30th Anniversary Celebration series | Cristina Vicini— Honorary President of PWI Brussels
As part of PWI Brussels 30th anniversary celebration, we talked to Cristina Vicini, looking back at what has changed for PWI and for professional women in the last decade. Cristina has been the longest-serving President of PWI Brussels, who hold office for three terms from 2006 to 2011.
Magda Kufrej: Cristina, thank you for finding time in your busy schedule to talk to us. Let us start with your experience as PWI President. What were the main challenges that women were facing a decade ago?
Cristia Vicini: At the time there were various aspects. First, isolation. There were very few ladies in responsibility functions in the public and private sectors. Public opinion was not yet used to seeing younger women in leadership roles. Judgement and criticism or remarks, were not infrequent, even from women in general, with the underlying notion that a girl should choose between having a family or a career. There were also no quotas for women and supporting women to get to the top was exceptional at the time.
Magda Kufrej:What was your main focus?
Cristia Vicini: I was very fortunate in my career to meet international male and female leaders who believed in me and encouraged me forward, but not all women of my generation were in the same position. When I was asked by my fellow PWI board members to become the President of the association, my priority became to fight women’s isolation at the top, and together with other ladies like Isabella Lenarduzzi with Jump, or Margaret Milan in Paris with EPWN (now PWN Global), we created opportunities for professional women to connect with each other and demonstrate that what was believed to be an isolated phenomenon, was in reality the new normal. Our associations grew rapidly. The movement had started getting traction and awareness grew steadily. At PWI we were never “pushy” or “angry”. At PWI we were in fact very happy to meet among business ladies, who were successful in their own right, to debate, learn and share common interests and experiences as it should be in any business and social club.
I also believed that it was important that men were part of the experience. I introduced the first corporate sponsors to PWI Brussels — at the time we had received the support of up to 24 international companies and corporations with European HQ in Brussels. Some of them had already launched in-house corporate women network initiatives, like IBM, P&G, KBC, BT and Cisco, to name but a few. We held facilitated workshops and events at their premises around leadership and talent development and retention, but also about work-life balance, communication, innovation and entrepreneurship.
Cisco’s (male) Senior VP Europe at the time became our patron. I came myself from IT-tech global corporations, therefore bringing men into the discussion was just the natural thing to do. My goal was not to talk about differences between men and women or problems we were facing but to make sure that we, as women, can do business with men. I wanted men to forget about gender when they worked with us. My purpose was to make women appreciated as business partners, equally relevant and qualified.
Magda Kufrej: How do you see today the role of men in empowering women?
Cristia Vicini: Today, men empowering women is as essential as having women empowering other women. Men are enablers because they have shaped the business market for so long, but with more women leaders. we need everyone to adopt the best practices in talent and leadership management. It’s about recognizing potential and offering opportunities. This means removing biases and stereotypes about leadership, so that women can be “pulled up” as naturally as men would be. Women in leadership should probably support and recognise other women’s achievements even more than they do now. It’s slowly changing now, but we are still on a learning curve. What I observe is that the more a woman is settled in and confident in her role as a leader, the more she inspires and shows the way to younger talents.
It’s not just about women. To be an enabler, you have to first grow as a person, know yourself, understand how to make a difference, how to interact in a positive way, understand the stakes. Gain in confidence to empower others.
Magda Kufrej: So leadership is a lot about soft skills?
Cristia Vicini: When you are on the top of the ladder, it’s not just about your expertise, but about how you inspire, share a vision and achieve your purpose together with others, be it your team, your partners, or customers. So yes, it’s more about developing social and emotional intelligence, understanding what kind of game you are in. Men have been groomed for this for centuries, since they were kids. Women are relatively new to being recognised as leaders in our societies. That’s why is so important to bring on more leadership mentoring for women. And that’s why initiatives such as PWI Brussels are essential.
Magda Kufrej: You are a mentor yourself. What one piece of advice would give to ambitious women?
Cristia Vicini: Quoting Alvin Toffler*, I’d say learn to unlearn. Our connected societies evolve at an ever-faster pace and change has become the norm. It’s essential that you keep on learning in your career, not only new skills but also about how to adapt and evolve with the people and the environment you’re in. Part of the process is that you have to accept that you don’t know everything. And whatever you know might change based on new insights. So, forget about dogmas. You will only advance if you keep your mind and heart open to the future.
Magda Kufrej: Thank you Cristina for the wise advise. It was a pleasure talking to you.
(*Alvin Toffler, a renowned American futurist and businessman, is the author of the concept of learning, re-learning and un-learning.)
More about Cristina Vicini
Cristina is a board member and a senior executive with innovative companies and charities in Europe and North America, with a focus on international company development and strategy, digital innovation and international governance.
During her career, Cristina held international management up to P&L executive roles in Europe and beyond with various organisations, including with technology corporations like Microsoft and Siemens, with the international public sector, and as an entrepreneur.
Cristina was also one of the co-founders of the “Global Board Ready Women initiative”, spearheaded by Viviane Reding, and supported by the Financial Times Board Directors Program and INSEAD. She was bestowed with the “World of Difference 500” award by the International Alliance for Women, in 2015.
Cristina holds an MIT Sloan Executive Certificate in Strategy and Innovation, an MSc. in International Management from Boston University and an MSc. with honours in Computer Science from the University of Brussels.
After work, she enjoys golf with her husband and friends.
