Thank you for joining us on this week’s Dr. Ginny Show! This week, I was inspired by a conversation with a prominent, experienced ally and community member in financial services. We connected through our LinkedIn network, and I want to share a specific concept we discussed with you.

During our conversation, what really struck me was his idea that to lead powerfully, “you must disrupt yourself.” So, let’s dive into what it means to disrupt yourself, whether you’re an individual looking to advance your career or a senior leader focusing on your company’s growth.

What does disrupting yourself look like? 

In my personal experience, I’ve disrupted myself throughout my entire career. I’m constantly looking for ways to grow, improve, and push myself beyond my current realm of knowledge.

Whether it be growing in the knowledge I could bring to my partners, ways to collaborate with people across the organization, or advancing my skill sets, I was constantly looking to make the most value in my roles.

Growing and disrupting myself also meant getting to know the business we were in at my asset management firm for almost 16 years on a deeper level. For example, when working within a company, we often focus solely on our specific roles.

However, I’ve always been fascinated by what others around me do. I had a deep desire to understand what they did in their jobs—and one way that I disrupted myself was by reaching out to colleagues in various departments to understand what they did. From technology to front-office functions, I was exposed to the company’s operations, tools, and processes that I wouldn’t have otherwise known about.

Understanding the roles of portfolio managers, analysts, and salespeople in asset management within financial services gave me insights into dynamic working processes. I asked questions and paid attention to the tools, systems, and methods they used. 

Even though I was in the technology department, I familiarized myself with back-office operations, from the custodial reconciliation processes to the daily pricing and striking an NAV—all of which supported the front office so it could do what it did so brilliantly and the overall flow of work.

The Results of Self-Interruption

In disrupting myself, my urge to learn more didn’t stop there. I delved into learning about other functions, such as finance, legal, compliance, and human resources. Spending three years working in the sales and marketing function, I learned about their pain points, gaps, and the systems they utilized. Finally, supporting the institutional department allowed me to understand, to the best of my ability, how that business ran and how other teams collaborated across the company.

The advantage I gained was a bird’ s-eye view of how the business worked, which enabled me to grow into multiple roles and understand the business of asset management more comprehensively.

From this disruption,  within my role in the technology department of financial services (and later, sales and marketing), I could perform to the best of my abilities with the knowledge I had acquired. I had so much exposure and relationships that enabled my ability to grow personally and professionally over the 16 years I spent with that company.

Furthermore, when I engaged with mentors and senior leaders, I asked them about the company’s most significant challenges and visions for the future. Trust me, sometimes my questions made them wonder why I was so interested! It was all part of my curiosity and effort to discover the “bigger picture.”

What Does Self-Disruption Look Like for You?

These are just a few examples of how you can disrupt yourself as a senior leader, individual employee, or head of department. The main takeaway I’d like to advise is to keep learning outside your role.

Learning isn’t relegated to happen within the office. I stayed involved in industry events, balancing working full-time during the day and attending graduate school at night. Pursuing a Master’s in Computer Science and a PhD in Information Systems expanded my problem-solving abilities and exposed me to diverse business terms and concepts. Although my academic credentials didn’t directly apply to my daily work, they broadened my horizons and possibilities for my career.

How are you disrupting yourself today, personally and as a company?

Think about the gaps you see in your environment from your current perspective. How can you creatively solve them from your standpoint? Great leaders can notice the gaps and devise creative solutions to fill them.

Disrupting Financial Services by Addressing Gaps

I am grateful for my conversation with the expert, senior leader in charge of development, and financial services community member who inspired this week’s topic of disrupting yourself. We also discussed a significant gap that I’ve noticed within financial services.

We highlighted that only 15% – 20% of wealth advisors are women—a statistic highlighting a critical gap in the financial services industry. This gap isn’t due to a lack of ability among women but rather the industry’s missed opportunity to fully leverage the talent and insights they contribute. 

Imagine the possibilities if we disrupted the status quo, embraced curiosity, and engaged in meaningful dialogue to empower more women in financial services. 

By doing so, we can prepare for a future that better represents our marketplace, reflects the diversity of talent available,  aligns with our clients’ buying power, and optimizes human potential. Addressing this disparity is not just a matter of equity but a strategic imperative for the industry’s future success.

The opportunity cost of inaction is undeniable. As an industry, we must ask ourselves: 

How can we take bold, proactive steps to challenge the existing paradigm in the upcoming year? 

How do we tailor and implement solutions that not only invite more talented women into this field but also position them to lead and shape its future? 

By addressing these questions and committing to change, we can disrupt our industry, unlock untapped potential, and ensure that financial services evolve to reflect the world we serve.

Call to Action

If this conversation about disrupting yourself and your company to prepare for the outcomes we desire to create resonates and you’d like to explore further, let’s connect. Together, we can discuss your pain points and the cost of maintaining the status quo and create a strategic plan to move forward. You can reach me at info@executivebound.com or visit our website at DrGinnyBaro.com.

When you want to disrupt yourself, the #1 strategy that works for me in this season of my career is planting myself in new learning experiences with growth-minded people who help me grow and accelerate. You can do that with us through our complimentary leadership development program, the  Women’s Fearless Leadership Masterclass. Explore this opportunity and ask your talented female leaders to register for our next event here. 

In this transformative experience, we will explore strategies that empower you to set a clear target, gain the strategies to fill any gaps and accelerate by removing the inner conflict with support and within a community of talented women on a similar journey. It would be my pleasure and honor to support you and the high-achieving female leaders in your organization. 

Live with purpose, live with joy! 

Coach Ginny