01
作为领导者，你如何授权团队和成员？
As a leader, how do you empower others on the team?
Anita：我觉得一个公司的文化以及行为直接反应了领导层的风格。对我而言，授权意味着信任以及全权代表。要给你的团队成员设立目标和期望值，能让他们意识到自己的责任。另外我觉得非常重要的一点是沟通。一直以来我都试图解释“为什么”，美籍英裔作家，TedTalk嘉宾Simon也曾提到过这点。以及，亚洲人通常都比较含蓄，所以我经常鼓励我的团队要大胆发言。我们公司最近就上线了一个app “Tell Me”，让所有级别的员工都能在上面畅所欲言。
I think the culture of an organisation and the behaviours within it are direct reflections of the style of leadership by the leaders. For me, empowerment is about trust and delegation. It’s about setting up objectives and expectations for your team members up front so that they are aware of their responsibilities.
The other thing that I feel is really critical is communication and communicating on a timely basis. I try to explain the ‘Why’, as famously mentioned by Simon Sinek, a British-born American author and motivational speaker. Also, Asians tend to be very polite, so I actively encourage my team to speak up and voice their opinions. I am also particularly excited that we’ve recently launched an app called ‘Tell Me’, which is rolled out to all levels of staff. It allows them to provide direct feedback in real time.
02
对女性高管，最大的挑战是什么？
What are some of the top challenges for future female leaders?
Anita: 如今一代女性领导人已经拥有了更多机遇，比如新西兰女总理Jacinda Ardern就向人们展现了一个强大且富有同情心的形象。当然，女性依然面临很多挑战，比如生活与工作之间的冲突。如今的社会依旧默认女性应该承担更多家庭义务，这也让她们压力山大。第二点，在一些机会面前，女性仍面临不平等的对待。这是为什么我们一直都致力于多元化的推进。
作为女性领导，以及一个妈妈，我教育我的两个儿子，女性和男性应该在家庭中承担平等责任，这是作为女性领导者应该在家庭中起到的引导。
I think there are huge opportunities for the current generation of women, we saw many leaders stepping up. There’s Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern of New Zealand who demonstrated that it was possible to be a strong yet empathetic leader. Having said that, though, I think women still face a number of challenges, such as the conflict between work and life. Society still expects women to do most of the heavy lifting at work and at home. This puts a lot of pressure on them. Secondly, women face unequal treatment when it comes to opportunities, so we try very much to have diversity and inclusion as an agenda.
As a leader and a mother, I tell my two boys that responsibilities at home are shared equally between men and women. That’s the message that we, as women leaders, can impart on our families.
03
哪些领导特质最能引起你的共鸣？
What leadership traits resonate with you the most?
Anita: 首先我想到的是真诚，领导者最重要的是做自己以及待人真诚。我很荣幸在工作经历中曾和很多拥有此特质的领导共事，他们都拥有明确的目标和价值观。他们同样也乐于分享，赋能他人。他们给予他人应有的信任，都非常专业。我同样也很欣赏和佩服那些勇于表达的领导，即便他们的观点并不被广泛看好。最后，我觉得领导人最好能有一点幽默感，这样才能和团队有更好的连结。
The first thing that comes to mind is authenticity. Increasingly, I think leadership is really about being true to yourself and being authentic. I’ve had the privilege of working with many such leaders in the course of my career, and they all have clear visions and strong sets of values. They are also people who are willing to mentor and lift others up. They also give credit where credit is due, and they are very professional. I also admire leaders who have the courage and the conviction to speak up, even if it is not a popular choice to do so. Lastly, I think a sense of humour is very important, too, because it creates bonds with the team.
04
你在职场中学到了哪些重要的事？
What leadership lessons have you learnt across your career?
Anita:就我个人，我的价值观基本是被我所工作过的组织所影响的 。当你有很明确的价值观或原则导向，就很容易做决定。另外就是注意细节，很多人说过，细节决定成败。我也很乐于和他人分享，帮助他们如何面对职场。有同理心很重要，它能让你和他人建立互信。另外我也是一个聆听不同观点的坚决拥护者，因为这些人会带来全新的观点，甚至挑战你的思维。最后，我觉得所有领导人都应该谦逊接地气。
Personally, my values have been dictated by the organisations that I’ve worked with. When you have a strong set of values or guiding principles, it’s easier to make decisions. Paying attention to details is a big one for me because, as they say, the devil is in the details. I also enjoy mentoring others, men and women, in their career journeys. It’s important to be empathetic as it helps you create bonds of trust. I’m also a firm believer in surrounding yourself with very diverse views, because these people bring fresh perspectives to the table and challenge you. Lastly, I think it’s always important for leaders to remain grounded and practise humility.
