Veteran of Google and Amazon shares Silicon Valley wisdom at Motivational Monday

Leeds, 24 November 2020 – In November, BigChange welcomed Ann Hiatt, a renowned leadership strategist, as its Motivational Monday speaker

A veteran of Silicon Valley, Ann’s experience and insight comes from working as the executive business partner for Amazon CEO, Jeff Bezos, and Eric Schmidt, the CEO and Executive Chairman at Google and Alphabet.

Over the course of an hour, Ann identified the qualities and characteristics shared by the two great tech CEOs she worked with, as well her perspectives on being fearless, celebrating failures and staying humble.

Ann explained that celebrating failures provided the best opportunity to grow. By leaning into your failures, you can turn them into positives; something great business leaders already do with their successes, analysing what went right and how to create others like it.

She also said that keeping a level head when under pressure not only allowed her to stand out at the business but personally instilled a self-confidence that she’s carried into all high-pressure situations since.

She touched on the need to engage with the most diverse group of experts, especially when you’re trying to ‘invent the future for everyone’; how Jeff Bezos and Eric Schmidt aimed to be challenged in the boardroom (staying humble ensures you’re always learning and moving forward); and how both leaders never let their comfort zone limit what they said yes to.

Ann was joined for Motivational Monday by Ali Mitchell, a community fundraiser for SNAPS – a South-Yorkshire charity that provides leisure support services for children with special needs and their families. You can find out more about its transformative work here.

Next month, we look forward to welcoming broadcaster and adventurer Ben Fogle, as well as hearing from the sustainable-transport charity Transaid. Join us then.