00:00
Hola. I'm Claudia Romo Elman and I'm Cynthia Kleinbaum Milner and
00:05
a La Latina, the playbook to succeed being your authentic self
00:09
we have Maria Salcedo,
00:11
Senior Vice President Merchandizing at Ulta Beauty.
00:14
The three key takeaways you're gonna get are number one,
00:18
it has been proven that non native speakers are better at making
00:22
decisions. Number two,
00:23
you're gonna learn how beauty is ingrained in the Latina culture and
00:27
how the purchasing power of Latinas is essential for the growth of
00:31
any company in the beauty industry.
00:33
And number three, how getting an MB A is an investment
00:36
you should consider to propel you to the C suite.
00:41
A La Latina. Stick around.
00:50
Welcome again to season two.
00:52
We're so excited to be back.
00:55
Maria Salcedo. She's the senior vice president of Merchandizing from Ulta
00:59
Beauty. She's also a board member at step up a mentorship
01:02
non for profit providing structure for girls.
01:05
She's from Colombia, an engineer by training and she's a bu
01:10
We couldn't be more excited to kick off season two with you
01:13
Claudia Cina. Thank you so much for having me.
01:16
I'm very excited. We want to start with getting to know
01:19
you a little bit more like who you are,
01:21
what you do and what brought you to be where you
01:24
are and what you're doing today.
01:25
Lovely. So as you know,
01:27
and as you mentioned,
01:28
I'm originally from Colombia.
01:32
I was born and raised in Colombia in kind of like a
01:35
traditional family. I'm the oldest of three.
01:39
I have a younger sister and a younger brother and my parents
01:44
they were very young.
01:45
They had me when they were 20.
01:47
So that creates like a unique dynamic in that sense.
01:50
But traditional kind of like upbringing in Bogota,
01:55
close knit family, always spending time with the family and fortunately
02:01
having many, many wonderful opportunities to live and breathe in that
02:05
amazing, amazing country and you know,
02:08
how important your upbringing is and how it shapes you kind of
02:12
like as you, as you grow up or your parents did
02:16
Where is your work ethic from?
02:19
So that comes from a long line even before my my
02:23
parents, my dad studied economics and he was a very successful
02:28
businessman working in CPG his life.
02:31
And my mother is a doctor.
02:33
I probably have like a unique story in that sense that my
02:37
grandmother on my mother's side,
02:39
she went to college.
02:41
She actually went to college here.
02:43
both my grandparents on that side,
02:45
we went to college in the,
02:47
in the US. So that is kind of like unique in
02:49
that sense. So how it had shaped me and how it's
02:53
a little bit different is that I come from a long line
02:58
of working women and that was slightly different from kind of like
03:02
the norm even of like my friends.
03:04
Right. I had many of my friends,
03:05
their, their mothers were not necessarily working and many of
03:10
them were college educated,
03:11
but that's not the norm,
03:12
especially when you go back to like your grandparents,
03:15
where they all are able to go to college,
03:17
that's not necessarily the norm.
03:19
So that created a different kind of view for me.
03:23
And when I think about it,
03:24
I wasn't necessarily aware of it.
03:26
It was just how it was like the the strong woman of
03:31
your household. Always,
03:33
always, this is how you experienced it.
03:35
And tell me if it's similar to my experience,
03:38
which is in my family,
03:39
I have couples where the woman worked and couples where the woman
03:43
didn't work and the relationship that I saw of the couple was
03:48
different. And I kind of always wanted to be in that
03:51
couple that both people work and that there's some level of equality
03:55
100%. I think the relationships are,
04:01
for example, in the way my dad contributed to the household
04:07
vis a vis kind of like a more traditional role of the
04:11
Like my dad, my mother is a doctor.
04:14
and I, and I share that they got married when they
04:16
were really young. So kind of like I,
04:18
my mother was still going to school and finishing all of her
04:22
years and years of studying medicine when I was young.
04:25
So we would go grocery shopping with my dad and my dad
04:28
took on many roles that were not traditional for kind of like
04:33
the male bread maker in the in the household.
04:36
So that created a different relationship.
04:39
I value it a lot because I saw a lot of partnership
04:42
I saw a lot of support.
04:45
I saw how both careers were very important and how each one
04:50
tried to make kind of like trade offs to support the other
04:53
one I never saw at 1.1 or the other becoming more important
04:58
And it was just a really strong team effort.
05:01
And within that, I think then my dad kind of like
05:05
raised me and my sister thinking that we could do anything.
05:09
I guess this is a message to all the a La Latinos
05:13
to the partners of our A La Latinas.
05:15
The only way that we can get to the top is if
05:18
we have a partner that enables us and that supports us in
05:22
our journey. So at some point,
05:24
we'll start our A La Latino I think that we have seen
05:28
from all our guests,
05:29
the, the the relevance of role models that really make them
05:34
identify with them, seeing mothers that defy age,
05:38
the concept of age because they always felt young.
05:41
And how is that affecting us?
05:43
I think that in your case is professional working and strong
05:47
women, but also a lot of emphasis on education.
05:50
It seems to me that having right?
05:53
that made your transition to move to the States and stop here
05:57
like a quite natural one.
