The 10 most successful businesswomen to watch 2020 | Veronica Crisafulli

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February 2020

e

Th

Most Successful Businesswoman

to Watch, 2020

A

Creative Mind in the Space

Veronica Crisafulli

10 T h e

Most Successful

BUSINESSWOMAN To Watch,

2020

Marching with Passion!

C

EDITOR’S NOTE

urrently, the world is caught up in the hard times, and so is the business. Though we are dealing with the biggest pandemic the world has ever seen, yet the show must go on. This responsibility falls up on those great business leaders who strived in every situation and made a difference in their respective sectors. In such times, these leaders must take essential measures to overcome any obstacle for a smooth business processes.

A true leader understands the needs of the markets, and takes every action necessary to cope up with the consumers requirements too. We might have witnessed many great business women, who shows exceptional traits and have contributed for the betterment of their respective organizations as well as community. Through a quote, “life-fulfilling work is never about the money- when you feel true passion for something you instinctively find ways to nurture it” Clothing designer and Founder of Eileen Fisher Inc, Eileen Fisher states that a success is never defined by the monetary assets but by the satisfaction one gains from fulfilling his/her passion. With undivided passion and strong determination anyone can achieve his/her long term vision.

Nevertheless the issue is dedicated in portraying some of the impeccable and successful businesswomen, it also is an indication that leaders are still making every effort to sustain the falling economies of every country.

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Leadership is not just a passing phase, but a habit that evolves within a person experiencing various dilemmas.

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CIO Look admire such leaders and takes pride in featuring some of avid businesswomen in this special edition, “The 10 most successful businesswomen to watch 2020”. Let’s have a look on the cover of this issue.

More than 3 billion people worldwide do not have access to formal loans. However, they have access to technology and all-time connectivity. Thus, with the dream to provide people without a formal credit history, access to small loans, Veronica Crisafulli, Chief Commercial Officer and Co-Founder created MO Technologies in 2016. Without the need to know the identity of the user, MO processes numerous data points and calculates a credit score within seconds, pre-approving the user. The technology enables MO Technologies to serve credit to personal or small businesses and to deliver and service via any digital channel.

Let’s unveil such alike, inspiring stories and interviews of many such passionate leaders in this special edition and spread a word about their contribution in making this world a better place. Also, while flipping the pages, don’t forget to go through the articles and CXOs written by our in-house editorial team and industry experts respectively.

Bhushan Ghate

IN THIS ISSUE

COVER STORY

08 Veronica Crisafulli A Creative Mind in the Digital Space

18 Alejandra Guzman Leading with Balanced Technical and Relationship Skills

24 Anne Krog Iversen An Extraordinary Business Leader

32 Bita Milanian A Leader of Inspiration

Women Empower Dynamics of Women Participation in the Ever-changing Modern Workforce

36 Ellen Voie : Empowering Women Entrepreneurs

46

Marina Tognetti Being Role Model for other Women in Tech

ARTICLE

28

42 Lisa Quest: Combatting Terrorist Funding and Money Laundering for a Better World

52

Nicole Martin RedeďŹ ning the Benchmarks of Humanresource Management

56

Souad Benkredda Leading by Example with Equal Opportunities

K. Roy Editor-in-Chief

CONTENT

Senior Editor Alan Swann Managing Editor Bhushan Ghate Executive Editors Rohit Chaturvedi

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February 2020

Veronica Crisafulli COO & Co-founder MO Technologies

The 10 Most

Successful Businesswoman to Watch, 2020

V

eronica

Crisafulli A CREATIVE MIND IN THE DIGITAL SPACE

Cover Story

M

ore than 3 billion people worldwide do not have access to formal loans. However, they have access to technology and all-time connectivity. Thus, with the dream to provide people without a formal credit history, access to small loans, Veronica Crisafulli, Chief Commercial Officer and CoFounder created MO Technologies in 2016. Without the need to know the identity of the user, MO processes numerous data points and calculates a credit score within seconds, pre-approving the user. The technology enables MO Technologies to serve credit to personal or small businesses and to deliver and service via any digital channel.

Strategic Plans for Diverse teams Anyone in Veronica's family has plenty of stories about how social, full of energy, and positive she was as a little girl. She still remembers that she had also been considered as a focused, dedicated and potential future leader at school, as well in all of her further studying experiences; from the undergrad at Bocconi University in Milan, city where she was born and grew up, through an exchange at Carlos Tercero University in Madrid and a master between ESADE, Spain and CBS, Copenaghen.

Then, she suddenly found herself in the business world where she worked for strategic consulting companies such as Bain & Company, Delta Partners and Mastercard Advisors where she led projects in South Africa, Argentina, UK, Brazil, Turkey, Czech Republic, Spain and Colombia for the major telecommunication and financial services companies. For these companies, she developed various strategic plans and different types of advisory projects as well as scoring models for their customer base being responsible for different and very diverse teams.

In Veronica's latest position at MasterCard Advisors, she was responsible for major strategic projects in the Caribbean region and Colombia, developing the most transformational deals for these countries. She was mainly focused on financial inclusion, digital wallet, and loyalty strategies.

The know-how, the experience both in telco and financial services, the willingness to do something good for people and to be independent helped her to co-create, together with Paolo Fidanza, her first fintech start-up at the end of 2016: MO Technologies, which is now present in 8 countries with 80 Movers.

