Business
As Chief Strategy Officer at Duck Creek Technologies, Eva Huston is responsible for building value for the technology and spearheading corporate strategy on a global scale. She is also an independent board member at E2open and previously served as CFO at Verisk Analytics, as well as Managing Director at JPMorgan. Eva is Marcel Schwantes’s guest on this episode of Love In Action. “I think that whenever you can bring your whole self [to work] ... you're just going to be better. Regardless of your background, everybody has something special to bring to the table,” Eva comments. [7:10] Marcel asks Eva to share lessons she learned moving up the ranks as a woman in a male dominated industry. “You'll hear that a theme in my career is that I would create a role that didn’t exist... It's finding new ways to bring value to a company,” she replies. “I tried to look for creative ways to approach things and some ways that might be more traditionally female.” [10:11] Leading with love starts by seeing and honoring the people on your team, Eva says. You would think that you would automatically do that while spending time with them, but it’s common to be around someone for a long time and still not truly see or honor them. Practical love starts when you look at who your team is, what motivates them, and what lies in their hearts. By doing that, you validate them as people. [17:37] “As you go up the leadership ranks, I think that you have to find ways to show your strength that are more indirect so people feel like they have that freedom to grow and flourish,” Eva shares. [21:38] Marcel asks Eva what leadership trait is the hardest to internalize and carry out. “Patience,” she responds. “It's hard for leaders because a person who views themselves as a leader wants to run forward and go fast and get things done. You almost have to counterbalance that with that patience and say like ‘Who's on my team? What do they have to bring?,’ and ‘Let's not start running at a target before we know what we've got here.’” [26:32] It’s hard to be soft, Eva claims, which is why soft skills are so hard to grasp. “That's just something that we as leaders have to realize: that being soft, being human, and being down to earth and approachable is what's going to make our businesses perform the best.” [30:42] A special thanks to our sponsor, Duck Creek Technologies for making the episode possible. Built for insurance, by insurance. Duck Creek Technologies offers the vision and tools you need to drive your business in 2021 and beyond. Visit www.duckcreek.com to learn more. Resources Eva Huston on LinkedIn Duck Creek Technologies | LinkedIn | Twitter