International Women’s Day feature with Tovi Taylor, Best Egg

How do you define your leadership?

Empathy and communication. I think it’s so important to understand each member of your team from their thought process when looking at solutions for a challenge to their career goals and their style of communication. Showing that you understand, ensuring that the team knows they’re being heard, and appreciating their contributions makes a big difference for the team culture.

How has your leadership changed in the past year?

Over the past year, a lot has changed in general, especially within the planning process and our remote work situation. I’ve adapted to be more flexible in the planning process. In this environment, things are always changing and we need to be comfortable to keep moving forward knowing we will pivot or re-prioritize. I’ve also moved to over-communicating changes to cross-functional teams to ensure everyone is informed with the latest updates. Working remotely, it’s not as easy as turning to a colleague and asking a question about a project, so there needs to be that shift in the mindset of leveraging the tools you do have to keep collaboration levels high.

Can you share a story that demonstrates a key learning for you in your leadership journey?

I have always been an observer, meaning I enter a new situation, observe how people interact with each other, and make sure to speak when there is an opening in the conversation to ensure that I do not interrupt someone or default to a leader in the room because I was not sure it was my place to provide an opinion. It was how I was brought up and the proper thing to do, but with a growing leadership role in a previous company, I knew and was told that I needed to solidify my voice as a leader. Shortly after, I had the opportunity to hear one of our executives speak. She is an Asian woman, who after listening to her story, I found it was very similar to mine when it comes to methods of communication. I had conflicting directions, whether to continue how I’ve been or evolve my approach to help align with goals of growing as a leader. This executive was an advocate for the fact that organizations need to evolve their thinking to be more inclusive and consider that not everyone communicates in the same manner within a team. This executive not only inspired me to find the right solutions for me to grow as a leader but also made me think through how I can help my team find the right communication strategies for each individual.

Check out the stories of other incredible women leaders in the marketing and communications industry. 

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