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thing for the company. Their feedback and support was incredibly energizing. The quality of Compassion enabled all of us to get through a difficult time and emerge even stronger. With apologies to Eleanor Roosevelt, the third defining leadership quality for me is Courage. I think I was a little lucky in that I was born without the fear gene. No matter what field of endeavor, the challenges are complex, and the ability to transcend fear and take calculated risks distinguishes those who succeed. For me, leading a multinational corporation in today’s increasingly globalized business world has been a true adventure in fearlessness. The change is constant and the scrutiny is intense. And every time I think I’ve reached the summit, it turns out to be only the bottom of the next hill. I talked to you about the difficult management cuts we made in 2005. Until that time, the company had been flying high, delivering five years of record-breaking growth. But as 2005 progressed, it became clear we were headed for some challenges. Courageous moves were required. In addition to reducing management layers, we embarked on the most comprehensive restructuring in Avon’s history. This meant radically transforming the company from top to bottom so that we could effectively operate as the global giant we had become. We took bold actions, and put the company back on a strong growth track. And now, again, as we navigate through this newest period of challenge, having courage—and not letting fear trump the fundamentals—remains key to staying the course. Closely related to Courage is Humility, and that’s the fourth quality that I believe distinguishes leaders today. No one person, no matter how capable, has all the answers. Having the humility to be able to continue to learn and to be able to change your own decision based on new information is the key to continual renewal and growth. As I was deciding back in 2005 to undertake the boldest-ever restructuring of the company, I had a frank conversation with a friend to whom I turn for advice from time to time. He reminded me that most people who successfully orchestrate significant corporate turnarounds come from outside, because they have no vested 20 BUSINESS TODAY SPRING 2009
interest in the company or its people. It was 8 P.M. on a Friday night, and he challenged me. Could I, he asked, go home over the weekend and fire myself as the CEO who had presided over five years of explosive growth, and then rehire myself Monday morning as the turnaround specialist who would lead the company into the next era? It meant totally reinventing myself from the leader I had been to an entirely new type of leader who would be right for the next chapter in the company’s history. It was a very humbling experience, but ultimately very liberating. The fifth leadership quality I want to talk about is Pride. I firmly believe that no matter where we were born or how we were raised, it is important to have pride in your heritage. Our personal heritage gives us a unique toolbox of strengths we can draw on throughout our life and career. For me, my Chinese heritage has been a
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My brother and I smile today when we reminisce about growing up in our house. Because in our house, everything important in life came from China, was invented in China and owed all to the Chinese. When I first became Avon’s CEO, Dan Rather interviewed my dad and asked him if he always knew I would be successful in business. No, he said, quite to the contrary: he worried for years that raising me to be a respectful Chinese daughter would hinder my ability to compete in a world with what he considered aggressive, cutthroat traits of typical American CEO’s. In fact, he passed on a letter to me that I keep, translated from Chinese to English, in my desk drawer. The letter reads: “Remember, there are distinctive qualities that set apart the successful Chinese: strive to excel in all you do; be a superb parent willing to curtail your own pleasure for the sake of better nurturing your children; be
I think I was a little lucky in that I was born without the fear gene. No matter what field of endeavor, the challenges are complex, and the ability to transcend fear and take calculated risks distinguishes those who succeed.
wonderful compass, a fortuitous gift, and an enormous source of strength. I was raised in a traditional Chinese family where achievement was not demanded, but expected. My father, born in Hong Kong, was a successful architect. My mother, born in Shanghai, was the first female chemical engineer in her graduating class. They arrived in America not speaking a word of English but through hard work, both were able to reach their full potential, and their success has set a wonderful example for me. My brother and I were given all the opportunities as our American friends— the same schools, the same tennis lessons, the same piano teachers. But we had a wonderful advantage—we had a cultural heritage that we were always taught to be proud of.
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generous, fair, tolerant, eager to learn from other cultures while sharing your own. But beyond these attributes, remember to have an absence of arrogance and boastfulness; have unfailing courtesy, forbearance, sensitivity to others’ feelings, and above all, the ability to diffuse your anger and grievance not by suppressing them but by transforming them into helpful, positive emotions. In an age and environment of pretension, you have a precious Chinese cultural heritage which we are proud to pass down to you…” I have my Chinese heritage to thank for teaching me the next important quality of leadership I want to talk about. Perseverance. When I graduated from Princeton, my very first job was as an executive trainee at Federated Department Stores. The