Strategy consultant for more than 10 years in renowned companies focused on TMT and financial services.

Challenge the status quo ďŹ nding a beautiful balance between innovation and humanity to achieve valuable changes.

Since Veronica joined the working space (more than 10 years ago), she has been dreaming to start her own innovative business to help people move socially, create the right team and working environment as well as be an example for women in leadership and for her family. This was a dream, and now she believes that it is her greatest professional achievement, because she achieved it and founded people who believed in her since the beginning of the journey.

There is a long way to go but she has all the energy and commitment to help shape the future in fintech and keep creating and expanding current or new businesses.

Decision-making Process When Veronica was a consultant, the major challenge she faced was about a strategic plan she delivered to a very important client, and that was never realized.

During the project, the team had many discussions because opinions were very different among the stakeholders involved and after days and nights of work, the team finally decided the strategy to follow. For many different reasons, the strategy did not succeed as expected.

Main challenges to overcome: How to deal with different opinions and how to manage stressful environments Ÿ How to accept if your strategy fails Ÿ How to understand politics and power in the decision-making process. Ÿ

Understanding Business and Risks Veronica Crisafulli is extremely passionate and ambitious about what she does. Passion is what motivates and drives her to be a businesswoman and entrepreneur, and ambition is a very important trait for women in the business world.”I am worthy, this is what I think about myself. In my journey, I also find it very important to transmit confidence to the people I work with or for,” says Veronica. She adds, “I'm accountable, and this helped me to grow faster in my career through generating trust. The same applies to my team. In my current business, I also feel the social responsibility to democratize the credit industry using our revolutionary technology that should enable anyone to get a nano or micro-credit. I believe that success cannot be achieved without sacrifices and time/ dedication/ effort invested into what you believe.”

What she can say is that she learned a lot on how to manage such kind of challenges and the key is to understanding hierarchies but making your point clear on what you would do, always do your best and learn to a c c e p t m i s t a ke s a t a p e r s o n a l l eve l a n d t h e n communicate them to third parties.

The biggest challenge to move from being an employee to become an entrepreneur was to manage uncertainty.

Veronica is still dealing with living in a roller-coast trying to find the best approach, but she's definitely improving.

Creative mind focusing on innovation in the digital space and financial inclusion.

Empower more Women Veronica was lucky enough to work for companies where the women's cause was part of the DNA. Both at Bain & Company and Mastercard, she had been part of women empowerment activities such as women recruitment at universities, talks about women, empowering women entrepreneurship, and others. Finally, today, at MO, she always pushes to empower more women, and it's harder because, in technology (Front End & Back End development) and data science, "there is not as much coming out from universities so, we have to start working at the root-cause which is education. We participate in all “girls in tech" initiatives, and my wish is to build a women empowerment initiative at MO in the years to come”, says veronica.

Ultimately, her career path shows how a woman can emerge in the business world up to being herself an entrepreneur.

Having clear objectives, focusing on her own path without compromises, not taking shortcuts and putting in the hardwork along with a positive mindset and just being a good human-being has allowed her to create good working relationships that have helped shape her way. For such reasons, Veronica feels she's a great example of women empowerment.

Traditional Credit through Offerings Augmented and Virtual Reality, Machine Learning, Robotic Process Automation, Blockchain, Cloud Computing, Internet of Things, Big Data are some of the technology trends that are currently ruling the planet. The technology has transformed a lot and there is a long way to go. Each of them has to set their eyes for the upcoming trends. And this is what Veronica does: keep an eye, learn, brainstorm on if and how to apply it, define what to do, and try to create new trends. Only this way she will be able to move at the same pace. At MO, the company

currently uses Big Data, AI and Machine Learning to define the creditworthiness of consumers and merchants, although MO is completely separate from other credit reporting agencies, it can help customers build traditional credit through its credit offerings.

Maintaining Position in the market The path to strategize effectively: Ÿ Ÿ

Additionally, the company has everything in the Cloud, which is vital for them. And it is, as well, working for the future with one of the newest trends. The idea is to never stop learning and to create future technological trends.

Creating the Best Product In today's business world, it's imperative not to stay still for too long, even more in the fintech world where technology is moving faster and faster. So, as a company, we focus on solving the specific needs of each of the target audiences. MO's core business is an innovative, patent-pending credit scoring technology and loan management platform. This loan management platform uses Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning to provide credit products for merchants and consumers without a traditional credit check. MO's objective is to give anyone, independently of their credit history, the opportunity to access a credit product.

The company has two business models: B2C, taking advantage of the open banking systems, and the other B2B/ B2B2C that it calls Partnership and Alliances. MO believes that their customers and partners shouldn't have to adapt to its products, so instead, MO listens to their needs and creates the best product for them. So, having the best offering for the target audience is a strategic focus for the company, and the MO team works hard to make it happen.

Ÿ

Ÿ

Ÿ

Ÿ

Following the technological and market trends to make sure to be the best option in the fintech field.

Creating the best product for the target audience and keep innovating faster than the market to deliver the best product year after year.

Building the perfect eco-system with the right partnerships in place to grow faster than competitors.

Having the most sustainable and adaptable pricing model to have a successful win-win situation with partners and/or clients.

Being able to change the game fast enough to maintain the leadership or unique position in the market.

Hiring and developing the top talented people.

