Q&A WITH CATHY AND RUDY: Mentors
After recognizing one another as the best mentors possible for each other, Cathy and Rudy settled down into a conversation on how fortunate they feel to have had good role models throughout their careers and how important it is to help others on their way up.
Q: Do you have mentors?
Cathy:I have been so lucky to see how others think. They truly inspire me to follow their example and try things differently.
Rudy:Since I left the corporate world, mentorship has become quite broad for me. I need to draw a lot on a larger group of mentors. For the type of challenges I am facing, I have found it necessary to reach out to a network of people vs. just one individual. As an expat in China, I have found it is much easier to engage people at all levels, typically they are very willing to share their experiences and past challenges. This is invaluable and forces me to think. For a culture mentor, I turn to Cathy for support, until now I have not found anyone better than her.
Cathy:My leadership style has changed a lot thanks to some of the advice I’ve been given. I used to be much tougher and micromanaging everything and everyone. I always thought leadership needed to be top down. I’ve learned how to let others lead by being more open to unexpected results. Also, Having kids has taught me to be calm.
Q: Do you mentor others?
Cathy:I especially try to help young Chinese girls and encourage them to apply to harder foreign schools and go for post-graduate work. I gave a lecture at a small design school in Sichuan (sp?) about 10 years ago. A few years later, I got a letter from a girl in the audience that day. She told me she only applied to the school because of some of the things I said in the lecture. She then went on to be an exchange student at Harvard and now runs a company in Beijing. Since I first got that letter, I have since met her and am so proud to be part of her life.
Rudy: Yes, when mentoring others I try to encourage people to open up and leverage cultures, past experience of others. I like to provide perspectives and not the answer. I want people to think and then apply. Considering that what we say can impact someone’s career and life, I think it is an obligation to not always give them the direction and the answer. Mentoring, honestly it gives me more energy than just about anything else. Recently, as an organization we have realized that we need to change our management structure in China Bridge. We no longer have “managers” of people. People have to be independent and responsible for their part in the work we do. We now have created career coaches, they support individuals on a career level and skill development level. For now, the days of managing people are nearly. Using a model based only on functions and skills would did not allow us to face the challenges and outcomes needed by our clients. It also allows us to grow and expand quicker, using our network.
Cathy:Recently, I was named an honorary professor at Tongji University, one of the top universities in the China. To me this is a big honor. Starting next term I am going to teach two times a week for 18 weeks. I look forward to engage the China Bridge team to co-teach with me so they gain the opportunities to be a mentor to others. I am also going to spend two weeks at Chengwa University in Beijing teaching design management for post-graduates. I am really looking forward to it.
Q: We’re in China. Is this to gain guanxi?
Cathy: Not at all. I expect nothing in return for what I do for others. I am happy to share what I know.
Rudy: Ah Guanxi! Well, I do believe that people remember the who has added something to their life. I hope to be one of those people. So, needing something in return, no… by having the chance to do it I get enough already.