Power Women: Noa Gafni Of The Rutgers Institute For Corporate Social Innovation, On How To Successfully Navigate Work, Love and Life As A Powerful Woman

An Interview With Ming Zhao

…Time to reflect and focus on growth. I have a consistent yoga practice and I spend a lot of time processing and thinking about how things have gone, and are going, and what I can do differently going forward. I think that time to reflect has helped me focus on my growth. Ultimately, I think growth is the best thing we can aim for.

How does a successful, strong, and powerful woman navigate work, employee relationships, love, and life in a world that still feels uncomfortable with strong women? In this interview series, called “Power Women” we are talking to accomplished women leaders who share their stories and experiences navigating work, love and life as a powerful woman.

As a part of this series I had the distinct pleasure of interviewing Noa Gafni.

Noa Gafni is the Executive Director of the Rutgers Institute for Corporate Social Innovation. Her career focuses on the intersection of social impact, entrepreneurship and intrapreneurship, and DEI (diversity, equity, and inclusion.) She is a contributor to the Harvard Business Review, Forbes, and New York Times, and a Social Innovation Fellow at the University of Cambridge.

Thank you so much for doing this with us! Before we dig in, our readers would like to get to know you a bit more. Can you tell us a bit about your childhood “backstory”?

I grew up in with an Israeli mother and Chilean father in a relatively small suburban town, which led to some interesting realizations about how siloed the world is. When we would visit my mother’s family in Israel, I would watch MTV Europe, where some of the biggest stars never made it to MTV US, and vice versa. And when my father would hole up in our TV room watching the World Cup every few years, it just wasn’t something that most other people in my town knew about. So I spent a lot of time thinking about how we could bridge these gaps. I’ve spent most of my career living and working in different places across Europe, Latin America, and Asia Pacific and it’s been great to see how we can integrate different cultures — and voices — into global conversations. Through my work at the World Economic Forum, my consultancy Impact Squared, and now at Rutgers, bringing “untraditional” stakeholders into the fold has been a key theme.

Can you tell us the story about what led you to this particular career path?

I started my career as a social entrepreneur, creating a social network for women back in 2005. I was working with an incubator in Silicon Valley but didn’t manage to scale the company. I did learn a lot, though, and pivoted into a role at Hearst Magazines (which owns Cosmopolitan, Marie Claire, and a number of other titles) as their first Head of Social Media. After a few years, I decided to go back to school, so I moved to London to get my MBA at London Business School. While I was there, I co-founded an impact consulting program that took a group of us to Sierra Leone, where we worked for a social enterprise founded by a 19-year old. I became really interested in the role of young people in driving social change and when I graduated, joined the World Economic Forum to help set up their network for young people called the Global Shapers Community. When I left the WEF, a number of organizations asked me to set up their networks so I launched Impact Squared, which worked with the United Nations Foundation, International Crisis Group, and other large NGOs on their engagement strategies to integrate young people, individuals from the Global South, and other leaders who weren’t traditionally at the UN or Davos. That company was integrated into a larger consulting group, and after I spent some time transitioning the business, I decided to move into academia. I moved back to the US to join Rutgers Business School’s Institute for Corporate Social Innovation. We’re based out of Newark, New Jersey, at one of the most diverse campuses in the country. Many of our students are people of color, or first generation college students, or untraditional students, so it’s great to engage them around social impact because they’re so closely tied to many of the issues we’re trying to address.

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

I love it when the dots connect in the most unexpected ways. One of the young people we first brought to Davos through the Global Shapers Community had an idea to improve access to medicine in Africa. While he attended the World Economic Forum’s event in Davos (where CEOs and Heads of State typically go to meet each other), he met the CEO of a global pharmaceutical company, who connected him with others and this young person was able to get his social venture off the ground. It’s scaled immensely since then, and a few years ago, I saw him get an award at the Skoll Foundation’s annual event. It was such an incredible moment to see how small actions, like giving an emerging leader the opportunity to connect with a CEO, led to such a huge amount of impact. The organization that was founded has impacted tens of thousands of people.

You are a successful business leader. Which three character traits do you think were most instrumental to your success? Can you please share a story or example for each?