Future Objectives Veronica's objectives in the short-term are: Ÿ

Ÿ Ÿ Ÿ Ÿ

Put all her effort and time to ensure MO continues to be the most innovative company in segment, driving social changes to achieve the returns expected by investors and partners.

Create a space where MO is one of the top companies to work for Keep dreaming up new ideas and realizing them Helping others achieve their goals Be an example that inspires people

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Leader

L

eadership is not limited to leading a team, doing planning and sitting around in the cabin with board members. It also grows inside of a leader where one has to maintain a balance in his/her decisions, time management, and focus as well.

Alejandra Guzman, Vice president at New Orleans Business Alliance, one fine business leader, a published author with international experience in the design and execution of new business initiatives and developing strategies, emphasizes on balance in leadership and the major traits for a business leader.

leader and listener. Economic development does not occur in a vacuum, so it is critical that we work well with others to accomplish our goals. In my position at Capital Natural, a leading management and administration firm for private equity funds and real estate investment projects operating in Mexico, I had to lead a multi-sector group of senior consultants to design and execute an urban development proposal that required me to understand when to switch from a leader to a follower. Although I was ultimately responsible for leading our project, it was critical that I had the capability to step aside and follow the lead of technical experts to deliver a successful project.

Below are the highlights of the interview conducted between Alejandra and CIO Look:

How do you diversify your organization's offerings to appeal the target audience?

Kindly take us through your journey on becoming a proficient leader.

At the Business Alliance, we are focused on enhancing the economic security of all New Orleanians by accelerating the diversification of the local economy, developing local talent and expanding entrepreneurial opportunity. We attract new business and retain talent in New Orleans, by aligning our brand with the international business community's increased focus on diversity and inclusion to drive innovation and

The nature of the roles I´ve had in all of my professional positions required mastering the balance of blending technical and relationship skills. For example, working at the New Orleans Business Alliance requires an understanding of a complex web of internal and external relationships in which I have to act simultaneously as a diplomat, influencer, team player,

ALEJAND

GUZMAN Leading with Balanced Technical and Relationship Skills

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New Orleans Business Alliance

DRA Alejandra Guzman Vice President New Orleans Business Alliance

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“

When it comes to success, there is no such thing as good luck, only hard work and preparation to seize the opportunity when it comes knocking on your door.

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enhanced profitability. Our brand tag line: Culture.

Equity. Prosperity.

Describe some of the vital attributes that every business woman should possess.

I would consider the ability of balancing and blending technical and relationship skills to be one of most importance. To achieve this one must be collaborative, empathic and supportive which allows a person to be team oriented and socially aware. I think that the success of most projects is multi-dimensional and that relationship skills influence execution.

One of the favorite projects I have worked on focused on helping women to improve their quality of life and promote economic activity in their communities. We did this by providing training opportunities so they can acquire the skills to find a job or set their own business.

Also, we supported them with loans so they can buy building materials to improve their homes and local communities.

As per your opinion, what roadblocks or challenges were faced by you in a corporate business? And how did you overcome them?

The nature of the roles I´ve had in most of my professional positions required mastering the balance of blending technical and relationship skills. Most of my positions have required an understanding of a complex web of internal and external relationships in which I have to act simultaneously as a diplomat, influencer, team player, leader and listener.

How do you upgrade yourself with volatile technological or business trends to boost your personal growth?

A big focus of my current work is real estate development. One of the reasons I love this industry is for its versatility and how it integrates a wide variety of disciplines - architecture, finance, community development, landscaping, engineering and many others. To be up to date on trends in the industry I have joined organizations such as the Urban Land Institute and also the U.S. Green Building Council. These organizations are the perfect platform to learn and stay up to date on trends. Another great way to stay up to date with industry trends is attending key conferences.

I have also lead a multi-sector group of senior consultants to design and execute an urban development proposal that required me to understand when to switch from a leader to a follower. The project required that I assemble a very specific set of skills and professionals including traffic and mobility engineering, architectural and landscape design, and sustainable real estate. Given the high-end nature of our real estate investments, we hired senior consultants, top in their field. Although I was ultimately responsible for leading our project, it was critical that I had the capability to step aside and follow the lead of technical experts to deliver a successful project.

What are your future endeavors/objectives and where do you see yourself in the near future?

Through the New Orleans Businesses Alliance, I´m working to develop a strategy that includes real estate to promote development in dis-invested communities.

One particular program that we are looking to leverage is Opportunity Zones. This is a federal program designed to drive investment to communities that have lacked critical investment. It provides an incentive for investors to re-invest their capital gains into financial vehicles. I see a lot of potential in New Orleans and my objective is to have investors also see this and help them find success in our community. With the right projects in place our local community will be able to enjoy better services and a great quality of life.

To master this career challenges I have invested in my professional development. It is important that as professionals we have a clear understanding of what are the skills that we need for our current professional challenges and our next career move. I have worked with an executive coach to help me identify skill gaps and ways to address them. A coach can also help with preparations for salary negotiations and to address issues at work that have to do more with politics rather than technical skills.

Have you in any ways contributed towards the cause of women empowerment.

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Leader

Anne Krog Iversen Co-Founder, Chief People, DNA & Culture Officer TimeXtender

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TimeXtender empowers organizations with instant data access, enabling them to make faster, quality business decisions with data, mind, and heart.