05:58
Absolutely. Oh my God,
06:00
you're so intuitive in capturing that because it was education has always
06:04
been perceived as something extremely,
06:07
extremely important in in my family and kind of like your
06:11
focus in your younger years.
06:13
Right? And that my dad would use and I'm sure that
06:16
your parents said did funny things like that.
06:18
Like I'm not leaving you a big inheritance.
06:21
I don't have nothing to leave you.
06:22
You have your education and that's how you're going to be successful
06:26
to make your life and be happy in your life.
06:29
So it was always that aspiration.
06:32
So I always knew that we would have the opportunity to go
06:35
to college and, and we did and that I was very
06:38
grateful for that. And then I knew that I wanted to
06:41
pursue like it shouldn't end there and that if I could aspire
06:44
and try to pursue something higher I should.
06:47
And that's kind of like how then coming to the US for
06:50
an MB A came about also something that we have heard a
06:53
lot is the relevance of an MB A.
06:56
Can you talk about that and how transformative that was for you
06:58
Yes, I think it's one of the most transformative experiences
07:02
I've had in my professional career.
07:07
in, in, in general development,
07:09
I a couple of things that are unique and that,
07:12
that may be, have different angles from us moving into the
07:17
country to pursue it.
07:18
So the full time nature of it,
07:21
the immersion, right?
07:22
Like after having worked for some years that gives you and shapes
07:27
your mind differently, perspectives differently.
07:31
So the focus that you can give at that point in your
07:34
life to education is different than what you've given in the past
07:38
in high school or undergrad where you're more like I have
07:42
to do these things and then you find more application dedicating two
07:46
years of your life to that.
07:48
It's a big investment and it's a big,
07:50
big trade off at any time,
07:51
but also money because you're not,
07:54
you're not making income for two years and also the fees and
08:00
then you're paying. Exactly.
08:01
It's like a, it's a traveling fees.
08:04
It's a very, it's a very expensive endeavor.
08:08
It was, I remember telling my dad it's like more money
08:11
than I've ever seen in my life together.
08:13
Like what I'm what I'm investing in this,
08:16
it's a big bet for me.
08:18
It was also knowing that I was going to be having access
08:22
to these professors that in many cases are like the ones that
08:25
are leading the thinking that are writing the books that are being
08:28
nominated for Nobel Prizes.
08:31
Like it's such a unique experience that if you're ever able to
08:38
I think it, it's worthwhile the,
08:40
the consideration. We haven't actually had a guest with an MB
08:44
A. So let's have a little bit of a conversation because
08:47
I have strong opinions that have changed because I'm sure just like
08:51
with you people come and ask me,
08:53
should I do an MB A like every time in any job
08:56
that I have people come to me and ask me,
08:58
should I do an MB A?
09:00
maybe, maybe five years ago when I was 10 years out
09:05
of the NBA and I saw a lot of people with an
09:09
MB A not like reaching their full potential and a lot of
09:12
people without an NBA reaching their full potential,
09:15
I started thinking maybe,
09:16
you know, it's not for everyone,
09:18
maybe not, everyone should do an MB A and I'm kind
09:22
of moving in a different direction now,
09:23
I think now most people should do an NBA if they have
09:26
the opportunity because the value of an MB A,
09:29
it's not just the professors,
09:31
it's the network and it's the access that you have to,
09:34
the resources of your school after you do the MB A.
09:38
But I will only do an MB A in a top school
09:40
because it's almost a guarantee that you're gonna a,
09:44
be able to get a loan to study at a very low
09:47
rate. I didn't know that.
09:48
Like, when I went to,
09:49
to my business school,
09:50
I didn't know that most students did not pay cash out of
09:55
pocket for their MB A.
09:56
They got a loan which is in,
09:58
in Latin America, it's unheard of.
10:00
If you don't have money,
10:01
you don't go to school.
10:02
Turns out that here you are admitted to Harvard to Wharton to
10:05
mit and almost automatically a bank is gonna give you the loan
10:09
So money shouldn't be a problem.
10:10
And you should assume that after going to one of those schools
10:14
you're gonna get like the money back because even now for
10:18
me, 15 years after the NBA,
10:19
you're the same year,
10:20
as I, people still say to me,
10:23
you went to Harvard like they see my resume and it was
10:26
15 years ago and it's the first thing that people 50 years
10:29
ago, you look so much younger.
10:32
So I think it's a great investment.
10:34
I think you're a Vampire BB products.
10:36
We'll talk about that later.
10:38
But wait OK, so let's talk about this NBA.
10:41
So we have 62 million Latinos in America,
10:44
32 million Latinas. So 9% of all America is Latina and
10:49
less than 1% manages to finish a higher degree.
10:52
But we're getting better at getting the basic college education.
10:57
So we're graduating from high school,
10:58
73% more than we did.
11:00
10 years ago. We're graduating more from college,
11:03
particularly city colleges and things that are more appropriate for Latinos.
11:07
So I wonder is it really about like going and negotiating with
11:11
schools and saying like do an MB A for Latinos,
11:14
do an MB A Latina which is probably shorter than two years
11:18
So something that people will go a little bit more because
11:21
it's a bit more friendly.
