Leadership and Learning Across Cultures

Rebecca Macieira-Kaufmann has made a successful career in business and banking, and says that the core of her work and values is caring about people. Among her many passions, she highlights leadership and intercultural learning as central to her own life and professional development. 카지노 웹사이트�I카지노 웹사이트�ve loved languages and culture since I was a young kid. I went to Chinese bilingual school, and I카지노 웹사이트�ve studied nine languages over the years. By the time I had my first full-time job I카지노 웹사이트�d worked in five different countries.카지노 웹사이트�

This passion for intercultural learning led Rebecca to seek out international opportunities while still an undergraduate at Brown University. Rebecca was studying Semiotics, and already planning a future career in business. She spent her summer vacations working abroad, first at Renault in Paris, and then at ITT in Helsinki. 카지노 웹사이트�I was so in love with Finland. I카지노 웹사이트�d always wanted to go to business school after college, but I also wanted to go back to Finland. I was very fortunate. I got into Stanford Business School and was awarded a Fulbright scholarship to Finland at the same time.카지노 웹사이트�

A Year of Intercultural Learning

Deferring business school for one year, Rebecca found the perfect fit for her research interests in Finland, hosted by the University of Helsinki and advised by Henri Broms, an expert in semiotics and business, at the Helsinki School of Economics. Rebecca recalls that although she knew she wanted to work on semiotics and international media related to Finland, she needed to define a specific topic. 카지노 웹사이트�But then in April of that year, the Chernobyl disaster happened, and that made up my mind. I analyzed news coverage of Chernobyl, comparing The International Herald Tribune with the Helsingin Sanomat, and also with Russian coverage in Pravda. I was excited to look at both east and west news coverage 카지노 웹사이트� my big area of interest was how meaning is constructed.카지노 웹사이트�

카지노 웹사이트�It was a very deep learning year, and wonderful to stay focused on just one or two topics for a whole year. I got to spend time with Finnish journalists and travel with them, as the Helsingin Sanomat invited me on a journalism trip to Estonia. I got to work on a book with Henri Broms, editing Semiotics of Management. It was a wonderful year, very rich, very intellectually exciting, and I loved getting to know the Finnish culture better.카지노 웹사이트�

카지노 웹사이트�I think I lived there in one of the coldest winters,카지노 웹사이트� she recalls. 카지노 웹사이트�It was -30 degrees celsius, and trains were freezing to the tracks, you couldn카지노 웹사이트�t wait outside for the bus. I learned how to drive on black ice, and when you could go walking out on the Gulf of Finland, on the frozen sea. I put my whole house in Finnish, covered in little yellow notes, to learn vocabulary. I learned about how Finnish society operates, how things are based on trust.카지노 웹사이트�

Rebecca카지노 웹사이트�s connection with Finland lives on in more personal ways. 카지노 웹사이트�I카지노 웹사이트�m an ambassador now for Finland here in the U.S.,카지노 웹사이트� she laughs. 카지노 웹사이트�If anyone has visited me at home, they카지노 웹사이트�ve probably had karjalanpiirakka or other Finnish food. I took my kids to Moomin Land when they were little. We went to Finland again for fun last summer. My daughter카지노 웹사이트�s already been to Finland three times and she카지노 웹사이트�s only 19.카지노 웹사이트�

Building a Successful Career

On completing her Fulbright scholarship year, Rebecca took up her place in Stanford Business School. 카지노 웹사이트�I moved straight from Helsinki to Palo Alto. What a contrast! I even had a pool in my apartment building. I would say I came back with a greater knowledge of the world, of both cultural differences and similarities. Business school is very international, so that helped me a lot. I also had a sense of confidence, as I카지노 웹사이트�d already had my research published a couple of times.카지노 웹사이트�

After completing her studies, Rebecca continued working abroad, including a job in Hong Kong, followed by three years in London working in international strategy consulting. 카지노 웹사이트�I was always looking for new cultures, new places to go. This time though, I wanted to work in English. It was a little ironic that I wanted to work in English but because of my language skills I was also assigned to work with Finnish and French clients!카지노 웹사이트� she laughs.

