This exclusive tale is yet another add-on to our special edition featuring Most Influential Women Leaders to Watch 2024. Here, the spotlight is on Charisma Glassman, who has been steering the Consumer Products, Luxury, and Apparel Portfolio at Capgemini with her impeccable leadership and industry expertise.

A Transformational Leader

Charisma Glassman is a remarkable leader in technology and business strategy and transformation. She is an alum of Harvard Business School and holds a master’s degree in computer/information technology management from the New York University School of Engineering with a specialization in luxury marketing.

Over the last two decades she has demonstrated her ability to oversee multi-million-dollar P&Ls, managed global teams across multiple countries, and cultivate steady, long-term revenue development. She has played various roles in her career, each of which brought special difficulties and opportunities for growth that resulted in several crucial moments. However, the acceleration of strategic transformation during the COVID-19 pandemic emerged as a definitive point. This time brought to light three critical facets of her leadership style: the need for rapid adaptation to change, the significance of using technology to support operations and promote expansion, and the necessity of keeping the success and well-being of all stakeholders—consumers, staff, and the larger community—front, and center. Every executive, including her, had to rise to the occasion during this challenging period in ways never seen before, which helped to create a more inventive and resilient leadership philosophy.

Fostering Collaboration and Cohesion to Lead Global Organizations

In the current business landscape, managing globally dispersed teams and large organizations requires a holistic approach that prioritizes communication, adaptability, and cultural awareness to conquer the obstacles presented by time zones and geographic disparities.

Charisma shared with us that the post-pandemic shift in work culture further underscores the importance of regular, open communication facilitated by advanced video conferencing tools connecting team members globally, fostering a sense of belonging and team cohesion. The adoption of a ‘Two in a Box’ approach for pivotal positions ensures ongoing leadership and decision-making competencies throughout time zones, augmenting operational effectiveness and fostering a culture of shared accountability and mentoring.

She said that implementing a flexible meeting calendar to accommodate the varied locations of the team can be of help. This schedule promotes inclusion and work-life balance and sets clear expectations for each team member’s contribution to the team’s objectives. A creative environment is fostered by placing a high priority on cultural sensitivity and inclusivity, as well as giving employees a sense of trust and autonomy. Additionally, leveraging top-tier collaboration and product management tools are critical for maintaining agility and bridging communication gaps, ensuring the team’s effectiveness and the organization’s forward momentum in the global landscape.

Adapting her Strategies and Leadership Style to Diverse Industries

Managing leadership positions in various sectors, including technology, retail, hospitality, and finance, requires a flexible and creative approach that takes into account the particular opportunities and difficulties that each industry has to offer. While Charisma’s leadership philosophy—serving as an architect, bridger, and catalyst—remains consistent throughout different industries, its implementation is painstakingly customized to fit each sector’s unique dynamics and culture. This entails delving deeply into the fundamental forces at work in each industry, as well as the expectations of customers, the regulatory environments, and the subtleties of competition, frequently by way of direct interaction with employees, customers, and industry leaders on the front lines.

Charisma shared with us “Strategic objectives and KPIs are crafted with industry-specific goals in mind, from risk management in finance to customer engagement in retail, always underpinned by a people-first approach that values diversity, encourages learning, and rewards innovation.” Her dedication to lifelong learning and leadership guarantees not only the flexibility of plans to industry specifics but also the involvement and unity of teams everywhere, setting up the company for success in the face of changes in the market.

Driving Innovation, Growth, and Leveraging Cutting-edge Technologies to Create Strategic Advantages

Charisma recommends empowering teams to experiment within predetermined limitations to prevent creativity from being hampered by a fear of failure. This helps to ensure profitability and stimulate growth. A supportive environment for strategic experimentation and sustained growth is created when they are transparent with the board, investors, and key stakeholders about their financial performance, growth strategies, and innovation efforts. This transparency not only fosters trust but also aligns expectations.

Through ongoing research, strategic alliances, talent acquisition, and innovation ecosystem investments, Charisma and her team stay ahead of developing technology, ensuring that they not only adapt to these developments but also leverage them to gain competitive advantages. By taking a proactive stance, they not only remain relevant but also establish themselves as pioneers in developing cutting-edge business models that propel long-term expansion and change in a world that is becoming increasingly digital.

Battling the Challenges Along the Way

As the COVID-19 pandemic unfolded, Charisma recollects that she found herself at the forefront of the consumer banking division of a global bank, steering through unprecedented challenges. During these difficult times, the bank introduced a cutting-edge credit extension initiative to help customers needing financial support. This initiative demonstrated the company’s commitment to providing strong customer assistance through improved operational and technological frameworks as part of a larger strategy revamp. Charisma’s approach, rooted in clear vision, precise goal setting, and a determination to confront challenges directly, not only preserved the bank’s strategic goals but also deepened customer relationships amidst the global crisis.

Unfurling the Future Goals

Charisma is actively planning to use AI not just to streamline operations but also as a foundation for creating innovative products and services. She also recommends the C-Suite leaders and boards to prioritize cybersecurity to protect their innovations and clients’ trust and use sustainability as a key business strategy to reach new markets and customer segments. In addition to navigating the challenges, this multifaceted approach aims to seize the opportunities to create new value. This could potentially reshape industry landscapes and change the composition of the Fortune 500 as companies that successfully harness these trends rise to the top, while those that don’t adapt may find their positions challenged.