11:23
So that when you're like in hiring positions,
11:26
do you notice a difference when you're hiring people that have an
11:31
I'm torn because I can see many,
11:34
many successful stories and many successes without an NBA.
11:38
I can also see many successes with an NBA.
11:41
I would say if somebody asks and when in my,
11:44
in my line of work or as I'm mentoring,
11:47
is it necessary to have an MBA?
11:51
you don't need to have an MB A.
11:53
However, I do super agree with your statement if you have
11:57
that inspiration, if you have that desire and you have the
12:00
opportunity, I would say yes,
12:02
go for it because it,
12:03
it's like a, it's a no regrets Cynthia is really on
12:07
the mark. And I think that is an added value of
12:10
education is also the network that you're able to build the connections
12:15
because they might not,
12:17
at that point, they might seem like either college friends or
12:20
just a professor. But as you go throughout in your life
12:24
you're going to see how these people can have the opportunity
12:27
to become very influential and you can be very influential in other
12:31
people's lives as well and just connection.
12:33
So that is an extremely valuable point.
12:36
I think we need to continue to focus as we help Latinos
12:41
in the US. We need to continue to focus exactly on
12:43
the steps that you said first high school,
12:46
then college, which is why I'm very passionate about step up
12:50
because it's really helping these girls in underserved communities realize their potential
12:56
and they by and large are first time generation to go to
12:59
college. And the difference there is,
13:01
for example, I shared with you guys,
13:03
I have been very lucky in that I had a line of
13:06
my family that had gone to college.
13:10
And I had people to mentor me and talk to me about
13:13
that process and that they could share their experiences when you work
13:17
with the girls that I love working with at at step up
13:20
They don't have that right.
13:22
They don't have that support and building a place where our structure
13:26
a process, a program that gives them that support,
13:30
that is game changing because you cannot be what you cannot see
13:35
And I think that's a lot of my drive.
13:36
Like I saw, I saw it since my parents got married
13:39
very young. I saw them progress through their careers,
13:41
which is also something that is not necessary.
13:43
Like I remember celebrating like when my mom graduated from medicine school
13:47
or when my dad got a promotion and he got a new
13:49
job. Like I went through all of those steps with them
13:52
And that is probably where my drive and my ambition comes
13:55
from because I lifted with them,
13:57
sharing that and being able to express the opportunities and the possibilities
14:02
to other populations, especially underserved populations is like my bar on
14:06
biggest passion and I don't know,
14:08
but I don't think it's a matter of making an MB A
14:11
for Latinas because I don't the studies like even access to the
14:14
professors, you can get it online right now.
14:17
Like HBX, you go hbx.com,
14:19
you can get access to almost every Harvard professor mit professor.
14:23
It's about the network that you create that you can then literally
14:28
pick up the phone and say,
14:29
hey, I'm looking at this job.
14:31
I know you work in that company.
14:32
Can you help me get in front of the hiring manager?
14:35
Can you tell me how does the interview process go?
14:38
It's really about the network that you can only create if you
14:41
go in person and you immerse yourself in two years of really
14:45
intense like studies and I was making a joke about traveling,
14:49
but there's a lot of traveling in the NBA and that's how
14:53
you create real friendships where people care about each other.
14:56
So I think what we need is we need to get more
14:58
Latinas to make the bet I can.
15:01
I'm gonna take two years off of my career and I'm gonna
15:04
invest in this because I know that after this,
15:07
I'm gonna be able to pay it back and I'm gonna be
15:11
making more money than my peers that didn't go to the NBA
15:14
That's gonna leap forward.
15:16
Let's assume that's the case.
15:17
Let's assume that we should not create harbor business goals for
15:21
Latinos and that we need Latinas to make the big bet.
15:24
We need companies to support them and we need universities to be
15:28
you know, like welcoming and I think that the three
15:31
elements are ready for now.
15:33
How do we start if you would be?
15:35
You're not like if you would be talking to someone from step
15:40
you know what one of the big bets you can take is
15:43
what's the application process?
15:44
How do we guide people?
15:46
I'm just thinking out loud because you're triggering so many good thoughts
15:50
what if there were like step up version two,
15:53
right? Like the follow up program that it actually has the
15:57
structure to support exactly that I did a lot of research when
16:00
I was applying for an MB A and there are,
16:03
you have to do some research and you have to work and
16:05
if you have somebody helping you and guiding you,
16:06
it's great like identifying the different tiers of schools,
16:09
the different strengths of the school,
16:12
what kind of focus will I get in this school
16:15
versus this other, what kind of learning program?
16:19
Right? Like case based or more academic based.
16:22
What do I want from that then going into the application process
16:26
which is usually a mix of standardized tests,
16:29
although those are being sometimes phased out interviews,
16:32
recommendations and and grades and essays.
16:35
Exactly like so those kind of like five and working through those
16:38
and then they're obviously you have to have a strategy of like
16:42
what am I showcasing here?
16:44
What is like my angle,
16:45
right? Like what is my differentiation?
