"If you found your purpose that motivates you, I think that’s a huge success."

Part two of a two-part profile, read part one here.

Meet Georgia Venetsanakos. VP, Corporate, Global Alliances, Services & Legal Strategy

• A Hitachi veteran of 20 years
• Attorney for 30 years
• Born and raised in Tasmania - the little island at the bottom of Australia

My advice to women 

Act with the highest integrity. Have the courage to do what's right and difficult. And if you fail at something, find the strength to pick yourself back up and either try again or do something different.

Keeping up with new skills

I've been very lucky to work with a lot of cross-functional teams particularly when we've integrated other companies into our operations. Being in that kind of team, you can learn from others at all levels.

These days there some great external resources available. I've recently discovered the value of podcast. Half hour, mini breaks that I can take to grasp new learnings on-the-go. 

Developing as a leader

Handling difficult conversations is one of the hardest skills I've had to learn. For example, letting someone go from the company or giving negative feedback. It’s about learning to say it in a constructive way with empathy and clarity. Learn when to speak and when not to. Young professionals should have self-awareness, have conversation with yourself regularly about what you're doing right, what you could improve and then pivot to change your behavior.

Getting the team balance right

The fact that we have about 65% female representation in the legal team — something that’s usually not witnessed, is a success from a diversity perspective. We had several conversations on what we want in our team in terms of gender, ethnicity and other aspects. So, weaving these aspects into how we work and make it natural is a form of collective success. 

My measures of success

I think success can be gained at different levels of your career. We are on a journey and there may not be a single apex. Sometimes, it is better to take a step backwards or sideways, if there are broader factors at play. That doesn’t mean that your work is not valuable, just different. It also doesn’t mean that you will not move forward again in the future. I think it's more about qualities that you bring to the table and how people perceive you.

Empathy is important. When we love working with the people around us, we like coming into work and dealing with those people every day. Also, I think if you found your purpose that motivates you — I think that's a huge success.