Make a Real Impact

• Helene Lerner


• 18 Jul 2011

As a little girl, Rosalind Hudnell’s mother and grandmother believed that she could do the impossible, and Roz has fulfilled their expectations—when she sets her mind on something, it happens. This pioneering leader reinvented herself several times within and outside Intel. Originally a human resources professional for a cable conglomerate, the president of the company asked her to lead an operations unit; he saw something in her that she hadn’t seen in herself. And she took on the assignment. Within Intel, her career has been about making an impact.

Heed the strategies of a woman who is invested in your growth and knows how to help you advance:

Take Time to Reflect

One of the biggest challenges we have as women is that we don’t take the time to focus on what we want. Our lives become about how we can help others. Think about what your priorities should be and assess what you’re spending your time on. Then ask yourself, “What might I be able to let go of if I had more help?” and “What am I not doing that I would really want to do?”

For those with children — know what transition points will happen naturally, when your child enters grade school, for example. Figure out where you want to be and what do you want to be doing leading up to that. So many women wait to find out what they want to do and realize they should have started the process years before.

Do More Right Now

Instead of looking for a different job or a promotion to advance, ask yourself, “How can I do more and deliver value to my company, my business, my family and myself from the seat I’m sitting in?” When we begin to think about it that way it gives us more control. Because then you don’t have to wait for somebody to give you permission to do more.

Your Development Plan

Shift your focus from your current job. Instead, think about the impact you want to make on the world, on your company and on the people you care about. Reflect on these three things as part of your development plan:

• What are you really good at that you like to do?
• What aren’t you good at but would like to be better at?
• What aren’t you good at and must get better at or you won’t be able to make an impact?

Take Smart Risks

I have always taken risks — that goes back to my mother and grandmother. Because no matter what risk I took, I knew that if I really fell on my face the worst possible thing that could happen was I’d go back home — which was a pretty cool place. When I’ve taken risks in my career, I didn’t go into them fearfully. I would think, “I don’t know anything about this, so I’m going to have to learn really quickly, and in any way I can.”

Differences Can Be Advantages

Sometimes we don’t want to stand out — we want to fit in and be like everybody else. We don’t embrace the fact that we are different. And standing out gives us a platform that others would actually envy. If you have the platform, use it. 

*At the time of this interview, Roz was the Global Diversity and Inclusion Director for Intel