16:47
So I do think actually that I do think,
16:50
sorry, I do think that actually like having maybe that for
16:53
Latinos like that support not a special program but a special training
16:58
training on how to apply the mean that I think can be
17:03
Exactly because there is just like some savviness about how to
17:07
navigate the system and how to play the game,
17:10
showcasing your strengths to kind of like put you in the in
17:13
the in the best in the best light,
17:15
I was an engineer by training,
17:18
I knew that I always wanted to be in CPG or in
17:21
retail just very close to the consumer.
17:24
And that, that comes from,
17:25
from my dad. I have stories to tell you about like
17:28
what grocery shopping with my dad was like,
17:29
it was like standing in front of the shelves and him,
17:32
like standing there with his little arms in the back and looking
17:35
at everything and being like,
17:36
ok, why do you think they're launching that?
17:38
Look at this. Why do you think this is at the
17:40
top shelf? Like it was,
17:42
this is that you have an MB A with it felt like
17:47
it was like, and one of our favorite things to do
17:51
as a family is like go to grocery stores when we're traveling
17:54
and see the different products and the different assortments like that is
17:57
one of my favorite things to you don't need a dad that
18:00
does this to succeed.
18:02
It is about mentorship and support like that's what I saw.
18:07
That is what in my mind became a possibility and that is
18:13
So then I'm just right now in a category that's beauty that's
18:15
even closer and nearer to my heart.
18:18
But that's kind of like why shaping and showing people what's possible
18:23
is so so important because or otherwise how as a like 10
18:27
year old would, you know that that is a cool job
18:29
So my angle was always about being very close to the
18:32
consumer leveraging my engineering,
18:35
my engineering skills and obviously being kind of like a transformative leader
18:40
in a different type of perspective in the in the US market
18:44
You didn't use a Latina,
18:45
Latina in the way that and we can talk more about this
18:50
because I know you have some questions around this.
18:52
I think that when you grow up in a smaller country,
18:55
not the largest economy in the world,
18:56
like the US, you always know that there are more things
19:00
out there and you have like this view of there's a bigger
19:03
world, there are different other,
19:05
there are other economies in the world.
19:07
There are different ways of doing things.
19:08
We are a developing country.
19:10
So you come in with a broader perspective because you have to
19:15
because you know that and in that when I was growing up
19:18
in Colombia, 45 million people with a GDP that is lower
19:23
than, I don't know the earnings of Microsoft.
19:25
Like you know that there's more things out there,
19:29
I played the world view and like the different perspective that you
19:33
can bring to the workforce in the US.
19:36
So that was like my,
19:38
honestly, the role that parents play in marking us in setting
19:45
what you just said about your dad going and asking,
19:49
it's for me the creation of a,
19:52
a huge eye that you have to understand the consumer,
19:55
we're gonna talk about that and I just had a click with
20:03
my parents divorced when they were,
20:04
I was very, very young.
20:06
my dad took me every Sunday to sunburns in Mexico to have
20:10
a coffee and he left me when I was eight years old
20:14
He left me in my chair and left for 30 minutes
20:17
and came back and then he started asking me like,
20:20
what is the color of the sweater of the person behind us
20:22
How many plants are in this restaurant?
20:24
And he thought it was funny,
20:26
right? Like he thought it was great.
20:28
funny for me to know what was the conversation of the next
20:31
one? Like the first one that he did that to me
20:33
was petrified. And then,
20:35
because it was a recording thing,
20:36
I started being really,
20:37
like, trained as a terminator.
20:39
I came into any place and I was like observing.
20:44
you know, like I hated him for that.
20:46
But then now I'm so grateful to have an eye that is
20:50
able to absorb and read a room and be able to see
20:53
things, navigate an influence which I think you're great at.
20:56
Exactly. But, but you know what,
20:58
that's honestly the influence that we play as parents in our Children
21:03
without even noticing. And I think that for us transmitting that
21:08
how do you portray yourself because we're in disadvantage as you said
21:12
like from a called Most country,
21:13
how do we actually take that already as a training as parents
21:17
we'll make the playbook for like how to apply to an NBA
21:21
The first, the most important thing is apply to the
21:24
like the, the Noya lots Ida Mua said that I think
21:28
a lot of people don't,
21:29
you know what the answer or the outcome is gonna be if
21:31
you don't apply. Right.
21:34
let's move on from the NBA.
21:35
Can you talk to us about your early career after your NBA
21:39
Why did you go to mckinsey?
21:40
What did you learn there?
21:42
Why did I think then you went to Pepsi and then to
21:45
Al and then to ALTA,
21:46
correct? Yes. There are very practical reasons and then
21:50
there are also some that are a little bit more intentional in
21:53
terms of, of my career when I came to the U
21:56
si came on a student visa,
21:58
right? And that is one of the thing,
22:01
one of the aspects of why an MB A was also made
22:03
sense for me is that if I ever wanted to work in
22:06
the US, one kind of like straightforward way to do so
22:10
is through an MB A and then entering the workforce because that's
22:13
how you can get a visa sponsorship.
22:15
So that was a critical and that natural I went to BC
22:18
G which is like I wanted and I've told you all.
22:23
I wanted to work in CPG.
22:24
Well, lo and behold,
22:25
I get here to the US and those companies are not traditionally
22:30
sponsors of visas. So when they go to recruiting to campus
22:35
all there like Victoria's Secret,
22:37
like I remember all of the ones that I would get super
22:39
excited and they were like,
22:40
we don't sponsor international students.
