Welcome Challenges and Never Stop Learning
I am honored to have been selected by the Profiles in Diversity Journal as one of our Women Worth Watching in Leadership for 2022. There are many qualified candidates; I am thrilled to be part of this prestigious group. In recent years, I have been asked to share experiences from my career path.
I started as a circuit designer in the Programmable Logic Device Group at AMD. I moved to Xilinx to expand my knowledge of programmable devices. I was interested in how Xilinx was extending the programmable logic space with a very innovative idea, the FPGA. This happened in the early part of my career when I felt very strongly about growing my knowledge and sharpening my technical skills. I was delighted after joining Xilinx, as I found the technology fascinating.
I encourage engineers early in their careers to explore new and interesting areas. Not only will it expand your knowledge, it will also always make the job interesting and rewarding. The key is to consistently deliver high-quality work in your current job. I tell them not to hesitate to tackle challenging assignments and that going above and beyond will never go unnoticed. Growing your knowledge, consistently delivering, and taking on challenges create the best opportunities for future exciting projects.
As we grow in our careers, building relationships with partners will gradually become more critical. Higher complexity projects require a lot of teamwork to complete successfully. Our achievements will depend on how well we work within our teams and with our partners. I always felt I maximized my project’s outcome when I had support from the right person at the right time.
I was given the opportunity to grow as a manager after establishing myself in the technical field. This was a lot harder than I thought, and I made many mistakes along the way that caused me to reflect on what happened and what I could do better next time. However, learning through such experiences really shaped my belief in what leadership means. I believe I have become a better leader by committing to improve in each case. That is why my philosophy is never to cease learning, regardless of where I am in my career. It keeps my job interesting, but it also makes me a better leader and, ultimately, a better person.