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TimeXtender

Anne Krog

Iversen An Extraordinary Business Leader

A

ccording to a survey conducted by IDG's (International Data Group) CIO Research Services nearly 90% of organizations are investing in AI – but only 1 in 3 projects are successful. AI tools have focused on automating machine learning and other processes for building models, but many data scientists still must write code to aggregate, cleanse, and prepare data for use by these tools. This is where TimeXtender can help.

A

TimeXtender has worked tirelessly to offer its world-class technology offering, Discovery Hub®, an agile, comprehensive, and future-proof data management platform, help companies fulfill their business requirement for being data-driven. More specifically, Discovery Hub is a data management platform that helps prepare and manage data for AI and analytics – without writing code – automating the process of getting documented data in the right place, in the right form, and ready for analysis.

Anne Krog Iversen- Chief People, DNA & Culture Officer, and Co-founder, who has years of experience in technology such as data warehousing and business intelligence leads TimeXtender's corporate culture.

The Impact of Emotional Skills There are many paths to becoming a technology business leader but what has worked well for Anne Krog Iversen was getting experience in different disciplines early in her career. When she started, she held positions in human resources, sales, marketing, and management at various companies.

Anne worked on developing and understanding the impact of emotional skills and people skills so that she could pass on and guide the X-People (what the team calls themselves at TimeXtender). This passion and commitment have led the company to higher self-awareness, selfmanagement, and resilience, enabling the achievement of much more as individuals and as an organization.

Supporting Analytics Data in the Cloud TimeXtender Discovery Hub helps companies fulfill their business requirement for being data-driven. TimeXtender regularly updates

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Discovery Hub to provide new capabilities for its partners and customers within the Microsoft technology community and was designed with a cloudfirst mindset for deployment on Azure. Discovery Hub provides organizations with instant access to data to help them derive greater insights to make faster and better decisions from their analytics data, and to support their efforts to meet compliance and to reap all the benefits from having their analytics data available in the cloud. Most importantly, the company works towards a bigger purpose – through automation, it focuses on giving the partners and customers it serves, more time to do what matters most to them to help them make faster quality decisions with data, mind, and heart. This is of the greatest importance because time matters.

silence to land, focus, and connect with its fellow XPeople who work across various time zones.

“Technology should be used to make life easier for us so that we can connect, collaborate and make better decisions, but technology should never run our lives; rather, it should provide us with greater freedom in business and in life,” said Anne.

The Futuristic Leader Anne Krog Iversen is a member of the Forbes Human Resources Council and has enjoyed writing and contributing articles for the Forbes Community and other media outlets. She has written several industry articles related to human resources, corporate mindfulness, and corporate culture. She foresees writing more articles and blogs related to these subjects and hopes to write a book in the future. The company takes great pride in community service and charitable efforts. The team at TimeXtender actively sponsors many efforts and donates its time to help others in need, and it plans to dedicate even more time to the community. TimeXtender also offers Karma Days so that X-People can take a paid day off from work to get involved in community service and charitable endeavors.

Future Technology Advancements TimeXtender is exclusively focused on the Microsoft data ecosystem. It supports data deployments on Azure SQL Database, Azure SQL Database Managed Instance, Azure Data Lake, Azure Analysis Services, and SQL Server. The company also support Azure Synapse Analytics and SQL Server 2019.

TimeXtender is a Microsoft Gold Certified Partner, Microsoft Azure Certified, and available in the Azure Marketplace. Although Discovery Hub was built with a cloud-first mindset, it's also available on-premises or hybrid. The company supports changing deployment models without changing data models as its technology is built to evolve with future technology advancements and new Microsoft Azure offerings. This unrelenting focus has proven to be successful as evidenced by the company's more than 3,000 customers worldwide and a global partner network of more than 170 business alliances.

On another front, Anne, working together with the TimeXtender X-tended leadership circle, is rolling out a new, innovative, agile organizational model that will allow the X-People to work in cross-organizational purpose circles that will be customized based on an employee’s profession, function, and project. With this, the corporate purpose and individual purpose will become a vital part of its corporate dynamic.

All-around Cool Businesswoman Working together with a close business colleague and personal friend, she started a tight-knit network for businesswomen that helps them garner greater leadership skills to achieve a new level of consciousness on a global scale. This program supports others in achieving a higher level of consciousness in leadership – the beauty of girl power – as it makes each other grow as individuals. The members talk a lot about feelings, the purpose and the bigger picture – that’s how a company grows as it remembers in feelings and close connections to build trust, which is a very powerful and vital feeling that a team needs to learn to help them thrive.

Connect, Collaborate and Improve Decision Making TimeXtender has a great appreciation for how technology can simplify corporate processes, as it looks to automate what can be automated to save time so that it can focus on what matters most. Anne Krog Iversen keeps an eye on new technologies as they emerge to integrate them into its workforce as needed.

For example, the company uses BambooHR for its human resources information system. It uses Microsoft Teams to collaborate across functions, regions, and continents. Yammer is used to communicate within the company, and WorkBoard helps to keep track of projects. It even enjoys virtual reality for meditation breaks. And it starts online meetings with a moment of

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Dynamics of

Participation in the Ever-changing Modern Workforce

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Women Empower

G

possibility can be attained by combining efforts from different resources, channels and departments.