22:42
ok, so I very quickly figured out it is,
22:47
is, that can be like another thing of all the notes
22:50
that we're taking today that is like those recruiting programs.
22:55
And then that's why you get,
22:57
industries where the initial pool is much more diverse and those are
23:02
investment banks, private equity consulting that tend to just look for
23:08
talent and that they've adopted and built into their,
23:12
I don't know, they call it the cost structure of their
23:14
talent and said, you know,
23:16
what if we want the best talent out there?
23:17
If we want diverse talent,
23:19
we need sponsor visas.
23:20
So that's how you and I right,
23:22
rightfully. So ended up in mckinsey and VCG.
23:25
I think now the companies do it,
23:27
I think Facebook Google.
23:28
But it used to be that really,
23:30
you, you have like three or four options.
23:32
Yes. Yeah. So that was,
23:35
I forgot that you and I shared exactly that.
23:37
So that narrowed my choices.
23:39
ok, do I do investment banking.
23:40
Do I do private equity?
23:42
And if you think about what I already said,
23:45
I wanted to be close to the consumer,
23:48
business management. Mckinsey was obviously a consulting was the most straightforward
23:53
So that's the mix of like practical decisions which was getting
23:56
a visa sponsorship versus like more intentional of like this is a
23:59
field that interests me and that this is much more aligned mckinsey
24:03
ended up being one of the best decisions that I've made in
24:08
And it was basically a continuation of the NBA working with
24:12
an amazing, incredibly smart group of people putting you in situations
24:19
completely out of your comfort zone from,
24:22
from day one working.
24:24
Yeah, that's another part.
24:26
I think it's changed too.
24:28
I think it's changed in general.
24:30
It has evolved. The work life balance has become more
24:36
predominant, which I think no,
24:39
I remember one time being talking about like,
24:42
oh, if I with my husband who was also a consultant
24:44
like if we can get our lives and we can get
24:46
to like only working 80 hours a week or maybe between 100
24:50
and 80 that will be life changing because we were working just
24:54
crazy hours. So I don't know that all our audience knows
24:57
what the consulting industry is.
25:00
So if you can give them both a little bit of insight
25:04
into what it is and also for whom,
25:06
is it a good decision to start their career in consulting?
25:09
Yeah. So there are different types of consulting firms,
25:12
but as the word implies,
25:14
it's a group of people that help advise companies on different projects
25:18
on different questions developing strategies.
25:24
a consultant has to become kind of like very well versed on
25:28
many different industries and many different types of projects working with different
25:33
clients. But they don't necessarily see the work through to implementation
25:39
or execution, right?
25:40
With that consulting allows you to be as broad as you want
25:45
or as narrow as you want.
25:47
You can become an expert in,
25:49
I don't know, supply chain implementation or a specific type of
25:52
transformation project or you can stay very generalist in terms of strategic
25:56
thinking for, for companies and help companies with specific problem solving
26:01
I do think I'm an engineer by training.
26:04
So I do think that that helped kind of like organize my
26:06
brain and then consulting just really to charge that with a ton
26:11
of structure and frameworks that you can apply just to any question
26:15
you use them. Now I use my frameworks every single day
26:20
I use what I learned at mckinsey and it was,
26:23
it was great. You also learn a lot of partnership and
26:27
organizational navigation because you're working with clients,
26:29
executive presence because you just graduated,
26:32
you have no idea what you're doing and they throw you in
26:34
with a client and the CEO of a company and you have
26:36
to pretend like you're an expert.
26:38
So you also get a lot of yes.
26:43
you were two years pretty much in every one of those jobs
26:49
And what was your exit strategy at mckenzie when I left mckenzie
26:53
It just so happened that I had a baby along the
26:57
consulting involves traveling a lot like you're wherever your client is and
27:01
you have like short,
27:02
probably like three month long projects,
27:04
maybe six at most at mckinsey at least.
27:07
And,, that travel was really getting in the way
27:10
of the mom. I wanted to be at that stage in
27:13
my life and it was a very personal just decision.
27:17
I didn't leave up my breaking point.
27:18
Sometimes people burn out in consulting or they're done with it.
27:21
I thoroughly enjoyed it.
27:24
I would go back to consulting quite honestly because I think it's
27:26
very intellectually stimulating, but it was just getting in the way
27:30
of the mom. I wanted to be.
27:32
there are many consultants around the world in many different places.
27:38
head hunter reached out and Pepsi had a ton of
27:41
ex mckinsey's doing strategy for them across the different levels of
27:46
the company. So that's how I came into Pepsi.
27:49
And then remember I was then finally getting into CPG or retail
27:53
which was what I wanted.
27:54
And food is also an area that I super,
27:56
super love. So that's how I ended up working at Pepsi
28:00
I always focus on doing my job right first to
28:06
then kind of like earn your next step.
28:09
I do think it's a good practice if you can.
28:11
It's not necessarily, it might be a little bit more traditional
28:14
It's not necessarily the only path there are many paths.
