept of moving from a zone of excellence to a zone of genius, encouraging women to pursue their passions with joy.Â
Key Takeaways
Changing Direction by 2% (00:05:21)
The discussion focuses on the impact of small changes and mindset shifts on achieving excellent results and making progress.
Uncovering the Reasons for Holding Back (00:13:14)
Rachel explains how women hold themselves back due to the fear of risking love, safety, and belonging and the unconscious sabotage that follows.
Empowerment through Generosity (00:15:51)
The conversation centers around the idea that every door opened for oneself is als...
Cultivating an Influential Mindset Through Healthy Habits and Boundaries
You can be successful, and still feel like there is more. More for you to give and contribute, more impact to be made, and more joy to feel from your work.
Is it possible that it may be time to pivot?
There are many ways to successfully pivot, whether internally within your company or your current career, or an external pivot toward something entirely different. This is not typically easy and can require a great deal of personal influence.
Here’s how to get started with an influential mindset reset, coupled with setting healthy habits and boundaries:
1. Believe in Yourself
Your ideas, your worth, and your contribution are valuable. If you don’t believe you are worthy of influence in a new and often unfamiliar role, it’s unlikely you’ll be able to influence others. The voice that we should pay attention to the most is our own, even when it is a negative voice. So a great place to start is with strong positive daily affirmations. For example, "I take consistent action towards my next level of...
Retaining Top Female Talent - Interview with Kristin Crossman
In this episode, I am SO excited to speak with Kristin Crossman, a seasoned expert in human capital management.
Kristin shares her journey, inspired by her father’s career at IBM, and her experiences at K2, a company with a significant female workforce. We discuss the importance of retaining top female talent, emphasizing the visibility of female leaders and flexible policies.
Kristin highlights the value of investing in oneself and nurturing relationships, especially in challenging economic times.
One of the most compelling points Kristen made was the significance of visible female leadership within organizations. The concept of "if you can see her, you can be her" underscores the importance of having female leaders at the highest levels. This visibility not only inspires emerging female leaders but also demonstrates that it is possible to balance professional success with personal responsibilities.
Key Takeaways
Leadership and Gender Equality at K2 (00:00:59) The positive impact...
Time for a Summer Reset: Reevaluate and Reenergize
Summer is the perfect time for a reset. With the slower pace and longer days, it's an ideal opportunity to step back, reflect, and make meaningful changes to enhance your well-being and productivity.
As we step into Q3, here’s how you can set new boundaries, incorporate healthy habits, and explore new learning opportunities for both you and your team to ensure a productive and profitable second half of the year.
1. Pause and Reflect:
While it may not seem productive, pausing to reflect on the past 6 months is the best thing you can do to ensure productivity within your team. Take a moment to assess whether the pace you have been running at is sustainable, and importantly, is it still going in the right direction. Are you and your team able to keep going? Or will someone drop out of the race before the finish line? Is a little course correction needed to make sure everyone can stay in the game?
As a fearless female leader, your voice is needed, especially at this time of the year, s...
Making Your Second Act Your Main Event - Interview with Martha Delehanty
In this Fearless Female Leadership Interview, I am honored to have a profound and fun conversation with Martha Delehanty, Chief People Officer at Commvault. Join us and soak in the wisdom that she generously shares! Martha’s journey is nothing short of inspiring, her insights are invaluable for anyone looking to elevate their leadership impact, and her words are sure to empower you to be even bolder in your leadership.
Martha shares her inspiring journey, emphasizing the importance of overcoming personal challenges and loss, and even leveraging them for growth. She discusses the significance of setting ambitious goals, intentional time management, and the concept of a "time journal" to track and optimize daily activities.
Martha also highlights the value of surrounding oneself with a supportive team and prioritizing self-care.
Key Takeaways
The story of Martha Delehanty (00:00:24) Martha shares her upbringing, family challenges, and how she rose above it.
Learning from Experience ...
June 2024 Wrap-Up: Recognizing and Celebrating Our Achievements
As we wrap up the month of June, it's important to take a moment to reflect on our journey and celebrate the successes we've achieved, no matter how small they may seem. In times of change and disruption, recognizing our progress helps us stay motivated and focused on our long-term goals.
Why Celebrate Small Successes?
- Boosts Morale: Celebrating small wins can significantly boost morale and motivation. It's a reminder that progress is being made, even if it's incremental.
- Builds Momentum: Acknowledging small achievements creates momentum. Each success builds confidence and encourages us to keep moving forward.
- Reinforces Positive Behavior: Recognizing and celebrating successes reinforces the behaviors and strategies that lead to those wins, creating a positive feedback loop.
Reflecting on Your Wins
Take some time to reflect on the past month. What goals did you set? What progress did you make? Here are a few ways to reflect on and celebrate your achievements:
- List Your Win...
Why Everyone Should Care About Equality, and What We Can Do NOW
In this insightful episode, I welcome Kristen Anderson, CEO of European Women on Boards, to discuss the critical importance of gender equality and inclusion in leadership roles.Â
Kristen, an American living in Italy with a global career spanning multiple countries, shares her journey from a math and chemistry enthusiast to a champion for diversity and inclusion.Â
She recounts her transformative experience at Barilla, where she shifted from R&D to become the Chief Diversity Officer, applying her engineering mindset to cultural change.Â
Kristen emphasizes the need for women to overcome self-doubt and imposter syndrome, encouraging them to seize opportunities even when they feel unprepared. We then explore the power of active listening, cultural awareness, and the significance of allies in fostering inclusive environments.Â
Key Takeaways
Inspiration and Global Journey (00:00:30)
Kristen's upbringing, love for travel, and career choices influenced by her parents and experiences.
Cultu...
Retaining and Motivating Your Top Female Leaders!
I hope this message finds you excited to join me at this Thursday's webinar!
I wanted to share a quick but impactful video with you. It’s all about how female leaders can thrive during disruptive times, and it offers some practical tips you can start using today.
In the video (above), I cover:
- Managing Fear: Turning fear into a motivational tool.
- Goal Setting: The importance of setting short, intermediate, and long-term goals.
- Mindset Shifts: Moving from "what if" to "imagine if."
Why is this important?
Research from the American Psychological Association and the Peterson Institute for International Economics highlights that female leaders enhance productivity, collaboration, and profitability. However, many organizations struggle to retain this invaluable talent, but I have a proven framework to help female leaders stay motivated and feel in control, even in chaotic times.
Join my webinar: "Retaining and Motivating Your Top Female Leaders During Disruptive Times"
Date: June 20, 20...
Go from "What if" … to "Imagine if" (Transforming Your Fear with the Power of Goal Setting)
Some teams can face change head on and rarely miss a step. For many though, change spurs uncertainty, fear, and distraction.
Most of us simply don’t naturally embrace change.
Change can often feel like a storm at sea, at any moment there is a possibility of being flung overboard, the ship may capsize or when the sea returns to calm, you realize you are not on board.
Staying motivated through change is hard and costly.
It affects productivity, and ultimately, profitability.
Through all my years coaching Olympic athletes, female executives and their teams, time and time again I have seen how my clients have flipped fear on its head and turned it into something they can use to keep on track and stay motivated and highly productive.
Fear and insecurity often hold teams back during times of disruption... but it doesn’t have to.
What Creates Calm and Feeling in Control
When it comes to mastering change, it’s important to feel a sense of agency, and a specific way of world-class goal setting is a cr...
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