Exclusive to female workers! adidas Jennifer, Taiwan's first female chief operating officer: Believe in yourself and face challenges calmly! Talk to Xuan Xuan about EP7

In this episode, Jennifer, Taiwan's first female chief operating officer of sports brand adidas, is invited to talk to us about how she broke through the gender ceiling of senior executives and achieved today's achievements. She is responsible for all operations in Taiwan, and as the top executive officer of each department, how does she communicate and coordinate the operation management across marketing, product, channel, retail and distribution?

In Jennifer, you can quickly see the rational, logical masculine qualities and empathetic, listening feminine qualities, while also exuding a steady, fully understood glow. We asked her if she had to constantly step out of her comfort zone and fight for new opportunities for herself along the way, and did she think about what to do if she failed?

She said, "Not really, I'm quite confident, when you tell your boss your goal and the boss schedules the next step for you, to be honest, the boss is afraid of failure. Therefore, when both parties have a consensus and a certain amount of confidence, they can set up a development plan together and gradually cultivate what I want."

In a word, Jennifer's important work along the way - understand yourself and believe in yourself.

Unequal pay, how to fight for it? Know yourself first, then choose the right time

In the program, we also asked Jennifer what problems many people will encounter in the workplace in the "Women's Fan Workplace Questionnaire Survey".

The first difficult problem that I don't know how to say is: obviously the same job, my salary is less than others, how to fight for it, how to negotiate? How do I let my supervisor know that I'm not just for the money now, but also for the company, because I really feel that I have been wronged and then fight for a fair salary increase?

Jennifer gave two precise reminders about this. First, she believes that everyone should recognize their current state and strength: "Don't be, your feelings about yourself and your boss's feelings about you are very different. You need to understand yourself, your role in the company, your positioning, your performance at work, and use data to speak."

When you have mastered this part, have confidence, and have confidence, you know that you are performing well, and the next step is that you often have to find opportunities to interact with your boss:

"Don't go to the boss only once a year, but maybe three months, half a year, you can talk to the supervisor, including your performance at work, expectations for yourself, and ideas for future development, etc., and then let both parties have a consensus."

Finally, of course, it is necessary to choose the right time. For example, if the company has a fixed salary increase in March or August, of course, you can't choose October to come to talk to the boss, even if he wants to fight for you, he can't help.

Combine emotional and rational analysis, let the boss remember you, will also think of you, when the time comes, maybe there will be opportunities to make relative salary adjustments.

"You are a girl, I can just move this heavy object..." What should I do in the face of micro-discrimination in the workplace?

The same women's fan workplace questionnaire survey found that up to 97.6% of people believe that whether a company has DEI diversity and inclusion policies and benefits is an important reason for individuals to choose to join or leave.

However, up to eighty percent believe that the workplace they are in lacks communication and security.

As an executive, how does Jennifer handle communication within her team? And these micro-discrimination, possible verbal violence?

First, she talks about the underlying structure, which is the essence of the problem. These situations occur due to the unconscious bias of individuals, so through the establishment of DEI corporate culture, the phenomenon of cross-departmental correlation can be eliminated.

Then, she will have internal communication: "I will talk to both parties in private, and let them talk to each other again, so that everyone can talk about things more openly."

Adhering to the attitude of "any problem can be solved", through the collection of one story after another, role models one after another, the establishment of a friendly working environment and workplace culture, from the inside out, so that diversity can come true, is an important axis to stabilize team morale.

Image credit: Natee Meepian | PIXTA

Can't go out in yoga clothes? What other people look at you, that's his problem

In recent years, the women's movement has been seen more and more, but with it, there are also many gazes and advice. For example, some schools in the United States prohibit girls from wearing yoga pants to school, and in Taiwan, if you go out in tight sweatpants and walk on the street, you may also attract strange eyes.

As the COO of adidas, what does Jennifer say about adidas, the most important player in sports? And how can women be able to compare the lack of frameworks and boundaries when engaging in sports?

"Today's environment has become more open, allowing girls to feel more comfortable doing different sports. I 100% support women's right to make their own choices, wearing yoga pants or sports tights to go out without making people feel so uncomfortable, such clothing can be in the gym or on the street."

That is, what will look at you is his problem, not yours. Jennifer also called on everyone to be critical of different things, but not persistent: "Criticism is their freedom, but you can be confident in your field."

Image credit: Courtesy of adidas

We truly believe that "sport can change lives" and make everything possible

For Jennifer, who is a business that calls for movement as life, she believes that movement can change lives and make everything possible.

She said that sports are established step by step, from good to better, from good to great, and will also know their accumulation very specifically.

Perhaps, much like in the workplace, we may encounter gender difficulties and personal challenges, but by doing it, knowing yourself, listening to yourself, and then making adjustments with confidence, we can take every step more realistically.