Further, collaborating products with consumer experience are enormously important. It leads to crafting the best solutions for customer’s pain points and compelling value propositions that reflect their overall business objectives.

one are the days when women were stereotyped to a certain set of skills and professions, restricting them from exploring the world of endless opportunities. Today, women have announced their arrival in many fields of the business world. Therefore, it seems more important than ever before to recognize female contributions in every profession.

Multiple studies have found that women prefer to work in teams, while men prefer to work alone. An unfaltering affinity towards collaboration primes women to garner success in different fields of business which gives them an edge over others.

Fighting through biased work culture in favour of male dominance, women have conquered the unconquered on the account of their distinct calibre and predilections. In the times when the world female participation rate is to the dispiriting levels of around 67% and pay-off rate of about 63%, achievements by women go-getters are praiseworthy.

Increased profitability can be a motivating factor for many firms to hire more pool of female talents as many studies support the fact. Statistical research shows that Fortune 500 companies with the highest representation of women on boards financially outperform companies with the lowest representation of women on boards. Moreover, gender-diverse teams have higher sales and profits compared to maledominated teams, and a recent Gallup study found that gender-diverse business units have higher average revenue than less diverse business units.

Listening capabilities is one of the distinguishing aspects of feminine species as compared to their male counterparts. Instilling and pursuing ones thoughts is undoubtedly important for effective working. But being a better listener is something that can make a difference as studies show that the customer values and trusts the firms if they perceive that they are being listened to by the firms. With inherent caring and affectionate traits, women outclass men when it comes to understanding critical demands of the customers.

Trust over female leaders is an attribute which needs to be reciprocated while making the choice. More American workers perceive female executives as honest and ethical than male executives. Pew’s “Women and Leadership” surveyed Americans in 2015 and found that 34% say women are better at this, while only 3% say men are better at it (64% say there’s no difference).

Emotional Intelligence (EI) - the ability to identify and manage one’s own emotions as well as the emotions of others - is an essential skill when it comes to dealing with a diverse class of consumers. Women are naturally gifted with higher EI making them better suited for pressure situations and avoiding counter-productive decisions while keeping emotions in check.

While it’s unclear whether this means women are actually more honest, it’s a subtle reminder of how tangled some business decisions can be. Leaders are often tasked with choosing between options that aren’t black and white, ethically speaking, and the capacity to lead honestly is important to the entire company’s success and job satisfaction.

Emotional Intelligence encompasses two major dimensions – awareness of one’s self and awareness of others. Both the attributes are very much significant for the survival and success of any organisation. Selfawareness involves being familiar with trigger points and behavioural traits when put to the test. This, in turn, helps to modulate impulses avoiding conclusions which are harmful for the welfare of business. In addition to self-awareness, an awareness of others is equally critical in business. Analysing and decoding non-verbal communication – that amounts to 93% of the message – eventually benefits in convincing and converting a lead into a client.

Not to mention, increased job satisfaction and organizational dedication to cite positive and meaningful business culture are the added advantages feminine employees carry to the organisation.

However, the journey is not all merry go round every time. Hindrances – seen, unseen – are there to check the unrelenting zeal of women aspirants to thrive in the industry. These obstructions need to be pointed out and rectified to create an environment that fuels women empowerment.

Collaboration, and not the cutthroat competition, is the modern era’s principle virtue to achieve success. Many endeavours which seem to be beyond the bounds of

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Lack of confidence, according to many experts, is one prime reason women tend to question themselves and doubt their worthiness. In order to advance, they must coach their inner critics.

While proving value, women tend to overcompensate in order to demonstrate that they are adding value.

Instead of doing it all alone, change the paradigm and track to encourage others to take on more responsibility, thus enabling them to scale and multiply their own impact.

Out-speak and define what women want professionally if they want to get succeeded. Too often they don’t know or rely upon others to define it for them.

Not to forget, biased work culture and regional barriers are the crucial obstacles in the road of women work participation. But, today women are breaking these shackles and coming out boldly to be a part of economic processes shouldering their male counterparts.

“Building relationships with those in positions of leadership is critical,” Susan Brady, executive vice president of Linkage Inc. says. “Put down the to-do list long enough to connect with decision makers across the organization, and help them understand who you are and what you bring to the table.”

There has been obvious progress in achieving gender equality around the world over the past two decades: more girls are attending school, more women are working and are being elected to public offices, more women hold management positions, and the situation involving women’s legal as well as social rights have also improved.

Women are generally uneasy about asking for what they want. They must stop thinking about what they need as a self-serving request. They must develop the courage and fortitude to stand up and ask for what they want.

However, a great deal still remains to be done to achieve equal outcomes for women and men.

Recognizing women’s abilities, the values they bring to the organisation, the transformation they achieve as far as work environment is concerned, and considering monetary benefits associated with the female work participation, corporate sector need to welcome their emergence with open arms. No future is far where male-dominated workplaces will be a tale of extinct, we believe.

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Leader

Bita Milanian Senior Vice President

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Ribbon

Bita

Milanian A LEADER OF INSPIRATION

I

n an interview with CIOLOOK, Bita Milanian, the Senior Vice President of Ribbon has shared stories about her journey and remarkable achievements.

Additionally, she has also shared her future plans, thoughts about women empowerment in this interview.

speaker at various conferences and programs on the topics of technology, philanthropy, art, culture, social justice and gender equality.

