[PODCAST] Building Strong Teams Through Collaborative Leadership

June 4th

WOMEN IN TECH LEADERSHIP

LIVE PODCAST RECORDING SERIES

About This Discussion:

Our Women in Tech Leadership series continues with a very candid conversation with Kristen Twining, Vice President, North America Inside Sales at Hewlett Packard Enterprise.

Kristen rose through the ranks of HPE quickly and acquired a leadership role at the company in her late 20's.

Now as VP of North America Inside Sales, she shares her journey with us, and the lessons she learned along the way. We talk about taking on roles that we're not comfortable in, and the importance of constantly feeling uncomfortable and pushing yourself.

Kristen also talks about her take on leadership, and why relationships were such a pivotal part of her success.

About Kristen Twining:

Kristen is excited to lead the North America Mid-Market and SMB segment and Inside Sales organization, where she is focused on driving the business, solution selling, net new logo acquisition, operational excellence and aligning with the field organization.

Kristen has been with HP/HPE for 10.5 years, working in a variety of field-sales roles, including specialist sales, account management, and sales strategy. She has proven expertise in business, technology, and solution selling. Her experience delivering positive customer outcomes and her passion for leading, coaching, and mentoring have been key to her success. 

Kristen is a Magna Cum Laude graduate of Bentley University, where she earned a B.S. in Marketing and Spanish. She relocated from New York City to Dallas in 2017, along with her husband, Reese.  Their four-month-old son, Liam brings great joy to their lives, along with their two-year-old mini Aussie, Isabelle.

Here is the official episode breakdown:

3:56 - 10 Years at HPE, how in the world did it all begin? And Kristen tells a great story about it

7:45 -  Why Kristen has been always willing to ‘drink from fire hoses’ when it comes to her new roles, and how that has made all of the difference in her career.

10:50 - Feeling and finding confidence, Kristen shares how she finally found her stride in her career. (And why saying ‘I don’t know’ is okay.’)

14:35 - Where confidence comes from Kristen, and how she has taught herself to stand tall in business meetings

17:40 - Kristen discusses her networking plan when she first started at the company, and how that was one of the biggest ideas that catapulted her career

20:12 - What’s Kristen philosophy on leadership now that she leads such a large team

22:55 - At what point in Kristen’s career did she realize this was much more than just learning and connecting and she was rising quickly.

25:34 - Women in STEM, and how Kristen has an interesting perspective on that has changed in the past 10 years (plus what we can do to help them change it)

29:10 - Did Kristen ever look at her gender as an advantage or constant disadvantage?

30:34 - Are women getting more courageous of asking for what they want?

32:50 - What a mentor helped her understand about closing deals

34:51 - Millennials, we went there, but as a Millennial in leadership what guidance would Kristen to give to those who are younger

37:45 - Motherhood, how has it changed Kristen’s career and how she ‘finds’ balance.

40:13 - The power of the women Kristen surrounds herself with, and why support is crucial

43:20 - More into the balance of motherhood, and how to raise a child, yet needing to be home at a certain time

45:10 - The pressure to be perfect, where it comes from and how to overcome that

46:15 - The pressure of putting up a front for perfection, and where transparency fits into leadership

49:45 - Kristen’s quote to help to continue to inspire herself