This is the second in the International Women’s Day series of interviews that honor outstanding women in Human Resources.
Kristen Weirick, Vice President, Global Talent Acquisition and Chief Diversity and Inclusion Officer at Alcon, wants to empower women to take calculated risks, lead with empathy, and prioritize their life to fit their needs. Recently, she shared the story of her career, including the time-out she took to raise her children and talk about challenges many women face as they pursue a career in HR. Discover her advice and insight:
HREN: What does your career path look like?
KW: My career path has been more typical over the last 15 years, but it definitely didn’t start that way. I finished high school as an early graduate at 17. I didn’t think I was quite ready for university, so I ended up taking a break. I took four years and lived abroad in South America in Chile. When I came back to the U.S., I said it was time to double down.
I got my degree while working full-time for the most part. I was doing those jobs you do to keep yourself afloat and have some income. Then, I was recruited into what is now Macy’s. I worked for barely two years and then I ended up having my first child. I figured out quickly that I was head-over-heels in love with this little baby.
Suddenly, I decided I wasn’t going to go back to work. I had two children and stayed at home with them for almost a decade. Work was fun, challenging, and engaging, but the time that I could have with my children was a drop in the lifetime bucket.
I was surprised when I came back to work. I could have seen myself staying at home for a lifetime.
But I began dipping my toe in the water, and I ended up finding an opportunity. I was living in a small town in southwest Michigan, but it also was the headquarters for Whirlpool Corporation. They had progressive HR leadership, who gave me an opportunity to come back to the workforce part time. I was close to 40. I worked part time for the first five or six years, so I could have more time with my children during the summer months.
At some point, I was up to 32 hours per week, and I said, 'Let’s just rip the band-aid off.' When I started working full time, I got on that typical career path trajectory. I started moving up in job levels and rank and taking on greater responsibility. But I think because I was able to take those breaks, I probably love work more than some of my counterparts. I had opportunities to walk away and come back. I get a lot of joy from the intellectual challenge, the joy of leading others. I love what I do.
READ: Chief Culture Officer at the Atlanta Braves Carves Her Own Path
HREN: What are the main challenges of women in the workplace? What are some challenges you overcame in your career?
KW: This is probably no surprise. One of the biggest challenges for women is the balance that so many working moms must strike. I am not sure how many of them do it. Research tells us that most women still carry the burden of raising children and maintaining the home. Plus, add on to that working full time. In the last 10 to 15 years, I have seen more fathers taking on that parenting responsibility, and I’ve seen more stay-at-home dads. But it is slow progress.
When I look back, now that I’m older, smarter, wiser, I can see instances that were more challenging for women or even discriminatory. I don’t think I recognized them at the time because of the environment I was in. It’s like asking a fish, "How’s the water?" The fish is thinking, "What water?" This is the environment I live in.
For example, I had managed a massive undertaking regarding how my company was showing up at this diversity event. It involved senior leaders and many receptions and required strong organizational skills and project management and showing up in front of leaders the right way and doing a lot of things live and under pressure, quick thinking. It was a smashing success. It was wonderful.
Afterward, a leader was having dinner with me, and I know he meant this as a compliment. But he said, ‘You know Kristen, with the skills I saw you displayed, you could be a great wedding planner.’ I thought, 'Well, thank you.' I know he meant it in the kindest way.
HREN: It was in the kindest way, but you would not say that to a man doing the same job.
KW: Correct.
HREN: What kinds of initiatives do you think can help reduce the gender pay gap?
KW: We are doing no one any favors by finding a bargain base salary for someone joining an organization. Finding a great talent who is not expecting the salary aligned to the role and bringing her in below the typical salary range is a mistake. That’s hard to correct. It leads to internal inequity. It makes it difficult for folks to catch up, even if they are high performers.
Look at the differential in merit pay increases between someone who is rated a three versus a higher performance rating. It’s not that much. It’s just not going to bridge that pay gap. I always encourage hiring managers to make offers based on the value of the position, so it doesn’t get you into hot water later trying to balance things out. Every smart organization should conduct pay equity analysis and take corrective action.
HREN: What is your best advice for young women in HR?
KW: One is to prioritize. We hear a lot that life is short, but it’s also long. Make time for the things that matter most. I am absolutely unapologetic about taking time to be with my family or taking time to travel across the globe before having a family. Both have completely shaped who I am as a person and who I am as a leader. I am a better person and a better leader for having prioritized in that way.
Don't be afraid to speak up. Your unique perspective is your secret sauce. I have had a notebook for years and the cover says, 'What would you accomplish if you knew you couldn't fail?'
I think Wayne Gretzky said, 'You miss every shot you didn’t take.' Be open to taking smart risks. Make sure you are leading with both confidence and humility. That’s a power pack that shouldn’t be underestimated.
HREN: Is there anything else you'd like to share?
KW: Human Resources tends to be a function with more women in it. I would love to see Human Resources position more women in other parts of the business. The value of our perspective is underestimated and what we do in Human Resources has broad, positive implications for business.
Don’t miss the other interviews in the International Women’s Day series.