Leadership in my eyes

As my final days before retirement approach, I have been reflecting on my career and thinking about what leadership means to me.

Leadership can mean so many things to so many people: a role model, an innovator, a team leader, a parent, a visionary – are just a few.  For me, there are three aspects that come to mind as I reflect on my career: serving others, being human, and self-reflection.

I feel very proud to be a Partner in PwC, and have always been acutely aware of my role as a ‘steward’. The firm has been built up and grown over 165 years.  I have felt a strong sense of duty to further build on the achievements of many partners and leaders who came before me, making it a better place for our people and providing a better starting point for the next generation of leaders.  It is with this sense of responsibility to others, that I have approached leadership in my career.

Leadership is not about the title

Leadership is a real commitment – you have to both want it and be willing to lead others.  I’ve always believed that leadership is about serving those around you; your team, organization and society.  In order to do this, you must first be human. A number of years ago, I remember a colleague – a leader who I respected a lot – giving me the feedback that I was very humble.  

From a young age in China, I was taught that humility is a virtue, so this has always been natural for me.  As the years have passed and I’ve gained other skills and experiences, that aspect never changed. I realised that humility is an attribute and for leaders, it’s a strength. 

You don’t have to have all the answers, and being honest and brave enough to say this and willing to collaborate with others to find solutions, gains the respect and trust of those around you.  It makes you someone others can relate to.  In short, it makes you human.

This has always been my approach in the roles I’ve held; from running the Shanghai PwC office as Senior Partner, to becoming the China Central Markets Leader, Asia Pacific Human Capital Leader, serving on the PwC Global Board and my current role as Vice Chairwoman and Global Human Capital Leader.

We hear a lot about ‘positive disruption’ now in the context of digital and emerging market trends. A true leader sees change - even the disruptive kind - as an opportunity.  In fact I’m a great believer that positive disruption is the best way to view change and ‘self-disruption’ is the best way to approach it.  In order to do this, you need to be agile, fearless and self-reflective; three key leadership traits in my eyes.

Reflection

It’s easy for leaders to get lost in day to day ‘busy-ness’ of business. However, it’s important for leaders to build self-reflection time into our schedules, to think about why we do what we do and the different ways we can contribute value to those around us.  Throughout my career, such moments of self-reflection have always been important to me.  I've used them to take time to check in with myself and ensure the direction I am headed is the right one for me, my team and the organisation. 

As I look back, I feel a great sense of pride in what I have achieved and the way in which I have achieved it.  I am proud of the difference my contribution has made to the experience and development of our people across the PwC Network.  For example; the global roll out of our development framework – ‘The PwC Professional’; the extensive multi-generational research we conducted amongst our people and our ability as a Network to listen, adapt and change.  I’ve contributed to the execution of our Network strategy and helped shape the future vision of human capital in PwC, using technology to enhance and improve our people’s experience. 

Diversity and inclusion has been an area I’ve focused and reflected on throughout my career. We've made good progress towards gender diversity in leadership across the PwC Network. There is still some way to go in achieving a more balanced gender ratio, but developing a strong leadership pipeline is a positive step towards this.  It is important also to remember, that appointing new leaders is not enough – they too need to be mentored and supported in their new roles so they can hone and develop their leadership style.

Perhaps what I am most proud of, is that over the years I’ve been able to positively touch many people’s lives, whether it be individuals through coaching and mentoring or on a broader scale with our people across the firm.  I am delighted to say that in our annual global people survey, our people have told us that they are more engaged and happier in their work.

The future…

The future working world is an exciting and different place. The way people work will continue to redefine itself.  Flexibility and mobility will become integral to organizations’ competitiveness and ability to recruit and retain the best talent.

Technology has transformed how we live, communicate, work, learn and manage ourselves.  It underlines some of the key changes for a HR function of the future – using data to create information that guides strategy with real time information and insight.  People often wonder if artificial intelligence can replace their jobs.  It will never replace the power that diversity brings to an organisation, the humanity that people offer and the self-reflection that we all require.  No matter what the changes, we will still need role models, stories that inspire and people who lead.

On a personal level, as I found out last year when I spoke at the TEDx Shanghai Women event, there’s strength to be shared in just telling your story.  The more we tell our stories of success, challenge, overcoming obstacles and supporting each other, the more we’ll inspire and support others.  It’s like setting up a virtual support network.

In the meantime, I’d like to challenge all of you reading this to continue to act as your own leaders and raise the bar for yourself in what you want to achieve. Remember, the most important thing is to be true to yourself.  You don’t need to change who you are to get what you want, you just need to recognise the true value you bring.