Bita has been a social media influencer and blogger since 2000, leveraging her expertise in online platforms for business to raise the profiles of global entrepreneurs, immigrants and artists alike who are being the change in the world they wish to see, building on Gandhi's philosophy. In January 2020, she launched her radio show called B the Change on Radio Iran 670AMKIRN, featuring immigrant journeys of some of the most remarkable Iranian-Americans, from hardships to successes, and their positive impact in the world, being the change and inspiring the next generation.

Below are the highlights of the interview between Bita and CIOLOOK: Kindly take us through your journey on becoming a proficient leader.

Bita Milanian serves as the Senior Vice President of Global Marketing at Ribbon & its Kandy.io division, a global technology company with more than two decades of leadership in real-time communications for service providers, enterprises, independent software vendors, systems integrators and developers in over 80 countries.

Although an Angeleno for 30 plus years, Bita considers herself a global citizen and focuses her efforts on that scale. Bita attended California State University, Northridge studying Business Administration and Marketing, and Kaiserin Augusta Schule in Cologne, Germany. Prior to Germany, she spent the first 13 years of her life in Iran, where she was born.

With over 20 years of marketing, branding and communications experience, Bita has held senior-level marketing positions at various companies, including TPx Communications and Global Crossing. Prior to joining Ribbon, she held the top post of Executive Director for Farhang Foundation and is also the founder of the creative and consulting agency Butterfly Buzz, which she still operates as a means to continue her humanitarian work, support up-and-coming artists, as well as non-profits, to enable them to increase their profiles and optimize their brands.

She is fluent in Persian and German, and proficient in conversational Spanish, French and Azeri Turkish. As a seasoned traveler, she has had the pleasure of experiencing cuisines from various corners of the world. She enjoys trying new and bold flavors, and is equally as passionate about creating them in her own kitchen. “Food connects us,” Bita writes, “and when we are connected, we have the power to bring cultures together for positive change.”

As a passionate community organizer, Bita actively volunteers her time and expertise in support of numerous causes and organizations and is a popular

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Leader

Ellen Voie President/CEO Women In Trucking Association Inc.

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Women In Trucking Association Inc.

Ellen Voie

Empowering Women Entrepreneurs It’s no secret that gender disparity continues to in many areas, both in developed as well as developing nations. Over the years, there has been a forward movement, as female entrepreneurs are starting and growing their businesses and organizations. One name which stands out is Ellen Voie. Ellen is the founder of the Women In Trucking Association Inc. She currently serves as the nonprofit organization’s President and CEO. The Women In Trucking Association was established in March of 2007 to promote the employment of women in the trucking industry, to remove the obstacles which might keep them from success and to celebrate the success of its members.

Passion for Learning Since childhood, Ellen had always challenged herself both in learning new skills and in pushing herself beyond her comfort zone. She never stopped her quest to learn and to experience new things. Ellen participated in sports and took an industrial arts class in high school, which was typically attended by

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boys. She wanted to learn about engines, woodworking, and welding. This training led her to a position at a material handling plant where she was hired to work in the drafting department. She was later moved to the traffic (shipping) department and was promoted the role of traffic manager. She earned a diploma in Traffic and Transportation Management. This training provided Ellen with the skills to become a Transportation Consultant while she raised her family.

Her background in the regulatory side of transportation led her to where she is today. A leader needs to seize the opportunities when they become available and that she did.

treatment, but just a level playing field. The goal of the Women In Trucking Association is to identify specific areas where such cases may not occur. For carriers, the association offer resources to help them attract and retain women at all levels, from driver to technician to manager. Their goal is to increase the ranks of women in the industry.

Diversifying her Staff Regarding competition, there are no groups that offer the same resources like the Women In Trucking Association. While there are numerous trucking associations, none of them focus on gender diversity for all women in the industry. Ellen is proud of the fact that over fifteen percent of her members are men who join because they believe in the mission. She notes that the Women In Trucking Association is not just for women, but they are about women. Recently it has increased their diversity efforts to the LGBTQ+ community with the goal to represent all of its members.

Molding the Organization The Women In Trucking Association is a non-profit organization supported by its members. Ellen listens to their concerns and suggestions. Since the organization represents both drivers and carriers, as well as suppliers and others in transportation, Ellen has to be sensitive to areas that might be divisive. She takes her members’ concerns and works hard to address them.

One example of this would be, truck cab design and the ergonomics. Since trucks were designed for men in the past, women did not experience the same level of comfort while sitting in the cab, so she worked with the manufacturers on making sure the trucks had greater adaptability for women (as well as men). Women in male-dominated careers typically don’t want special

It’s been said that any woman in business, especially in a male-dominated environment, needs to be bold, persistent and must prove herself to her peers.

However, once she has shown that she is genuinely interested in being a team player, she is accepted and respected by her co-workers. Women often learn to deflect any negative or ignorant comments, but it’s essential to hold the offender accountable in the process.

Jumping the Oceans

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In 2007, when Ellen started the Women In Trucking Association, the economy faced a recession, and the trucking industry was greatly affected. The biggest challenge was to convince carriers, drivers and suppliers that gender diversity should be a priority.

Most trucking companies claimed they only hired the best applicant, and gender wasn’t an issue. However, they kept using the same ads, the same job descriptions and the same ideas which did not always attract or retain women. For example, it took years for companies to provide women with a uniform designed for them and to give out safe driving awards that were attractive to women. It took years, but once she presented the research and proved that women will increase a company’s net profit, she got the suppliers and drivers attention. Now, the Women In Trucking Association is viewed by the trucking industry as being a credible organization focusing on gender diversity.

