Execs From Cisco, Lenovo and Others Weigh In On Pearls Of Wisdom For Women Leaders

‘If we’re waiting to be perfect to lead, we’ll never close the leadership gap,’ says Reshma Saujani, founder and CEO of Moms First and a founder of Girls Who Code.

In the IT channel, women are still having to jump through hoops and find creative ways to make their mark, reach executive-level positions and bring up other women with them as well.

In fact, according to the 2023 State of the Women of the Channel survey, 81 percent of women believe there is a gender gap in advancement or opportunity in the IT channel compared with their male counterparts, 60 percent of whom believe that barriers to the C-suite exist for women.

The survey, conducted by CRN parent The Channel Company included about 500 participants, 55 percent being women.

However, the survey reported that 43 percent of women respondents said they were interested in a C-level position, a figure that increased 13 percent from last year’s survey. That’s compared with 47 percent of men who reported interest in pursuing a C-level position.

[Related: CRN Women Of The Year 2023: The Winners]

“I’m scared so many women are leaving the workforce,” said Hope Galley, global senior director of channel & service provider sales, Cisco Meraki. “For every director who gets promoted to vice president or senior director, there are two women who leave the workforce.”

Survey results were presented at The Channel Company’s Women of the Channel East conference in New York City this week where more than 1,300 women came together to network and hear keynotes on a variety of topics such as mentorship, leadership and how to make space and bring up other women in the industry.

And it’s not just hard work that leads to growth in one’s journey. Women leaders echoed from the stage resounding messages on sharpening your ax, not judging a book by its cover and never waiting for perfection–all different perspectives to take into account about how to become a better businesswoman and leader in this space.

Check out these pearls of wisdom women leaders bestowed at the show on how to take the next step, becoming a better leader and helping others along the way.

Hope Galley, global senior director of channel & service provider sales, Cisco Meraki, on encouraging “the stretch”

“If there are 10 people interviewing, seven out of 10 times a man will get the job. And it continues to go down from there. The reason why I talk so much about women and businesses is because I’m scared. No, I’m not scared of men. I’m scared so many women are leaving the workforce. For every director who gets promoted to vice president or senior director, there are two women who leave the workforce. That’s why we need to … encourage the stretch.”

Jenny Krystofiak, director, channel marketing for Lenovo, on sharpening your axe

“Your axe is your superpower, it’s what makes you unique. It’s what you bring to the table. It’s your talent. It’s what you’re so good at. There are three ways to use your axe: sharpening your own axe, sharpening other’s axe and using the axe. To sharpen your axe, you’re removing parts of the knife that are damaged or that are no longer serving what you need to do. So you’re actually shaving off parts. Now use that sharpened axe to sharpen others. Iron sharpens iron.”

Michelle Ragusa-McBain, VP global channel chief, SonicWall, on mentorship leading to promotions

“A lot of people think if you work really hard, you’ll get the promotion. I thought that early on and that’s just genuinely what I learned, but it’s not how it works. You need mentors, you need champions, you need sponsors and you need somebody who says, ‘You know who you need to hire, so and so. They’re incredible, intelligent, dynamic and we would be nothing without having that person on my team.’”

Reshma Saujani, founder and CEO, Moms First; founder, Girls Who Code, on not waiting to be perfect

“Women show nothing rather than show imperfection. I’m sure all of you have heard that statistic where it says men will apply for jobs if they meet 60 percent of the qualifications where women don’t even apply until we can check every single box. If we’re waiting to be perfect to lead, we’ll never close the leadership gap.”

Britney Perdue, partner project specialist, Televerde, on never judging a book by its cover

“Something that I’ve dealt with not only obviously my background of being a felon, but the way I look. I’ve been judged a lot. Whether it be tattoos, my background; don’t ever let somebody not have a chance because of the way they look. Because I’m telling you, there’s a lot of treasures that are just lost. Sometimes they just need a little shine and they’ll come out. Try to remember to tell your mentees or your children, or whoever, that no isn’t the end all be all. It’s just a learning lesson.”