05
对在男性为主的行业中担任领导的女性，你有什么建议？
Do you have any advice for female leaders in male-dominated industries?
Anita: 进步源于意识。近几年，我们看到越来越多的女性在传统男性为主的行业里独领风骚，这就能很好地帮助人们提高意识。同时，也能让更多人有意识地去追求类似的成就。第二个很重要的点是在组织中建立支持体系和同盟。这点上男性非常在行，女同胞们值得学习借鉴。第三是要消除无意识的偏见，在我所在的公司，我们并不缺少女同事，但当她们晋升到更高的职位，因为一些偏见，她们会选择放弃。她们甚至自己都会认为，应该放弃事业、专注家庭。如果企业和组织能够帮助她们消除偏见，这会让她们的职场道路更加长久。
Progress starts with awareness. In recent years, we’ve seen and read about women in the media who’ve played prominent roles in traditionally male-dominated industries, and that helps to create awareness. At the same time, it inspires other people to hopefully pursue similar careers.
The second most important thing is to build a support system and identify allies as you progress through an organisation. This is something that men are generally better at, and I think women can take a leaf from that.
Thirdly, it’s about removing unconscious biases. At Prudential BSN Takaful, we certainly don’t lack women in the workplace, but I do observe that, when they get higher in the organisation, they tend to drop out of the workplace due to unconscious bias. Even they believe that they are the ones who should give up their careers to focus on their families. So if organisations are able to address that, we will certainly help women go a long way.
06
女性中最让你有启发的人是？
Name a woman who’s inspired you the most.
Anita: 我的其中一个榜样是我妈妈，我妈妈来自一个传统家庭，她自己也是个家庭主妇。但是，她很独立，也很有责任。我从她身上学到了我可以走出去，可以得到任何我想达到的成就。如果要从商业领域选择一位，那么是Indra Nooyi，前任百事CEO。她的故事很让人振奋，包括她如何来到美国，如何成为全球500强企业的CEO，以及如何做出每一步商业决策。她同时也是一个很谦逊的人，每当她回到家，她就会卸下自己的工作头衔，全身心投入家庭，我觉得这是真正优秀领导者应该做到的。
My role model is my mother. My mother came from a very traditional Indian background, and she was a homemaker. However, she was also someone who had a clear sense of responsibility and independence. From her, I learnt that I could go out there and achieve whatever I set my mind on. If I were to choose someone from the corporate field, it would be Indra Nooyi, the former chairman and CEO of PepsiCo. I was hugely inspired by her story about how she moved to the US, how she became the CEO of a Top 500 company, and the sort of decisions she had to make at every step of the way. She also comes across as a very grounded and humble person. I read somewhere that whenever she came home, she would leave her CEO title at the door and focus on the family. I think that’s the hallmark of a truly great leader.
07
如何建立自信？
How have you developed your confidence as a leader?
Anita: 我的做法是直面风险，这听上去好像和我的职业是冲突的。但我觉得承担适度风险是有必要的。比如，我之前担任毕马威的合伙人，我也很喜欢这份工作，但是当我有机会能加入BSN，我接受了这个机会，因为我想跳出自己的舒适圈，挑战我自己，学习新的东西。实际上，我最早是STEM行业里的科学家，但后来我发现这不是我的兴趣所在，我更喜欢和人打交道。所以后来我转投到了咨询公司做金融服务。这些经历都很宝贵，另外我觉得多在公众场合表达自己，也对建立自信很有帮助。
What’s worked for me is taking risks, which sounds unusual coming from a Chief Risk Officer, but it’s really about taking calculated risks. For example, when I was working at KPMG as a partner, and I really enjoyed that role. However, when this opportunity came up at Prudential BSN Takaful, I took the role because I really wanted to step out of my comfort zone, challenge myself and learn new things. In fact, I started my career as a scientist in the STEM industry. I discovered, however, that it wasn’t my cup of tea, and that I enjoyed working with people much more. That’s why I switched to consulting and financial services. These experiences have been truly invaluable. And I guess speaking at conferences and publishing thought leadership articles help too.
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