Life begins at the edge of your comfort zone.

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Prioritizing Women Ellen’s entire career has been focused on working for women’s empowerment, and it is one of the most significant accomplishments for the Women In Trucking Association as well. The organization supports women by offering networking, mentoring, and educating them in their careers in transportation.

Ellen considers herself an early adopter of technology, as she is always researching the best products to enhance productivity, from fitness applications to safety technology. She looks for ways to harness the power of technological advancements to make transportation jobs safer, easier, and more productive.

Making way for the Next Leader Ellen recently announced her successor, and although she doesn’t plan on leaving the organization for several years, this will give her a chance to start transferring some of her responsibilities to the new Vice President, Debbie Sparks. She will have a few years to grow into the position, but along the way, she will gain her own experiences to shape the future of the association. This means that Ellen can focus more on what she does best, which is speaking and writing.

She travels all over the world, speaking to audiences about how to attract and retain women in transportation careers.

By transferring present and future projects to her successor, she has more freedom to share her message.

Experiencing life Ellen believes in living life on the edge.

She continually challenges herself to try new things, as evidenced by her accomplishments in obtaining a pilot’s license, a motorcycle endorsement, and a commercial driver’s license. Her motto for life is, “Life begins at the edge of your comfort zone.” Leave your comfort zone and work hard, success will be yours, she asserts.

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Leader

Lisa Quest Co-Head of Anti-Financial Crime, EMEA Oliver Wyman

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Oliver Wyman

Lisa Quest Combatting Terrorist Funding and Money Laundering for a Better World

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oney laundering and terrorist funding are two of the biggest problems of our modern world. Often the laundered money reaches in the hands of criminal organizations or terrorists, which in return threatens the idea of free and peaceful world. Meet, Lisa Quest, the Partner- Co Head of Anti-Financial Crime, EMEA. Lisa works with national crime agencies and governments’ ministries of finance and justice. One of the key aspects of her role is acting as a subject matter expert between various governments and financial services firms at the highest level possible to prevent the flow of illicit money through the sector.

For businesses, that means helping them understand and navigate the ever evolving landscape of financial regulations. For regulators, it means providing them with a deep understanding of how aspects of financial markets operate, assisting government watchdogs to be much more effective at achieving their objectives. As the Co-head of the Anti-Financial Crime platform, currently she is conducting ground-breaking research and publishing numerous white papers on the topic. Lisa is also helping governments across Europe to design and setup more effective national frameworks to combat Money Laundering and Terrorist Financing, including how they can work more effectively within the public sector, leverage agile technology delivery and create high-functioning public/private partnerships to share information and reduce the flow of funds to criminal activities.

In an interview with CIO Look, Lisa Quest has shared few key pointers, regarding her role at Oliver Wyman.

Below are the highlights of the interview; Kindly take us through your journey on becoming a proficient leader.

I started at Oliver Wyman after college because I wanted to have an impact on major companies early in my career. Since then, I’ve had the opportunity to advise private equity clients on financial services, while returning to academia at the London School of Economics and spreading time across charitable commitments. The ability to invest time in very different endeavours and to work with different types people has been really helpful in stretching my view of the world, shaping my way of thinking, and ultimately in finding ways to tackle some of the corporate world’s most pressing problems.

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How do you diversify your organization’s offerings to entice the target audience?

Time invested in people you believe in is never time wasted.

We customise our offering to each individual and institution we work with, whether it is in the public or private sector. For example, we are advising government agencies and companies at the forefront of economic crime reform and shaping the global agenda on how they can work together in responding to this important threat area across a broad range of issues covering digital transformation in KYC and Transaction Monitoring, Organizational Effectiveness and regulatory engagement.

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We differentiate based on depth of knowledge in the area and our ability to work alongside our clients to implement the changes required. Instead of thinking of interesting solutions and throwing them over the fence to be implemented, we work hand-in-hand to make sure they’re fully developed and will actually have an impact.

One of the biggest challenges is navigating a system that was not designed to suit a non-standard career path that balances both family priorities as well as other areas of interest. Bending the corporate machinery to fit your own personal lifestyle and preferences is difficult. But I’ve found the system more willing to bend than I had initially thought when I have been clear about my priorities and boundaries. What made a real difference for me was finding the right sponsors who have helped me shape and accelerate my career on my own terms.

What is some of the best advice you’ve received as a business woman?

Have you in any ways contributed towards the cause of women empowerment?

Every business woman should find her unique style and not bow to the pressures placed on women in the industry to conform to a particular set of standards or archetypes of what it means to be a business person.

There are so many different paths you can take and you’ll be most successful and happy if you are true to your own authentic style.

Formally, I am the Executive Sponsor of our Women in Oliver Wyman network for the UK & Ireland and a member of our UK & Ireland leadership team.

However, I think I contribute the most toward the cause of women empowerment by mentoring and sponsoring women. Being able to help someone on something that really accelerates her career at a pivotal point in time can have tremendous impact. It is also very personally rewarding.

How do you strategize your game plans to tackle the competition in the market?

As per your opinion, what roadblocks or challenges were faced by you in a corporate business? And how did you overcome them?

What are your future endeavors/objectives and where do you see yourself in the near future?

