Inspirational Women in STEM and Tech: Kristi Woolsey of Boston Consulting Group On The 5 Leadership Lessons She Learned From Her Experience

An Interview With Penny Bauder

We’re all human; be vulnerable. The leaders who really modeled this for me were those who would, every once in a while, openly say that they are having a bad day. They share their troubles and are honest about how they are being impacted. Especially in today’s reality, where private and professional lives are blending even more with remote work, it’s okay, and even necessary, to be honest about how you’re doing on a personal level.

As a part of my series about “Lessons From Inspirational Women in STEM and Tech”, I had the pleasure of interviewing Kristi Woolsey.

Kristi Woolsey leads Boston Consulting Group’s (BCG) Smart Environments practice where she leverages her extensive leadership, architecture, and technology experience to help companies move into their digital future by understanding the needs of future employees and customers. Specifically, her work focuses on solving today’s biggest and most complex challenges, such as how to empower remote and/or hybrid workforce and how to reinvent physical office environments with smart technology and digital-physical design principles.

Kristi has more than 40 years of industry experience, having founded and ran her own successful architecture firm, Woolsey Studio, before leading MAYA’s Creative Environments practice where she helped industry leaders design buildings of the future through the incorporation of leading digital technologies such as IoT and facial recognition.

Kristi graduated from the Georgia Institute of Technology with a B.S. Architecture and has held teaching roles at Carnegie Mellon University (CMU) Integrated Innovation Institute, Arizona State University, and Southern California Institute of Architecture. Through that work she’s focused on mentoring and empowering women in architecture and design, both providing a role model and showing the ways in which women can be successful in the industry. This comes from her experience as an industry trailblazer during a time when women weren’t represented and had to persevere without role models or mentors.

She has two TEDx talks, wrote an e-book for O’Reilly “Designing Culture: Behavioral Strategy for the Workplace”, and has been interviewed by the Wall Street Journal, Forbes, Bloomberg, and others. In 2020, she gave a talk on ethics and AI at the Grace Hopper Conference, and in the last few months has been interviewed by the London Financial Times, Crain’s, Business Insider, and others on the future of hybrid working.

Thank you so much for doing this with us! Can you tell us a story about what brought you to this specific career path?

I’ve always been able to draw quite well, so my parents looked at me as a little girl drawing away in my sketchbooks and said to themselves: “Oh, my goodness, she’s going to be a starving artist and we will have to support her the rest of her life.”

Knowing that I was also very good at math, my parents thought I might combine those talents and do well as an architect. When I was 15 years old, they found a local architecture firm — a married couple working together in an office above their garage — and asked them if they would hire me for the summer. My parents thought that even if I was just babysitting for them, at least I’d get exposure to a potential career path.

While I did end up doing a bit of babysitting over that summer, I was also given the opportunity to help them as a draftsperson and I absolutely loved it!

At the start of the next school year, I signed up for technical drawing in high school, and by my senior year, I was splitting my time between school and working for that architecture firm. Very early on, I knew that working with physical space was what I wanted to do.

In graduate school, I became very interested in the behavior and psychology of space — the ways in which the configuration, color, or lighting of a physical environment can influence behavior.

I moved into academia, becoming a professor at Arizona State University with a primary research focus in this area, called behavioral strategy.

I then left the university to launch my own architectural firm, which grew to be one of the largest woman-owned firms on the U.S. west coast. After great success, we realized that there was significant opportunity in consulting around the changes in behavior being driven by technology.

I realized that if I could influence people with space, I could also do so with technology embedded in space. That led to my current role at Boston Consulting Group (BCG) where I’ve been helping some of America’s largest organizations create targeted experiences for employees and customers using integrated physical and digital space.

Can you share the most interesting story that happened to you since you began at your company?

A few years ago at a BCG conference in Berlin, a number of tech-focused BCG employees were given the chance to demonstrate their innovations. One was a device that used blockchain to track a candy bar from its source to final product. It was just a little demo, but it was amazing and had eye-opening potential.

There was another team that used IoT, sensors, and real-time data to trigger mobile notifications on any change in operation functions. For example, a plant manager could be notified when a motor in a factory was running slow and address the issue before any significant damage was done to the machine.

It was intellectually stimulating to see BCG employees not only talking about technology, but actually using it to create viable solutions to real world problems. They allowed me to see across BCG’s different capabilities and understand how those knowledge sets were working together to advance the benefits available from technology. There are actually a number of people who presented at that conference that I am still in regular contact with, and we continue to explore how we can use those ideas to create value for our clients.

Can you share a story about the funniest mistake you made when you were first starting? Can you tell us what lesson you learned from that?