28:16
But I do think it's great if you can demonstrate and maximize
28:19
every single company and get kind of like a next step in
28:23
every company because that really helps you get the best out of
28:27
those experiences. Demonstrate that you can really focus and be successful
28:32
in many different organizations,
28:34
cultures types of challenges.
28:36
So I've tried to do that in general and for I've
28:41
been able to do that and when I had already been here
28:44
for five years at Pepsi in different roles,
28:46
that's also wonderful about a company like Pepsi where you can have
28:49
many different experiences. The opportunity for Ulta Beauty also came through
28:55
a headhunter. So I am always open to listening to people
29:00
and I think you should always be to listening because there are
29:03
many opportunities and you want to be aware and be the one
29:05
that it makes me feel in control.
29:07
Like if I know I have choices and I've made the choice
29:09
that I am and whether it's to stay somewhere or to move
29:12
somewhere. So this was a headhunter that reaches out about an
29:16
opportunity at Ulta Beauty and Ulta Beauty just really attracted me.
29:20
I've always been a beauty junkie as a consumer,
29:23
it was retail, it was growing.
29:26
I was going to get to start a strategy team from scratch
29:30
I would never get to do that in,
29:31
in Pepsi because Pepsi was much more scaled and established.
29:36
And then the leadership and the team just really,
29:39
I fell in love with.
29:40
So that's how I ended up at Beauty.
29:42
And now it's gonna be almost eight years since I've been there
29:45
in many different roles too.
29:46
I wanna tell you back something that I heard,
29:48
but you didn't say it with these words.
29:50
So you tell me the first one,
29:52
it's very much what I believe.
29:54
And you tell me if you feel that way,
29:56
which is consulting is a really good job.
29:59
It's not a great job for somebody that's like in child bearing
30:06
I think it's the best or one of the best jobs you
30:09
can get right after college.
30:11
It's an ok job you can get right after an MB A
30:15
you don't wanna be spending that much time traveling,
30:18
you're kind of probably trying to start the family.
30:22
I tell people go do consulting right after college,
30:25
you're gonna learn so much that it's gonna really propel your career
30:29
in the future. If you can't do it after college,
30:31
do it after the MB A.
30:32
But after college best or one of the best jobs.
30:36
And the second one that you said it's,
30:38
you took a job in a company that you saw potential,
30:42
not that you didn't take the job you wanted,
30:44
you took the company you wanted,
30:46
did a great job and then moved internally.
30:49
And I think many times we are looking for the perfect job
30:52
in the perfect company.
30:53
And I think if you had to pick,
30:56
you pick the company,
30:57
not the job, because ultimately,
30:59
if you do a good job and you create relationships,
31:01
you're gonna end up in the job that you like in the
31:04
you can't change. If you choose a job that you want
31:08
in a company, you don't want,
31:10
you're not gonna then end up in the company.
31:12
You want so many of us,
31:14
You take a job that's available,
31:16
maybe not the perfect job,
31:17
but it's a company that you believe in that you like the
31:19
culture and then internally you navigate,
31:22
that's what happened to you,
31:24
And the way kind of like I expressed it in that when
31:27
you say you take a job with a company,
31:30
I think it's that company can provide you experiences that are going
31:35
to be valuable. So I focused on the experience that choice
31:37
was led by, I will get to do something from scratch
31:41
build the strategy team that I think this company deserves and
31:45
should have. And that was the experience I wanted,
31:49
right? And I hadn't had that and I was aware that
31:51
I wouldn't be able to have it in the current kind of
31:54
like structure where I was,
31:56
I was working. So I think you're right.
31:58
And then after that,
31:59
and obviously, this is like just being more mature and more
32:02
savvy and more confident,
32:04
I focus consistently on experiences and that type of projects or the
32:10
type of engagements that I think will be valuable for me to
32:14
add to my tool kit as I continue,
32:16
just like to build my career.
32:18
Seems to me that you were very conscious and very strategic about
32:22
your career like that you had it almost like planned,
32:24
tell us about you and how did you manage to be where
32:27
you are? I think it's a journey and I think we
32:31
we have to enjoy it and we have to have fun
32:33
And if you're not enjoying it,
32:34
if you're not having fun,
32:35
whatever that fun means to me,
32:36
it's being challenged to me.
32:38
It's like feeling a strong sense of belonging and a strong sense
32:42
of purpose. Obviously,
32:43
all of this sounds like,
32:45
it figured out it comes with age.
32:46
It wasn't like it wasn't as intentional when I was younger.
32:50
Claudia. I just knew kind of like the space where
32:53
I wanted. And I knew that I wanted to achieve or
32:56
at least aspire for something very high and in the corporate
33:01
world, but I didn't know necessarily how at some point it
33:05
became a lot more intentional and I was able to make more
33:07
intentional choices. I do think that having a focus or at
33:11
least having an end goal thinking about it,
33:14
allow yourself to think like,
33:15
what could it look like?
33:18
What could I aspire to be?
33:20
I think helps keep you focused and like eyes on the price
33:24
because it's not going to be an easy road.
33:26
Believe me, there are moments that we've all had where I'm
33:28
like, I'm gonna quit tomorrow.
33:31
This is like the most I don't know,
33:33
disturbing frustrating experience I've ever had.
