Kimberly Barker believes in taking risks and thinking outside the box.
Barker, Director of Marketing for Hull Barrett Attorneys in Augusta, attended this month’s Women in Business Program hosted by the Augusta Metro Chamber of Commerce yesterday. For this event, the Chamber partnered with the U.S.-Japan Council for Regional Women in Leadership to present a panel discussion called “Womenomics Across Cultures.”
“We get so caught up in our own routine, we lose sight of the fact that there’s a big world out there,” she said.
Nozomi Morgan, CEO of Michiki Morgan Worldwide, served as moderator, while YKK Corporation of America’s Vice President of Community Engagement and Corporate Communication, Jessica Cork; Universal Plumbing’s Business Manager, Shalanda Morris; and ADP’s Director of Technical Services, Jacquie Carson, served as panelists.
The panelists discussed their experiences working with or leading people from other cultures and how those experiences shaped the female business professionals they are today.
After college, even though she didn’t know a word of Japanese, Morris moved to Japan and became a teacher. She also worked as an assistant principal in various schools before returning to Augusta to manage her family’s plumbing business.
“If you can run a school, you can run a business,” Morris said. “It’s the same concept.”
She said like many other trades, few women work as plumbers, but, as a female, she brings a different type of energy to the company, and there’s a need for female employees in that trade.
Morris’s experiences living and working overseas gave her the opportunity to interact with people from various cultures.
“Seeking to understand is the biggest lesson I learned along the way,” she said. “As long as you stay true to your values, you can have some flexibility.”
Carson has worked for ADP for many years and currently leads teams in both the Philippines and India.
“I’ve learned self-awareness is key,” she said.
Carson said leading diverse teams has helped her develop empathy and work well with those she doesn’t like.
“I may not like them personally, but that doesn’t mean it has to affect my character,” Carson said.
She hasn’t had the opportunity to visit her team in the Philippines, but she hopes to travel there this year.
Cork visited Japan as a high school exchange student before attending college and working there.
“I was trying to completely immerse myself in the culture,” she said.
Cork said Japanese business professionals often work very long hours, and she did that for a while until she experienced burnout.
“I don’t need to be Japanese,” Cork said.
She has spent a great deal of time studying common traits among various cultures, including those of Japan, the U.S., and Mexico. Cork discovered that each of these cultures has similarities and differences, and one’s culture doesn’t always predict his or her behaviors or attitudes.
“Everyone is on a spectrum,” she said.
Barker enjoyed the discussion and said one of her biggest takeaways was about thinking outside the box.
“If we take a step outside of the box, we never know what opportunities there are,” she said.