When I got out of graduate school, I decided to start my own architecture firm with a few friends. However, I knew nothing about business at the time. Afterall, I was an architecture graduate, not an MBA.

We worked hard, but eventually the business side of things caught up with us, and we ran out of money and clients. It was almost as if we were trying to play “house,” but when it came to building and maintaining the house, we realized quickly that it was much harder than we had thought. The funniest story to me now, was when our banker asked us for a cash flow, and we said: “What is a cash flow?” If we didn’t have that basic financial knowledge at that point in our young careers, we certainly had no business running a business!

As my partners went off to explore their own opportunities, I reassessed my situation and realized I needed to learn more about how to actually run a business. I learned it’s okay to admit when you’re out of your depth and turn to others for guidance. I took some business courses, connected with talented mentors, hired people with skillsets different than mine, and relaunched the business with great success.

What do you think makes your company stand out? Can you share a story?

I actually came to BCG in 2017 through acquisition and those can be fraught with concerns around cultural, skills, and work pattern fit, among others. It was a transition, as every acquisition is, but combining the deep design and technology expertise of our team with the amazing business depth of BCG was a great match.

For me, to have access to individuals with such deep levels of business expertise is thrilling, and our ability to combine our individual areas of knowledge into collaborative integrated solutions for clients was something I had not yet experienced. Pulling together teams like this is just a fantastic way to operate, and BCG excels at this approach to our work.

Are you working on any exciting new projects now? How do you think that will help people?

Coming out of COVID, there is so much going on with smart environments. One thing that is very clear, especially among knowledge workers, is there’s a clear expectation for significantly greater amounts of flexibility between home and work. Few people want to stay home forever, but even fewer want to go back into the office five days a week.

If companies want to win the talent war, they need to understand how to implement flexible work models. This brings into question the need for a physical office all together. However, the office does play a role, providing places to connect, collaborate, and affiliate. With research that has proven that social connectivity is correlated to productivity, we know that this will be one key role for physical space.

This means that we’re going to probably end up with more social and team spaces in the office, and certainly significantly less individual desk space. If employees want to focus heads down on their own individual work, they can do that at home.

Now, if we reduce the number of desks, then not everyone will get an assigned desk, which means we must share. And without a system for sharing, things can get complicated. As we move forward, we’re likely to see that we need to book desks in the same way we used to book conference rooms, which means desks need to be “smart” and integrated with technology to enable efficient and effective shared spaces.

There has been an explosion of Integrated Workplace Management Systems (IWMS) that both improve the employee experience and provide utilization data to the facilities team. These offerings currently tend to provide point solutions to point problems. What is exciting to me is that they are collecting data on usage and behavior. The physical place is becoming a platform that can analyze usage data not only for better real estate planning, but also to unlock human potential, drive productivity, and more.

Ok super. Thank you for all that. Let’s now shift to the main focus of our interview. Are you currently satisfied with the status quo regarding women in STEM? What specific changes do you think are needed to change the status quo?

When I went to sign up for that technical drawing class in high school, I had to get special permission because girls didn’t take that class. That’s just the way things were. At that point in history, in most places, women still needed to get permission from their husbands to take out a credit card, so we’ve definitely come a long way from that.

However, am I satisfied with where it is now? No. There is a long way to go to getting girls interested in STEM, and we all need to help girls to understand that they can leap in and explore these options.

When I started to immerse myself into the world of technology, I was in a room full of male engineers and there was a part of me that thought, “What am I doing here?” I recognized there were a lot of other skills I was interested in, but I just didn’t have. And it turns out that it’s OK. There are roles for people who really understand the user experience of technology, know how to manage teams or understand the ways in which technology will integrate into the world, without being a software developer, and that allows them to participate in STEM fields. We just need to make room for women at the table to explore their passions and carve their own role.

In your opinion, what are the biggest challenges face by women in STEM or Tech that aren’t typically faced by their male counterparts? What would you suggest to address this?

The biggest challenge today is the tendency for women to want to have already proven themselves and demonstrate expertise before we even step into something completely unknown. Imposter syndrome doesn’t affect every woman, but it affects more women than men. Many STEM areas of inquiry are new or are being applied in new ways. We women need to be willing to step in comfortable that our foundational learning will carry us, and will allow us to explore new worlds successfully.

What are the “myths” that you would like to dispel about being a woman in STEM or Tech. Can you explain what you mean?

There is sometimes the perception that the type of “making” and imagination demonstrated by boys at a young age is seen as a pathway to a STEM career, whereas that is not the same for young girls.