In the near future, I see myself continuing to help the public sector in our fight against financial crime and in the development of more effective government models and regulators.

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Leader

Souad Benkredda Head of Financial Markets Middle East and North Africa

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Standard Chartered Bank

SOUAD

Benkredda A

s one of the world’s leading financial institutions, Standard Chartered Bank fosters social and economic development for entrepreneurs around the world. Entrepreneurs’ growth stems from the bank’s existing financial educations approach. It also builds on its Women in Technology Incubators, which provide women-led entrepreneurs with access to both financial and human capital across Africa and the Middle East. One such Inspiring Entrepreneur supporter is Souad Benkredda. Her motivation is to make a positive impact, be successful in what she does, and help others grow based on merit by creating equal opportunities.

Various International Roles Souad Benkredda started her career as a graduate in the Investment Banking division of Deutsche Bank in 2001. Two years later, she became the manager of a small team within the Foreign Exchange Sales & Trading division. In 2008 - seven years after joining as an analyst - she was promoted to Managing Director as the only analyst of her graduate class globally, which at the time made her one of the youngest ever Managing Directors appointed at Deutsche Bank.

After having spent almost 16 years at Deutsche Bank in various international roles based out of London, Frankfurt, and Dubai, Souad joined Standard Chartered in 2017 as the Head of Financial Markets UAE. She was afterwards promoted to the Head of Financial Markets MENA and the Head of Financial Markets MENAP Sales based out of Dubai. Souad is also a Board Member of Standard Chartered Saudi Arabia.

Encourage others to follow their dreams Souad wants to inspire others to follow their dreams, find something they feel passionate about and to be brave to stay authentic. She believes that this is ultimately what will make them successful and happy. Staying authentic and feeling free to express different views is important to create an environment where

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diversity of thought is not only appreciated, but actively encouraged. It is, in fact, this very “diversity of thought” which clients are looking for, and which is needed to deliver the best and most innovative solutions, according to Souad.

the help of her colleagues in the internal and external press department, Souad was able to use social media such as Linkedin, Twitter and Instagram increasingly over the past year to raise awareness of what has been done in the bank’s Diversity & Inclusion programme.

Coming from an Algerian blue-collar family, Souad was the first member of her family to graduate from university and the first woman to be allowed to study abroad and live by herself. At the age of 18, she decided to break her engagement to follow her dream to lead a more independent life and attend university. She is grateful to have been supported by both her father as well as her mother in changing the path her life was going to take by not getting married early as per the family tradition, but by choosing to study to lead a more independent life and be free to make decisions for herself.

The Success of an Organisation Since having started her career in investment banking, Souad has always been a minority, either ethnically or gender-wise, in whatever team or division she has worked in throughout her career. Rather than trying to imitate the behavior of the majority and assimilate, she tried to focus on her competence whilst working very hard in a collaborative way while staying true to her values. Bringing in a different perspective where it makes sense and making decisions based on what her inner compass tells her rather than based on what would be best for her own career has always been key for her. Diversity of thought is in her view key to ensure the success of an organization as it allows people to contribute different perspectives – a central prerequisite for any organization that strives to advance its mission. Souad’s objective is to further grow and help others not only by ensuring equal opportunities, but through leadership by example driven by an unwavering commitment to her values.

From then onwards, Souad chose to stay focused on her studies and skills development, working very hard, whilst staying authentic and never forgetting where she came from. Helping others fulfill their true potential by removing potential barriers became key to Souad. She promised herself that she would use her role to make a positive impact. As she became more senior, she felt an increasing responsibility to help and inspire others with concrete actions to follow their dreams, just like she was lucky enough to have been able to follow her own.

Empowering Women Souad Benkredda was honored to be in the Top 50 Financial Times HERoes Champions of Women in Business global list in 2018 and to be named in the Top 50 global HERoes Role Model Women Executives List 2019 by Yahoo Finance. Both recognitions celebrate women globally who are leading by example and driving change to increase gender diversity in the workplace through concrete actions both within and outside the organization, which have been evaluated by an independent committee. She has also played an integral part in helping create equal chances at an early stage for younger people through different initiatives such as visiting young schoolgirls as part of the Standard Chartered GOAL program or by implementing strategies. As a result, since Souad joined the bank in 2017, the share of female UAE Financial Markets graduates rose to 80%.

Now in 2020, her impact is being acknowledged through different independent recognitions. For instance, the Financial News named Souad one of the most influential Businesswomen in the Middle East last year. Financial Times recognized her as one of the Top 50 champions of women in business globally, and Yahoo Finance awarded her as a role model in the Global Top 50 HERoes Women Role Model List. Furthermore, Souad has been selected to be part of the Bloomberg New Voices Programme and is a regular invitee to several conferences such as the Financial Times “Women at the Top Conference” in London. She uses these forums as an opportunity to further help increase her impact to create equal chances for everyone based on merit and to encourage others to follow their dreams.

Furthermore, Souad is an official and unofficial mentor to many male and female colleagues as well as some clients. She shares her thoughts and experiences on Diversity & Inclusion at various panels and committees, both within and outside the bank.

Create Awareness, Diversity, and Inclusion Technological progress has been rapidly evolving and messages can be transmitted quicker and more effectively by using means such as social media. With

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Focus on your strengths and learn

from your mistakes. Be a team

player, stay authentic and always

try to make a positive impact 59

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