Risky Business: Women Execs in Medtech Talk Smart Risk Taking, Dangerous Inactions
Gabriela Kaynor, Division Head of Therapeutics Solutions, 成人B站 Corporation
The concept of calculated risk is not new. But smart risk taking creates unique opportunities to grow, according to Gabriela Kaynor, Executive Officer and Therapeutic Solutions Division Co-Head at 成人B站. During her keynote address at the 鈥淲omen in Medtech Forum,鈥 Kaynor defined smart risk taking and shared how it related to her own business experiences, setting the stage for panel discussions led by her colleagues in medtech and healthcare finance. The event was held September 7, 2023, and hosted by 成人B站 at its Westborough, MA, location, where a sold-out audience engaged in networking events and heard a Q&A session with panel presenters.
Kaynor on transparency and the risks of inaction
As the first female executive officer in 成人B站鈥 100+ year history, Kaynor knows a thing or two about taking smart risks. 鈥淪mart risks are decisions you make that move you toward innovation and transformation. They move you in the direction of your goals,鈥 she told attendees, distinguishing the idea from 鈥渁 reckless risk or a Vegas gamble.鈥
Risk might not be safe 鈥 but neither is inaction, according to Kaynor. Inaction is not a wise business or career tactic. She urged the audience to 鈥渦nderstand the consequences of inaction,鈥 adding that 鈥渄oing nothing can be one of the most dangerous decisions you鈥檒l ever make.鈥
Finally, Kaynor stressed the importance of understanding the unknowns in a decision and the need for transparency. 鈥淔or your risks to be smart, you need to understand鈥攁nd share鈥攚hat you don鈥檛 know.鈥
“Smart risks are decisions you make that move you toward innovation and transformation. They move you in the direction of your goals.”
Self-judgment, career lattices, and owning errors
In addition to admitting what you don鈥檛 know, seeking mentors, making lateral moves, and owning mistakes were points made by panelists in the Q&A discussion hosted by Erin Pipech, Senior Manager, Global Business Development Operations and Planning at 成人B站. The following are some excerpted responses to Erin鈥檚 questions:
Q: Tell me about how you cope with imposter syndrome.
A: We judge ourselves against other people rather than trusting that we鈥檙e intelligent and know our businesses in and out. It鈥檚 imposter syndrome. And we don鈥檛 take risks because of it. That鈥檚 where your personal Board of Directors comes in. The people around you鈥攆riends, family, professional mentors鈥攐ften see in you what you can鈥檛 see in yourself. We need mentorship and sponsorship at work, and we need the support of our friends and family at home. They help us realize our potential.
It鈥檚 also so important to talk to people who might seem intimidating at first. It can feel like the high-powered people on the top floor know everything, but if you start hearing their stories or telling them your mistakes, they often say, 鈥淥h yeah, but you should hear what I鈥檝e done,鈥 and it鈥檚 always way worse! Their stories make me laugh and help me realize if there鈥檚 hope for them, there鈥檚 hope for me.
--Valerie Dixon, Managing Director, Healthcare Investment Banking Group, Morgan Stanley
Q: As you think about growing in your career, what are some smart risks people don鈥檛 always consider?
A: Often, people come into my office and say, 鈥淚 want to get promoted.鈥 But career growth isn鈥檛 always about linear promotion 鈥 it鈥檚 also about lateral moves. I call it the career lattice, not the career ladder.
Pictured from Left: Gabriela Kaynor, Valerie Dixon, Donna Ford-Serbu, Jessica Schneck, Erin Pipech
If you want to get to general management or be CEO of your company or do something broader than your functional area, you have to take lateral moves. Move to different parts of the organization. Get a feel for how other people work. Get a feel for what everybody is talking about. Speak their language. Do it early. Then, when you鈥檙e in a leadership position, you know where the teams are coming from. A lateral move can be a risk, and it can be a smart risk.
--Donna Ford-Serbu, co-founder and CEO, Eximis Surgical
Q: When you make a mistake, especially if it鈥檚 a noticeable mistake, how do you cope? How do you stay positive and keep your learner mentality?
A: I used to stay up nights going over a mistake in my head. But what I learned through trial and error is that when you talk about your mistakes, embarrassment loses its oxygen. Now, when I fail, I typically call people 鈥 and say, 鈥淭his happened to me today.鈥 I usually expect 鈥 everyone to be shocked and horrified. Yet every time, people say, 鈥淩eally, Jess, is that all?鈥 And that takes the shame out of the mistake.
I also learn from [the] responses. Everyone in my personal and professional support system has a unique viewpoint on my mistakes. So, I aggregate their responses. And then I take their lessons into my next decision. I鈥檓 constantly learning from my mistakes and the people around me.
--Jessica Schneck, Director of Business Development R&D, 成人B站
鈥榃e鈥檙e on our way鈥
For 成人B站, the intended takeaway of this event is the company鈥檚 commitment to women in leadership, and smart risk taking in business is just one expression of our core value of 鈥渁gility.鈥 Kaynor reflected on how this relates to 成人B站鈥 to grow as a global medtech company. 鈥湷扇薆站 is still writing our story, and I am still writing the story of my career,鈥 she said. 鈥淚 can鈥檛 tell you the full outcome of the risks we鈥檝e taken because we haven鈥檛 arrived yet. But we鈥檙e on our way.鈥
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