When I first went to architecture school, there were only a handful of women there. One of the first assignments we had was to build a mask with functional, moving elements. I saw that the boys were making masks out of cardboard and balsa wood, but I didn’t have that experience to draw on because I wasn’t building things and working with materials like that at a young age. So, I pulled out my sewing machine and sewed my mask together out of fabric, which was a unique approach among my classmates, but it absolutely worked.

A good demonstration was this facility that used to be in Pittsburgh called Tech Shop. It had all sorts of tools for tasks such as welding and 3D printing, but also sewing machines and other maker tools stereotypically seen as “girl things.” At Tech shop, they were genderless maker’s tools. It goes to show that if you have the desire to make something, no matter what it is, you can. And you can apply whatever tools and ways of thinking are natural to you to other areas that require problem solving, such as engineering or other STEM fields, even if it is different from others typical to the field.

What are your “5 Leadership Lessons I Learned From My Experience as a Woman in STEM or Tech” and why. (Please share a story or example for each.)

1. The most important thing is to make a decision. I always think back to this one Star Trek episode where Captain Jean-Luc Picard and Dr. Beverly Crusher were captured and put in handcuffs that allowed each other to read each other’s mind. When Beverly asked which way they should go, the Captain turned to her and, very Captain-like, said “That way!” But since Beverly could read his mind, she knew that he was unsure himself and was amazed to realize that he was guessing. I watched that 20-something years ago and thought to myself “that is leadership,” because most of the time, you actually don’t know, but somebody has to make a decision with the facts available. If you take too long to decide, the organization and the people that follow you can suffer.
2. The role of a leader is to bring out the best in others. If someone is working on one of my teams, my job is to make sure they are set up for success; that they have the resources, the boundaries, the feedback and training, and whatever else they need. Quite often my job on these teams is to remove the blockers so that the team can perform their best.
3. Connect with causes that matter. Leaders must find ways to unveil the greater picture that individuals contribute to so they can understand their value and impact. At the individual level, people don’t generally find passion in benefits to the company or making the stockholders happy. Often what they care about is how their contributions impact a greater good. It’s being a part of something larger than yourself or your individual company, such as a product or process to slow climate change, that will empower a diverse workforce.
4. Be transparent and provide context. The most important things that people want to know is simply what is happening, where are they going, and how are they going to get there. It’s a leader’s job to provide clarity around the work. Provide transparency through the whole decision change so your teams understand how they fit and drive the organization or task forward.
5. We’re all human; be vulnerable. The leaders who really modeled this for me were those who would, every once in a while, openly say that they are having a bad day. They share their troubles and are honest about how they are being impacted. Especially in today’s reality, where private and professional lives are blending even more with remote work, it’s okay, and even necessary, to be honest about how you’re doing on a personal level.

What advice would you give to other women leaders to help their team to thrive?

Someone who’s impacted me greatly in my individual career, though I’ve never actually met her, is Carla Harris — one of the first black women on Wall Street. One of the things she talks about is perception being the co-pilot to reality. That is such an important lesson for young women to learn, because it doesn’t matter that you can do something or that you have done it, what matters is that people perceive that you have that ability. It’s perception that matters most, because all of those decisions about your career development, such as compensation, promotions, and opportunities, are going to happen without you in the room. If people do not have the perception that you are capable, they will not argue for you when you are not in the room.

For our teams, I would advise other women leaders to be the leader that you needed. More than anything, young women need models for how to lead, how to empower others, how and when to be vulnerable, how to be transparent, how to be bold, and particularly in STEM, how to explore, risk, fail, learn, try again, and succeed.

What advice would you give to other women leaders about the best way to manage a large team?

As soon as you start to manage teams of more than four or five, you’ll need to subdivide your team. A handful of people can get in a room together and make non-hierarchical decisions, but once you expand beyond that threshold, you’ll need lieutenants. As a leader, you want to touch everyone, but you shouldn’t have more than around six direct reports that you meet with every day or week, and those individuals have their own direct reports, and so on and so forth. There are of course exceptions, but this is a model I’ve found to work very well.

Once you set up that larger team, it is important to be clear about desired outcomes and to remove yourself from the minute details. As a leader your job is to empower people and bring out their best. If you micromanage and tell your direct reports exactly what their direct reports should be doing, you aren’t empowering them, you’re doing their job for them. Even if you’re a perfectionist and are used to getting A+ on all your work, you need to be comfortable accepting A- work so that your lieutenants and their direct reports can learn and grow.

None of us are able to achieve success without some help along the way. Is there a particular person who you are grateful towards who helped get you to where you are? Can you share a story about that?

There are so many people that helped me grow into the leader that I am now, and different aspects of your life and professional growth will require different mentors.

