Sharon Fiehler, Founder, ABC To CEO; former C-Suite Executive; past Chair of the Board of the 8th District of the Federal Reserve.
I had a successful career in a Fortune 500 company that took me to the C-Suite as the Chief Administrative Officer reporting to the CEO; becoming a CEO had never been seriously on my radar screen as I was very happy with the success I was experiencing. Upon becoming “post-career”, I began thinking about what I had not done that I wish I had and the first thing that came to my mind was “why did I never pursue becoming a CEO”. At that point in my life, I decided that going back to a career full-time was not what I wanted, and at my age, I had run out of time to redirect my career in a manner that would have made that a probability. I decided then that I didn’t want other ambitious women to miss an opportunity due to not being prepared. I wanted to communicate to young women to prepare for the possibility of becoming a CEO early in their career and be able to make a choice someday if that is the path they desire as opposed to realizing too late that they should have prepared earlier.
I created the non-profit organization called ABC To CEO as an organization that would develop and distribute materials for young women who are beginning their careers not only the basics of great leadership but the pitfalls I saw women fall into during my 30+ year career that often stifled their careers from being as successful as the talent that they possessed. At ABC To CEO we have created many social media posts on the subject of leadership, have many podcasts that we conducted with CEOs and other thought leaders that can be found our on-line site and we are now introducing our education on-line modules to young women.
We have also begun a new live on-line program with sororities and other women-centric organizations on the materials that we have created. We are currently working with our second group of young college women to deliver these materials and hope to expand this delivery option as we move forward with more momentum to increase our number of audiences we deliver our materials to.
I want young women to understand that they need to be the driver of their career; that they need to become qualified for being considered as a CEO by taking on positions in operations and sales and, if possible, roles with P&L responsibility. They need to understand the promotions to more and more staff roles, although might give one a sense of achievement, is not how one becomes qualified for CEO.
I want women to understand that not all promotions are created equal. Continuing to move up in staff roles will likely never give you the kind of experience a Board of Directors is looking for in a CEO. Our goal is that women gain the type of experience needed for serious consideration alongside their male counterparts for consideration to be appointed a CEO.
Also, women need to believe that they are as talented and ambitious as their male counterparts and that they need to have the confidence in themselves to take risks in taking on new challenges. And I want them to understand the importance of networking with mentors, supports and promoters who will help them in reaching their career goals but also with individuals with whom they intereact during their career as one never knows when your paths may cross again.
CEOs are positions of tremendous influence not only within their organization but within our society, our political environment and our world. ABC To CEO is not about pushing men down, we are about pulling women up. Women have experienced the world from a different perspective than men and we believe that our society is a better place when a multitude of perspectives are considered as it increase our chances of creating a better world.
Mary Barra, Chair and CEO of General Motors, for long-term successful leadership in the male dominated auto industry; Warren Buffett, Chair and CEO Berkshire Hathaway, for his integrity and amazing long-term vision; and, Gary Burnison, CEO of Korn Ferry, for demonstrating leadership in how great professional success and a fulfilling personal life can both be achieved simultaneously.
The Five Graces of Life and Leadership by Gary Burnison.
We bring world-class leadership programs directly to where women gather — from university business clubs and sororities to emerging professional networks. Thanks to our generous sponsors and donors, we’re able to offer these experiences — typically reserved for executives — at no cost to participants.
Sharon Fiehler is the Founder of ABC To CEO and a former C-Suite Executive, past Chair of the Board of the 8th District of the Federal Reserve
Sharon Fiehler is the Founder of ABC To CEO and a former C-Suite Executive, past Chair of the Board of the 8th District of the Federal Reserve.