On returning to the U.S., Rebecca decided to focus on business management. She moved into the financial services sector, where she has built up a highly successful career over 25 years, including as CEO of Banamex USA, overseeing the U.S. banking operations of Grupo Financiero Banamex, the second-largest bank in Mexico. She is now one of Citibank카지노 웹사이트�s most successful female executives, formerly President of Citibank California and now Head of Citibank카지노 웹사이트�s International Personal Bank.

Taking on New Challenges

카지노 웹사이트�All of it has been tough, nothing is easy! But I think I look for challenge, and for me, I카지노 웹사이트�m in the perfect job. Managing people, being managed by people, working with regulators, meeting client needs, keeping employees motivated, getting the best value for customers카지노 웹사이트� it카지노 웹사이트�s a lot of juggling, a lot of demand. Working with others is my greatest joy and greatest reward, as my colleagues become my family.카지노 웹사이트�

카지노 웹사이트�I love people, and what I love about the financial service industry, is that money creates value for people. It카지노 웹사이트�s really about what people do with their money, they save to buy a home, to create a small business, to retire, to give money back to society... everyday we카지노 웹사이트�re helping people live their lives and their own values. That카지노 웹사이트�s why I get up in the morning.카지노 웹사이트�

Rebecca adds that taking on a leadership role, listening to and encouraging others, are some of the most rewarding aspects of her job. In addition to her responsibilities at Citibank, she is active in the wider community, and often gives presentations at business schools and other institutions on leadership, team-building, and business transformation. Through both her work and community activities, she has been recognized as an important role model for women in business, and has received a number of awards, including being named the 2010 Financial Woman of the Year by the Financial Women카지노 웹사이트�s Association of San Francisco.

카지노 웹사이트�When I went to business school, I would say about a third of my class were women, and when I got into executive-level management, perhaps 18카지노 웹사이트�20% of executives were women. Now I would say there are many more women, and it feels like there카지노 웹사이트�s much more parity compared to when I started. Before, women in senior roles didn카지노 웹사이트�t necessarily have children, but now many do. I think that now those who want to have kids are able to balance that with their career.카지노 웹사이트�

Rebecca believes young women should feel empowered to pursue careers in business and finance, and that a Fulbright scholarship offers a valuable opportunity to develop one카지노 웹사이트�s professional experience and outlook on life. 카지노 웹사이트�My advice is to just go for it, because if you don카지노 웹사이트�t it won카지노 웹사이트�t happen. Whether it카지노 웹사이트�s your job, your grant, or moving abroad, you have to try, so don카지노 웹사이트�t give up. I think a lot of people might be naysayers, but there are a lot of people who are yaysayers! When you have a challenge, listen to the positive people in your life. But above all believe in yourself, tell yourself you can do it.카지노 웹사이트�

Importance of Investing in Fulbright

카지노 웹사이트�John F. Kennedy said about the Fulbright program that it may be the best example of 카지노 웹사이트�beating swords into ploughshares, of having some benefit come to humanity out of the destruction of war카지노 웹사이트�. It fosters mutual understanding between people of the U.S. and people of different countries. It카지노 웹사이트�s an amazing program; it카지노 웹사이트�s not political, it카지노 웹사이트�s so open and broad. The whole aim is to bring people together.카지노 웹사이트�

Rebecca argues for the importance of continuing to fund and invest in the Fulbright program, both in the U.S. and in Finland. 카지노 웹사이트�It is a way, one by one, to have that cross-border, cross-cultural understanding. It카지노 웹사이트�s so different from what you can learn about another culture by reading the news or watching a movie. When you live for a year abroad it makes you more of a global citizen. There are very few things in this world that are not crossing boundaries all the time, but it카지노 웹사이트�s so valuable to understand that all places have their local traditions, their local knowledge, and not everything is like how we see it. You need to learn to see things from a local카지노 웹사이트�s eye. I think it카지노 웹사이트�s priceless. It gives you a window into different interpretations, and we all need more of that in the world.카지노 웹사이트�

Read the whole Fulbright Finland News magazine 1/2019!