Celia Gianetti
Celia Gianetti is a senior enterprise talent leader with experience building and running talent systems in complex, global organizations. Her work has always been grounded in execution, clarity, and delivery, especially in environments where reliability and discipline matter.
She began her career in global logistics, holding early roles at DHL and Kuehne + Nagel. Those roles were operational and fast-moving. They taught her how work actually gets done, how decisions ripple through systems, and what happens when execution breaks down.
She later joined DuPont, where she held several roles over time. She started in category management, responsible for roughly $150 million in spend, working directly with senior leaders on prioritization, trade-offs, and results in a highly regulated environment. From there, she moved into the commercial excellence team and later into talent management. That progression gave her a broad, practical view of how commercial performance, capability building, and leadership effectiveness intersect at the enterprise level.
She continued to deepen her leadership and talent experience at Boston Scientific, where rigor, quality, and regulatory discipline are part of everyday decision-making. That environment reinforced the importance of systems that hold up under pressure, not just on paper.
Today, at Mitsubishi Chemical America, Celia built the Talent Management Center of Excellence from the ground up. Her scope includes performance management, succession planning, and leadership readiness across more than 3,800 employees. Her work has strengthened decision-making, reduced succession risk, and improved leadership readiness across the organization.
Celia’s approach is practical and direct. She pays close attention to how leaders actually operate, where decisions slow down, and where accountability fades. She is known for influencing senior leaders by simplifying complexity, asking the right questions, and holding the line on execution. She builds systems that scale, last, and support real delivery.
She holds a Master’s degree in Organizational Leadership and is known for her enterprise mindset, steady judgment, and ability to bring clarity in complex moments.
• The Five Behaviors® Certification
• Six Sigma Black Belt
• DiSC Assessment
• Grow Coaching
• BS International Business
• MS Applied Organizational Psychology
• Talent Management Leader of the Year
• Most Inspiring Women Leaders to Watch 2025
• SHRM
• ATD
• ASPCA
What do you attribute your success to?
My dad always said that my education was my inheritance. Because of that, he made a very intentional choice to send me to an American school in Brazil. I learned English at a young age, but more importantly, I learned how to learn.
That environment taught me critical thinking early. I learned how to ask questions, recognize patterns, and read dynamics and networks. Those skills stayed with me and I still rely on them today, especially when I’m navigating complex organizations or unclear situations.
Later in my career, back in Brazil in the global logistics field, I was often the youngest person in the room or the only woman. That meant I had to be more prepared and more thoughtful about how I showed up. When I found myself outside my comfort zone, my instinct was always the same: what do I need to learn, and how fast can I learn it? The answer, for me, has always been by testing and flexing in real situations.
That approach shaped how I lead. I focus on execution, scalability, and delivery. I pay attention to how decisions move, where things get stuck, and how people actually operate under pressure. I build systems that work in practice, not just on paper. That combination has been central to my success.
What’s the best career advice you’ve ever received?
Operate at the level you want to be hired for. Titles come later. Behavior comes first. Taking responsibility for outcomes early changes how people experience you long before your role formally changes.
Stop waiting to be fully prepared. The most meaningful growth in my career happened when I stepped into roles that stretched my judgment before they stretched my résumé. Competence grows faster when you’re accountable for real outcomes, not theoretical ones.
What advice would you give to young women entering your industry?
Learn how the business makes money and how decisions truly get made. That knowledge gives you confidence and credibility.
Early in my career, I had to learn not to confuse being helpful with being effective. The goal isn’t to be liked or indispensable in execution; it’s to be trusted with judgment.
Build skills that compound. Speak with clarity, even when it’s uncomfortable. Take responsibility early, because confidence follows evidence, not reassurance.
Be intentional about what you become known for. Follow-through matters. Reliability matters. Confidence comes from evidence, not reassurance. Focus on building that evidence consistently, especially early in your career.
What are the biggest challenges or opportunities in your field right now?
Many organizations have strong aspirations but struggle with follow-through. Talent systems often become fragmented or overly complex, which makes execution harder, not easier.
The opportunity is to simplify and align. Make talent processes less abstract and more tangible. When performance, succession, and leadership development reinforce each other, leaders gain clarity and momentum. Strong, scalable systems make it easier for leaders to deliver, especially in times of change.
What values are most important to you in your work and personal life?
Personally, my goal is to raise a decent human being. I have an 11-year-old daughter, and being her parent keeps me very clear on what actually matters. Kindness, accountability, honesty, hard work, and follow-through aren't abstract ideas in my life. They’re things I try to model every day.
I feel the same way about organizations. At work, those values show up as integrity, clarity, and ownership. I care about building environments where expectations are clear, people are treated with respect, and leaders take ownership of their decisions. I believe organizations work best when people know where they stand and are held to consistent standards. That alignment between how I live and how I lead is what keeps me grounded and effective over time.