When I was in my 20s and launched my own business, I really had no idea what I was doing from a business perspective. I ended up getting sponsored to join a group called the “CEO Forum,” which met once a month with a group of CEOs to talk about our challenges. I was the only woman in the room. Our group leader, Jim Meyers, showed me how being a leader is primarily about caring for and investing in your people. A lot of what I’ve shared in this interview came from Jim Meyers, and for that I am so grateful.

Within BCG itself, there are a number of people that I consider mentors that I regularly reach out to for advice for different facets of my work. Many of those relationships started with me simply asking for their thoughts on a particular issue. It can be as easy as asking to buy them a cup of coffee while you pick their brain for ideas around whatever challenge you may be facing.

How have you used your success to bring goodness to the world?

BCG’s purpose is to unlock the potential of those that change the world. When I ran my own company, our slogan was “unlocking human potential through the power of space.” So, for me, it’s always been about unlocking potential.

Thinking back, when I began as a professor at Arizona State University, I was always better with the B and C students. The A students didn’t really need my help as much. But with a B or a C student, you can think about what is preventing them from being an A student. How do we move you forward? How can we unlock that potential?

I left my job as a professor to start my own architecture firm, and we began by remodeling houses. A lot of times, what I would do is walk through a house and look for the potential in the house itself. When I moved to office design, I looked at it from the perspective of the future of work. Essentially, we want leaders to understand how to best utilize their space; to find the potential within their space and business that could unlock the potential within their employees.

Now, at BCG, I’m focused on how spatial technology can make us better. I’m excited about the opportunities to imbed technology in spaces that people are moving through, and then provide that data to them so they can make better decisions and improve their lives. I’m always thinking of how I can positively impact people’s lives through physical space and technology.

You are a person of enormous influence. If you could inspire a movement that would bring the most amount of good to the most amount of people, what would that be? You never know what your idea can trigger. :-)

It would be a movement centered around believing in yourself and your ability to advance in the world. I know it can sound very trite, and when I think of people that have less access to resources, I’m not pressing an empty mantra that all you need to advance is the belief in yourself. You have to, for example, put food on the table first and foremost; you need the basics. We as a society need to ensure that you have that foundation, but once you do have that, in general, the thing that holds you back is your own belief systems and sense of boundary limits.

I used to work with an amazing mental toughness Coach Chris Dorris. He told me a story of a time that he was hired by a family to help their high school kid make the all-state swimming team. He sat with this kid and said “OK, so you want to make all-state, but not the nationals.” The kid responded: “Well, yeah, I’d love to make nationals.” The coach said, “OK, great. But you wouldn’t want to make the Olympics,” to which the kid responded with an emphatic “Yes.” For me, this story shows clearly how, we often limit ourselves because we don’t want to be disappointed.

There’s a big difference between wishing and deciding. Most of us are comfortable wishing for things, but we won’t make the decision. If I wish that I would lose 10 pounds, then I can sit comfortably on my couch wishing I would lose 10 pounds. As soon as I decide, I need to take action. It’s very important to understand when we stop wishing we can take on the commitment and choose to decide. We need to help people understand that once you decide and start moving your feet, you can identify the steps needed to achieve those goals. And even if you don’t achieve exactly what you decide, you will learn and grow along the way.

Can you please give us your favorite “Life Lesson Quote”? Can you share how that was relevant to you in your life?

This actually came from the coach I had mentioned, Chris Dorris. He would ask: “How is this the best damn thing that could have happened?” This is a question you ask yourself when things go wrong. If your flight is delayed and you have to wait in the airport for 5 hours, ask yourself how this could be the best thing that could have happened. With that perspective you can see all of the new, positive opportunities afforded to you.

A lot of times, we really focus on the negatives. We often come home and immediately start talking to our spouse or partner about all the things that went wrong that day. Instead, maybe we should ask how something could have been the “best damn thing that could have happened.” It helps a lot because you find a lot of opportunities that you would have overlooked.

It reminds me of a Winston Churchill quote: “The pessimist sees difficulty in every opportunity. The optimist sees the opportunity in every difficulty.”

We are very blessed that very prominent leaders read this column. Is there a person in the world, or in the US with whom you would love to have a private breakfast or lunch with, and why? He or she might just see this if we tag them :-)

I would say Oprah Winfrey. A lot of the things I speak about and value, she embodies. From deciding what her position is in the world to dictating what she wants to do next and making it happen, she’s just a heck of a role model for so many people.

I’d also say Carla Harris, who I mentioned earlier. She is such an inspiring speaker. I’ve watched so many videos of her online. She has no idea who I am, but I have taken so much of her advice to heart. She’s absolutely fantastic.

This was very meaningful, thank you so much. We wish you only continued success on your great work!