Such a thrilling feel to see her there.
Also brought back the journey...... a bystander view.
Becoming CEO was no default occurrence.
Back a few years....I recall the conversations. Ones where she thought through if she even wanted to aspire for CEO, 'Should I.....shouldn't I' was something we spoke of quite a bit. Until the moment when she said 'here goes, I'm saying the word aloud okay'. :)
She knew it wasn't going to be an easy dream to fulfill, neither the getting there, nor the being there. And sure enough it wasn't. For starters, she faced gender bias in the very appointment process (it's in the Forbes story), and there are stories and more stories.
Once there, she knew it would take over her life. But then, even as head sales she was putting in fourteen hour days and crazy extensive travel. She loves her work with a passion. I've seen her puzzle over the question she often gets asked "what are your interests, what do you do for fun?". She'd be stuck for an answer. Her work is her passion see....her thrill is in the doing and seeing the company grow. She could do it twenty hours a day and not tire. Not to say it's easy or fun....I've seen moments of such extremes, of near break down, of emotional turmoil....that there's times I've wondered at how she handles the stress. Then again, that's what she thrives on and that's what drives her. If she's a known tough task master, I've seen her be as hard on herself.
The company's growth under her leadership stands testament.
Back to story.........the first hundred days could have been a book. That's how intense the experience was, an experience worth capturing for posterity. Over the years, she's led not by trying to be 'as good as a man', but by being a woman. I believe she leads with her heart, though she likes to believe she's primarily practical and pragmatic. Believes in consensus over authority, details alongside big picture, adaptation as principle be it board room or townhall, not afraid of wearing her emotions on her sleeve, and always asking 'what's right for the company'. Clear first principles.
If that's ongoing process, and it's crazy tough....outcome is there for all to see. Fortune India's top 50 Business Women, and now Forbes Top 25 Women Trail Blazers.
On a more personal level, a cute moment happened last week.
While she'd sent me a picture of the cover page on what's app, and said she had a copy for me, the real thrill was buying it off the magazine stand, especially doing it with her.
Three days back she's here and we're doing a walk in KBR and I said, let's check the newspaper guy outside, and she's like 'it's Forbes, might not be on a footpath'. But surprise surprise, it was. As I bought, I told those guys that it was her on that picture, and it was so fascinating to see how they kept looking at the picture and up at her, again and again and again, and she's like, 'gosh, this is embarrassing'. Then came the hug, guess to say it was an embarrassment that was worth it's while :)
Vishakha, in addition to the Congratulations and Proud of You's....So happy to have shared, and be sharing the journey.
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