I think a few things that have helped me succeed are:

• Take calculated risks. Not all of these risks have played out (some have failed spectacularly) but it’s good to be able to try different things — I don’t think I would have been able to get to where I am in my career without some of those unusual moves.
• Be open to exploring, whether that’s moving somewhere new or changing industries.
• Ask questions and be curious. I’m fascinated by people and being curious has led me to challenge my own thoughts and take me in different directions.

Ok, thank you for that. Let’s now jump to the primary focus of our interview. The premise of this series assumes that our society still feels uncomfortable with strong women. Why do you think this is so?

We still have this image of success as a white man who wears suits and spends his spare time golfing. I’m a short, highly unathletic women and sometimes there’s a disconnect between what people unconsciously expect in a leader and what they see in me. It means that I have to work hard to prove myself from the outset.

What should a powerful woman do in a context where she feels that people are uneasy around her?

It’s important to find a way in — building trust, showing competence, and making yourself accessible have been really helpful in my own experiences.

What do we need to do as a society to change the unease around powerful women?

We need to show different models of leadership (through initiatives like this one), where we highlight leaders that look different from the stereotypical CEO.

In your opinion, what are the biggest challenges faced by women leaders that aren’t typically faced by their male counterparts?

I think I’ve had to work harder to be taken seriously. I’ve oftentimes found myself as one of the few women in the room, and usually the youngest, so it’s a challenge to be seen as credible and an equal contributor to the conversation. What people don’t often realize is that my unique perspective is actually an asset.

Let’s now shift our discussion to a slightly different direction. This is a question that nearly everyone with a job has to contend with. Was it difficult to fit your personal and family life into your business and career? For the benefit of our readers, can you articulate precisely what the struggle was?

I’m a new mom, and I was terrified my entire pregnancy that having a baby would negatively impact my career. I’m still on maternity leave but have managed to speak at an event for the Economist, be a guest on 3 podcasts, and contribute to conversations like this one. I’m really fortunate that my husband has been amazing, we can afford childcare, and family is nearby in case of emergency, which have given me the space to continue to focus on my career while navigating the new role of being a mom.

What was a tipping point that helped you achieve a greater balance or greater equilibrium between your work life and personal life? What did you do to reach this equilibrium?

When I had my consultancy, I was constantly getting on back to back flights. It was exhausting. I would wake up sometimes and not remember which country I was in. It was really destabilizing for my mental health, not to mention my relationships. It reached a point where I realized I needed to change and so I found a way to work without constant travel.

I work in the beauty tech industry, so I am very interested to hear your philosophy or perspective about beauty. In your role as a powerful woman and leader, how much of an emphasis do you place on your appearance? Do you see beauty as something that is superficial, or is it something that has inherent value for a leader in a public context? Can you explain what you mean?

When I feel put together, I feel more confident. Wearing a bit of makeup and a nice outfit helps me feel more ready for a big meeting, or speaking engagement. If the focus is on feeling good — and not on looking perfect — then I think it’s not superficial, it’s actually helpful.

Ok super. Here is the main question of our interview. Based on your opinion and experience, what are the “Five Things You Need To Thrive and Succeed as a Powerful Woman?” (Please share a story or example for each.)

1. Passion for what you do. I am obsessed with my work and I deeply believe in the impact it has. I wouldn’t be able to work so hard without that passion and commitment.
2. A strong support network. I am so grateful for my husband, my mom and sister, and a network of friends who are cheering me on during the wins and helping me get back on my feet after every failure. Success isn’t linear and we need people in our lives who are there on both ends of the spectrum.
3. Drive. I’m constantly focused on small steps I can take to drive my work forward, whether it’s pushing forward a slightly more aggressive strategic plan, or upping our fundraising targets, or getting my doctorate while I’m working so that I can become a better leader in this space.
4. Connection. A big part of my success has been a result of the people around me. When we are connected to our teams, our organizations, and our communities, we’re so much stronger as a result.
5. Time to reflect and focus on growth. I have a consistent yoga practice and I spend a lot of time processing and thinking about how things have gone, and are going, and what I can do differently going forward. I think that time to reflect has helped me focus on my growth. Ultimately, I think growth is the best thing we can aim for.

We are very blessed that some very prominent names in Business, VC funding, Sports, and Entertainment 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.

Richard Branson, who is such a visionary. Most people don’t know that he’s also very committed to social impact, and his group of charities under Virgin Unite is incredibly impressive.

Thank you for these fantastic insights. We greatly appreciate the time you spent on this.