33:36
But if you keep your eyes on the goal and you're like
33:39
wait, why am I doing this?
33:40
Go back to, why am I doing this?
33:42
Take a breather? I think that goal,
33:46
the focus helps us kind of like align.
33:49
And then it's like all of this merges and then the
33:53
people that support, you know what you're striving for,
33:56
they'll help you as well.
33:57
Your mentors will guide you,
33:59
then you have sponsors,
34:00
it just coalesces. I want to ask what your,
34:04
what are you manifesting now?
34:05
How do you see yourself?
34:07
And also because I think that for me has been incredibly inspiring
34:11
to see how all our other guests either learned later in life
34:16
that they could have a goal and a dream and it was
34:20
not at the beginning.
34:21
And then how do you make sure that others see you like
34:24
the way you see if you see yourself as a CEO,
34:27
how do, how do we make sure that others are going
34:29
to start seeing you as a CEO so that you can propel
34:34
and this also comes with like how you manage ambition,
34:37
I understood that I was ambitious in this sense.
34:40
I was like, maybe I shouldn't be so overly ambitious.
34:43
I think there are ways of being ambitious.
34:45
I am ambitious and you pointed out,
34:47
I do have aspirations of being a CEO.
34:50
Now, that's one of my paths.
34:53
There's I have also an optional path that is a little bit
34:57
but for now, I'm on the path of I want to
35:00
build all of these experiences towards a bigger general management role with
35:06
significant responsibility. There was a point where I decided that I
35:10
that I saw that as engaging,
35:12
that I saw that as fun that when I looked at people
35:17
I like their jobs like it.
35:19
I would love to do that.
35:21
So that is kind of like where I'm headed right now and
35:26
I've been vocal about it with my mentors at,
35:29
at work. Not we all see Maria Salcedo as a CEO
35:34
if you are recruiting for a CEO.
35:40
So I wanna share with you one thing guys,
35:43
I went to the World Economic Forum in Davos and this year
35:46
I had the opportunity to talk precisely about mbas and higher education
35:50
with two people, the president of Harvard Business School and the
35:54
president of the University of Chicago.
35:56
And they were both very,
35:57
very, not even excited,
35:59
really focused on getting more Hispanics,
36:01
particularly Latinas from the US.
36:04
And they were mentioning that not a lot of Latinas access the
36:08
incredible opportunities that they there are for financial aid,
36:11
for scholarship, for application.
36:13
It's almost like we solve censor because we are so aware of
36:16
how much debt and how much investment that means that we're like
36:22
self imposing non application without really exploring the opportunities that
36:29
yeah, I, I agree and I think that there is
36:31
something that we can definitely think about how to help solve because
36:36
an MB A is a great opportunity.
36:40
there are many different vehicles to help you fund and pay for
36:45
an MB A so that it's not a debt that you're going
36:48
to have for all of your life.
36:50
So the plan of how to apply to an to an MB
36:53
A, how to access higher education and then how to pay
36:57
pay for it has to be a well thought out one
36:59
but one that we probably need to better communicate that there are
37:02
many different options and that it's very viable and that we do
37:06
need Latinas to apply more.
37:11
we will gather resources and share them with our audience,
37:14
but there's a lot of scholarships that you can get access to
37:17
that can pay part or the full tuition and even sometimes
37:21
living expenses then whatever is left,
37:25
And I think we have to think about MB A loans or
37:28
student loans differently than college student loans because the salary that you
37:35
going to make after doing an MB A is going to really
37:39
be a big step up from where you are.
37:42
I don't have the data to say that you're for sure going
37:45
to pay back your debt.
37:46
But I feel strongly that you will know,
37:48
but the return on investment has been proven to be higher and
37:52
to be a much safer investment.
37:54
Absolutely. I'd like to talk about like Latinas in beauty overall
37:59
I know that we have an increasing purchasing power,
38:02
9% of the population with 80% of the decisions of the purchasing
38:07
power of the household.
38:08
And that is $3.4 trillion a year.
38:12
That is massive if this would be the Latinas hold 80% of
38:18
the 14% of the population.
38:20
That means really we are responsible for 10% of the GDP of
38:24
America in our decisions and our,
38:26
our decisions have been our most favorite product that we bought 10
38:31
years ago was Mazzola oil today.
38:33
Lipstick. How do Latinas understand beauty?
38:36
What are the insights that you see?
38:38
So Latinas are a hugely important relevant cohort within beauty.
38:45
They over index and spend in beauty overall compared to their
38:50
Caucasian counterparts, Latinas by and large play broader and deeper in
38:55
many more categories across beauty.
38:58
So if you think about it and you think about an ideal
39:01
we call them beauty enthusiasts or an ideal kind of like
39:04
beauty consumer Latinas will basically by and large fit square in it
39:09
So there are things that you can think about,
39:11
think about the role of fragrance in our lives.
39:14
Like fragrance is a huge business.
39:16
It's much, much bigger per capita in Latin countries than
39:21
it is in. For example,
39:22
in the US and fragrance has been growing in the US significantly
39:26
by and large driven by the Latina consumption.
39:29
You have many different fragrances throughout for different occasions,
39:33
you spray more than just once a day.
