65: Sophie Standke, Beam Suntory: On purpose and creating a winning culture

LinkedInHow often have you complained about the homogeneity of panels at conferences; teams at client pitches; leadership teams in organisations? My personal experiences over the past decade have strengthened my belief that it is not just important to have representation, equally important is visibility. Visibility that can help to create recognition about diverse leadership and make it the norm rather than the exception. So, I committed to spotlighting and showcasing women leaders from across geographies, leaders who transcend barriers of race, ethnicity, religion, socio-economic, disability, neurodiversity on The Elephant in the Room podcast. And also explore the evolving definition and what it means to different people. Sophie Standke, International Diversity & Inclusion Lead, Beam Suntory is one such leader, passionate about helping create a more inclusive and equitable organisation. In this episode we spoke about 👉🏾 About being stuck, lack of progress and the realisation that not everyone had access to the same opportunities👉🏾 Recognition that there are different realities, being heard and being taken seriously👉🏾 Strategies to dealing with the imposter syndrome, fitting in and the importance of values match👉🏾 Passion and purpose, leadership mindset, changing the leadership paradigm 👉🏾 Leading in a post pandemic world with flexibility and empathy👉🏾 The importance of acknowledging the systemic barriers and meeting people where they are, rather than a one size fits all solution👉🏾 Building an inclusive culture where everyone can thrive“I think being genuinely valued and respected involves more than just being included or feel like you're fitting in. It really involves the power to help set the agenda to help make decisions on how and what work is being done and to have your interests being taken into account. And then in the end, being recognised, for your contributions and being given opportunities to advance. And that's when you see you're actually welcomed in an organisation.” Who are the leaders you admire and would like to spotlight?ShownotesMemorable passages from the episode👉🏾 Thank you so much. Thank you for inviting me Sudha, it's my pleasure and I'm very excited to be speaking with you today. 👉🏾 Well, I grew up in Germany and in East Berlin. So growing up, I always felt a sense of division actually in my own country and even felt that after the wall came down. I always was curious though about what was happening outside of Germany, what was happening in the world. Because I never felt a true sense of belonging, I always felt a bit different.👉🏾 For example, I don't really identify myself or limit myself to just one country; instead, I'm more curious about what can I learn from other cultures. So for me, it was very clear actually at a very early age that I wanted to have a deeper experience and enjoy the complexities of life that you get from other countries and other cultures. And I had the opportunity to attend an international school in Germany, where classes were taught in English and where I met many students from around the world. And then right after school, right after I passed my A-levels, I actually spent seven months in France where I worked at the bar and I learned French and it was the first...