Her Story
About Beate
I started my career as a sales insight person doing order entries, then moved into sales, then into finance, and then into managed services. One of the things that kept me busy all over the time was everything what customers name as a service. That is clearly something where the differentiator comes in - can you combine financial requirements, logistic requirements, and the distribution of equipment together with the service outcome. That's what I see as one of the big things where my change came into play, not staying in one lane but looking across the table, looking across the plate, and seeing how things are tied together. I always say these kinds of solutions are a little bit like a Rubik's Cube - you always need to add the different dimensions because it has multiple challenges when you go around the world, and the world is not flat. Just because we believe in Europe this is the right way to do it doesn't mean it's the right way for India. I've always been addicted to tie the knots together. I keep my mind open, keep my brain sharp, and think about what makes different countries different - it's not just the language or history, it's a lot of tiny bits and pieces, from things like taxes to whether it's a high-cost country or a low-cost country.
Her Interview
Ten minutes with Beate
01What do you attribute your success to?
I attribute my success to not staying in one lane - looking across the table, looking across the plate, and seeing how things are tied together. I've always been addicted to tying the knots together. I keep my mind open and keep my brain sharp, thinking about what makes different countries different. It's about understanding that the world is not flat and that just because we believe something is the right way in Europe doesn't mean it's the right way for India or the U.S. I listen to the news and understand that the news are not just news - the news impact your business and your life. I try to be open-minded and take empathy, helping people while understanding cultural differences. I personally go the extra mile, because nothing comes between 9 and 5 - everything comes with the extra mile. At the end of the day, what drives me is achieving happy customers, because if the customer says yes, the solution works and I can achieve what I want to achieve, that's the best reference you can get.
02What advice would you give to young women entering your industry?
Be authentic. That's the most important piece. You need to know who you are. You need to know how do you like people to recognize me. If you cannot answer these two questions, you will not survive, because you get bounced back and forth between mainstream opinions and some company politics. If you know who you are, you know how you like to be recognized by your customers, your colleagues, your peers, everything else comes in by yourself if you are confident. And if you have the situation that you personally go the extra mile, nothing comes between 9 and 5 - everything comes with the extra mile.
03What are the biggest challenges or opportunities in your field right now?
The biggest challenges in my field right now are understanding how the world is changing and what it means for our solutions. How does AI require us to be adjusted? These are the kinds of things I'm constantly working on. The world is constantly changing - when I did the rollout of my recent program, Myanmar was a civil war country and you can't deploy anything there. Then in the middle of the program, Israel started the conflict, and then Ukraine-Russia was coming in, which brought in another challenge. These are the kinds of things that keep you always busy - listening to the news and understanding that the news are not just news, the news impact your business and your life. It's more challenging when you sit in a very nice and safe territory like North America, but when you speak to people sitting in Israel or colleagues in Romania during the Ukraine war or Saudi Arabia now, they are directly impacted. This is why I always say be open, try to help people, but make sure you understand the cultural differences you need to accommodate.
04What values are most important to you in your work and personal life?
The most important values to me are being open-minded, taking empathy, and being authentic. I believe in helping people and making sure you understand the cultural differences you need to accommodate, even if you may not understand everything. I never slam a door because you may meet these people later on in a different role again. I'm always saying, keep your mind open, keep your brain sharp. At the end of the day, what drives me is achieving happy customers - if the customer says yes, the solution works and I can achieve what I want to achieve, that's the best reference you can get. I also value going the extra mile, because nothing comes between 9 and 5, everything comes with the extra mile. And I believe strongly in being authentic - you need to know who you are and how you like people to recognize you.
Keep Exploring
More Influential Women · North Carolina
Join Influential Women and start making an impact. Register now.