Gadsden-Williams - Climb

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For my grandmothers:

Elizabeth Polite Gadsden,

Rosalie Grant, and Essie C. Williams

Climb:to rise, to ascend, to go upward

with gradual or continuous progress

Almost crumbling to the ground, she stopped. Looking at how far she had traveled, and all it had taken to get there, she recognized her strength. The strength she had inside of her, the strength she had gained along the wayher inner power. And so, she stood up, standing tall, she faced forward and continued on.

Terri St. Cloud

INTRODUCTION

I was sitting in the United Airlines lounge at Newark International Airport waiting to board a flight to Miami, on my way to an annual womens conference that I looked forward to attending every year. While waiting to board the plane, I slowly sipped on a cup of hot tea and responded to a few e-mails that I received on my iPhone. As I was typing, a young woman with wavy blond hair, a big smile, and glasses approached me from behind, tapped me on the shoulder, and said, Are you Michelle Gadsden-Williams?

Although she startled me, I calmly replied, Yes, I am.

She then told me, I saw you walk into the lounge a few moments ago, I just want to tell you how much your work at Novartis meant to mehow much it inspired me and so many others.

This woman was a pharmaceutical sales representative working out of Novartis Pennsylvania location. She had witnessed several of my presentations during previous sales meetings. Thank you for being a role model for women, she continued that day, showering me with accolades. We were so sorry to see you leave a few years ago, but weve watched your career continue to blossom. You have an incredible story. She went on, describing me as courageous, and acknowledging my vast experience as the leader of diversity at a few multinational organizations. You should consider sharing your story like Sheryl Sandberg, Carla Harris, and others. Im sure that you have a lot of experiences to share. Anyway... I just wanted to say thank you.

With glassy eyes I asked her, What is your name?

Debbie, she answered.

We then chatted for thirty more minutes before I had to depart to my gate. It was a brief yet powerful interaction. It was serendipitous, given that I had dreamed of writing a book about my career and experiences. But I had my reservations. Would readers find my story compelling or interesting? Debbies comments that day certainly led me to believe that I had something meaningful to share.

Debbie had not realized during our conversation that not only had I departed Novartis, but I was no longer laboring in corporate America. A few months prior to my encounter with Debbie, I had just resigned from my position as managing director and global head of diversity at Credit Suisse to pursue entrepreneurial ventures. As a matter of fact, my last day in that role had been just a few days before our interaction at the airport in February 2015. I had a C-Suite position at a major organization that most professionals dream ofglobal, influential, impactful, and above all, it was the position that I had worked incredibly hard for during my twenty-five-plus years in corporate America. And here it wasI had just tapped the mat like a wrestler and quit my job to become a full-time entrepreneur along with my husband of twenty-one years, David Jamal Williams. Who does that? I do, apparently.

But my decision was indeed rational and well-thought-out. I knew exactly what I was doing by resigning and what the implications would be. David and I had talked about the pros and cons of my decision, and even covered the worst thing that could happen. I had led a lifetime of taking calculated risks, which all resulted in wonderfully positive outcomes. Why would this life-altering decision be any different? I also sought the counsel of my father, a retired executive, who coached me to think logically about the decision and to remove emotion from the equation. I also had an invaluable ecosystem of family, friends, colleagues, and others who were personally invested in my success. Given all those factors, I had everything that I needed to branch out on my own. At the end of the day, should my entrepreneurial venture not work out, I knew I could always reinvigorate a corporate career by keeping my relationships alive and nurtured... which was exactly what I did!

I dove right into cofounding a business, Ceiling Breakers LLC, alongside my husband David, with the caveat that if a corporate opportunity should present itself, I would certainly consider it. You must keep your options open and be prepared for rare opportunities that may reveal themselves, some in the oddest of ways.

The primary goal of Ceiling Breakers is to help women and people of color reach their full potential as well as to assist corporations with enhancing their diversity and inclusion strategies. Based in New York City, it is a multifaceted company focused on three streams of business: diversity consulting, media-driven womens empowerment initiatives, and diverse entertainment investments. Ceiling Breakers is the outgrowth of an online community that gives women a place to share their struggles and successes in breaking down barriers. Contributors from all ethnicities and varying career backgrounds are tasked with providing a wealth of knowledge to inform and inspire.

Ceiling Breakers platform was meant to provide every woman with a digital playbook to break through barriers to achieve a thriving career and a successful life. You could say that it served as a stepping stone for my writing a book. Besides the fact that executive coaching was one of many services that my company provided, I really wanted to get to know some next-generation leaders. So, in the fall of 2016, I accepted an invitation to participate in a professional leadership development program that was sponsored by the nonprofit The Partnership, Inc., New Englands premier organization dedicated to enhancing the competitiveness of the region by attracting, developing, retaining, and convening multicultural professionals. One of the many things that they do is design leadership programs to prepare professionals for all career trajectoriesentry level to C-Suitefrom a wide range of industries and sectors. At this point, I knew I wanted to write a book, hence I thought this program would be a great way for me to gain exposure to a group of multicultural professionals and to get a better sense of what they were thinking of in terms of next steps.

I was invited by The Partnerships president and CEO, Carol Fulp, to attend an immersion-week seminar with an incoming class of next-generation executives (NGEs) in Cambridge. Prior to The Partnership, Carol was senior vice president of corporate responsibility and brand management at John Hancock Financial. Carol and I served together on the Harvard Womens Leadership Board at the Kennedy School of Government. The participants were high-potential individuals from diverse fields and backgrounds. These were professionals who were ready to take that next step in their career. In essence, the program prepares multicultural talent to act and think like a senior executive. The format consists of a four-day immersion experience, a five-month leadership incubator with executive coaching and peer support, a capstone retreat, and access to a national, cross-industry network of peers and opinion leaders. At the end of the program, the participants graduate. Essentially, its almost like a mini-MBA in this short period of time.