Jennifer Abu

Besides my faith, I will say that my parents have a huge footing into my career and my life. They are both very entrepreneurial and career driven. They instilled the importance of family at a very young age, and of my culture and my background, so because of that, it allows me to maneuver rooms seamlessly. It allows me to connect with different people of all backgrounds and give them the respect that they need, and it allows me to bring that family-community lens in whatever I do, ensuring that I am treating my environment fairly, and I have the right love and empathy when I'm working with the different teams that I work with every day.

I've made a lot of changes throughout my career, and usually when I bring this up to mentors, they will say that pivoting is necessary, and it's not a bad thing to pivot. Pivoting is necessary because it drives growth. This advice has been particularly meaningful to me as I've transitioned from public health to marketing consulting and taken different directions in my professional journey.

One, be yourself. Never stop learning. I like to believe that I'm a forever student, and that's something I'd love to do, just gathering new information and upskilling. Especially in this world that we're in, the more knowledge, the better. Be confident and walk into every room like you belong there. There's no such thing as imposter syndrome, because if you're in the room, you deserve to be in the room. Don't be afraid to negotiate and share your worth. That's something I wish I knew earlier in my career. Don't shrink to be able to fit in a room. If you're there, you belong there. So ask what you're worth, and get what you deserve.

The need to upskill is very important, especially in an era that is pushing automation. Learning what automation is and using it to your advantage to drive your work forward and get into the rooms that you deserve is critical. Understanding the market and current changes in the environment that we're in, and just staying up-to-date with those changes, are key challenges and opportunities in the field right now.

I am faith-based, so I credit a lot of my success and my work to God, and I am a huge family person. I enjoy family and friends and community as a whole. Professionally, the value that I bring is to always be myself and not feel like I'm too much in a room, even though some rooms have made me feel that way sometimes, but keeping and being myself. I'm treating everyone fairly. I don't believe in hierarchy when I'm interacting with people, so the same way I'll talk to a VP will be the same way I talk to someone who maybe makes my coffee in the mornings. No hierarchy in the workplace or my professional life, and just treating people fairly and being myself.