In December, we hosted our last Scholar CONNECT! event of 2021 and had an incredibly valuable conversation with Claudia Knowlton-Chike, Senior Director of Global Logistics at Google.
The career advice and inspiration Claudia shared with our Scholars & Fellows was so insightful.
See below for key takeaways from the event and feedback from attendees!
Key Takeaways from the AWESOME Scholar CONNECT! Event
1 | Get comfortable with being uncomfortable Sometimes in your career, you’re going to need to make moves you’re not sure you’re ready for. It can feel uncomfortable, like you’re taking off more than you can chew, but the best thing to do is have a positive attitude and focus on getting results. These moves are how you grow! |
2 | Learn how to advocate for yourself No one knows you and your skills, strengths, and accomplishments better than you do—so you need to speak up about them! When you negotiate for yourself, you blaze your own trail. It can be scary, but once you start doing it, it will become easier to be a change-maker in your own life. |
3 | When it comes to your next role, title isn’t everything You have to think about potential new roles holistically, and ask yourself questions like: Who am I going to work for? What’s the company culture like? Will I continue to learn and grow in this role? |
4 | Network! Network! Network! You never know where your relationships will take you. It’s important to use your full toolkit when you’re looking to move along in your career. Tap recruiters and your personal network to help you! |
5 | Whatever you want your life to be—you can have it! It’s important to make your priorities very clear early on—as they will guide your life and your career. You go through your career journey as a full person, and you will feel more accomplished and more balanced if you honor all parts of your life equally. |
6 | Use a 30-60-90 day plan to ensure smooth transitions Claudia’s 30-60-90 day plan will help you organize and execute in your first 3 months on any job—and help to position you for long term success! |
7 | Go slow to go fast When starting a new role, it’s critically important to build relationships and goodwill among your colleagues. To accurately diagnose the company needs and formulate your goals, you need to have one-on-one conversations that are focused on LISTENING with all stakeholders. Taking the time to establish rapport and accurately assess problems, bottlenecks, and opportunities will help you get buy-in on your proposed changes! |
All our attendees had such a great time at this event.
We wanted to share some insightful feedback we received from Claudia and Karoline Rueckerl, 2021 AWESOME MIT/AWE Fellow, following the event:
Here is what Karoline Rueckerl, 2021 MIT Fellow, had to say about the event:
“I truly enjoyed the AWESOME Holiday Social experience. Every single event with AWESOME has touched me on some level. However, this event had a particular impact on me because I felt I could relate to Claudia. I appreciated her openness, candidness about her success, and want to connect with the AWESOME women on the call.
I see Claudia as a role model, she was able to achieve so many goals while also making a point of giving back and lifting others up. I hope to stay in touch so that I may learn from her in the future and continue to follow her career. Her success has inspired me and I plan to apply to Google next year in order to work for and learn from leaders such as Claudia. She helped me to see so much of what I have set out for myself is possible.
The AWESOME holiday event gave me direct exposure to an industry leader whom I admire and provided a unique opportunity to learn from her experiences and ask direct questions in an intimate setting.
Beyond meeting Claudia, I was able to connect with one of my future classmates such as Grace Caza as well as many other women in AWESOME on a more personal level. Even after the call, Jennie May, Rachel Clark, and myself continued to discuss Claudia’s story and how impressed we are with all of the amazing women in AWESOME.”
And here is what Claudia had to say about the event:
“Wow! What a remarkable group of AWESOME scholars! I was fortunate enough to connect with these women in December and share some stories and tidbits of advice from my 40-year career journey. It is exciting to see the talent of this group of women and that they will be leading supply chains soon. We are in good hands for the future!
I have so much gratitude for the work that AWESOME does day in and day out. AWESOME helps women rise up by lifting others up. Change can be slow at times, but we know that we are making a positive impact that is felt globally. Thank you AWESOME! May your new year be blessed with good tidings.”