39:36
I shared an insight in an interview about how and I don't
39:41
know if this was true for you guys.
39:42
But even like when I had my kids and when I had
39:44
my Children scent is so important that it's either colonia baby Johnsons
39:50
or like a fragrance,
39:51
like its super important like from day one,
39:53
you are lathering your kid in some kind of scent.
39:57
So that just gives you an example of how ingrained,
40:00
all of these beauty categories are within Latina.
40:03
So a beauty, it is a huge growth,
40:05
cohort and a huge area of focus.
40:09
It is also very interesting,
40:10
the relationship that Latinas have with beauty and how it's a really
40:15
honest and authentic relationship and maybe a little bit more advanced than
40:22
It's getting there and I'll tell you why when we grew up
40:25
you've probably heard the term being Vanida.
40:27
And this is really like Vanity.
40:29
If you translate it into English,
40:31
it's vanity and vanity has many negative connotations in English.
40:35
However, in Spanish and in the context that we've used it
40:38
in our culture is not a negative,
40:42
it's like confidence. And did you take care of yourself like
40:46
you want your daughter to be because she takes care of herself
40:50
She thinks that that self care is important.
40:53
She cares about her appearance and that's good and positive.
40:56
So we grew up with a relationship with beauty about if I
41:00
put on makeup, it's not because I'm insecure,
41:02
it's because I'm taking care of myself.
41:04
And this is how I want to show up today,
41:06
right? If I take care of my hair,
41:08
it's not because I'm frivolous because it's self care and this is
41:14
how I start my day through the pandemic.
41:18
What happened in the general kind of like us culture is the
41:20
pandemic really cemented beauty in self care.
41:23
So now we're seeing the US population also have this very healthy
41:28
relationship with beauty. And in that Latinas are becoming a huge
41:33
focus, a huge trend setting cohort through culture,
41:38
through pop culture, through music,
41:39
think about like Karo G and like how Koji is right now
41:42
establishing a really feminine yet kind of like grunge or not grunge
41:47
but urban approach to beauty and to trend and look.
41:52
So we're seeing Latina influence everywhere.
41:54
But also you were talking about how beauty is transmitted through
41:59
your parents and how that creates like brand loyalty in a very
42:03
different way. I think we can each talk about how,
42:07
what was our first introduction with with beauty and by and
42:11
large, it comes through your,
42:12
through your mother and it's,
42:15
it's a beautiful inside and it's a beautiful process.
42:18
If you think about it,
42:19
it's either put on I do a very Colombian thing that
42:22
is like putting on moisturizer every single day right after you take
42:26
a shower and that's like from day one and like I see
42:29
it how I ask my daughter like chaste crema like every single
42:33
day. So that is how we kind of like breed the
42:37
relationship with beauty. I remember going into my mom's eye
42:42
makeup or makeup drawer and like playing with her palettes and
42:46
and all of that through them,
42:48
we learn like what kinds of brands they like what what
42:52
what product attributes they're looking for?
42:54
Like where do they shop?
42:55
So we also see a very strong sense of loyalty to brands
43:00
to some of these brands that are epitome to beauty in,
43:04
in the US, like a Clinique de la or like like
43:08
the Dior that the brands that have always signified beauty.
43:12
There's a strong affinity and strong loyalty from the Latin consumer,
43:16
Latinas consumer in the US for those brands.
43:19
I just had a moment.
43:20
I used my mom's brands.
43:22
I just like literally,
43:23
I just thought I was like,
43:24
think about hair, like totally,
43:26
I use my mom's brands totally.
43:29
there's one more piece about the physical aspect of Latinas.
43:33
And I think that this is a great way to get into
43:35
identity, the perception of Latinas very unfortunately,
43:40
is very much associated with our physical attributes,
43:43
denying any other attribute of Latinas.
43:46
So we're seen as sexy,
43:48
loud, beautiful baidoas,
43:51
but never as intelligent decision makers leaders.
43:56
And so by definition,
43:57
if you're not conscious on the biases that you have of Latinas
44:01
then we will be put into corporations in where our physical
44:05
beauty plays a role.
44:06
The reception is the people that are like showing up and so
44:10
on. I I think that that's where it plays a down
44:12
role where we have to be conscious that we can be feminine
44:15
When we come to work,
44:16
we can be beautiful.
44:18
But that there's a stereotype of bias about us.
44:21
So we have to play carefully about it and making sure that
44:23
people don't only see that and we don't accent the the stereotype
44:27
I personally find it super empowering to come into a meeting
44:33
room fully dolled up in a dress with ruffles,
44:37
right? Like a very feminine dress and then just be probably
44:43
the strongest contributor at that table with data.
44:47
Knowing my business cold with insights,
44:50
I find it super empowering to kind of like break that stereotype
44:54
And I think that is where I see my authenticity coming
44:59
through and that I found that way to put the two together
45:02
But I agree with you Claudia for me,
45:04
it's more important that people think I'm smart than they think I'm
45:09
or like that comes like in second,
45:11
I always try to come to the table of the business table
45:16
with knowing that I'm good at what I do that I bring
45:20
a lot of value that I can create value for for
45:23
a company that I'm insightful.
45:26
And then on top of that,
45:27
this is just how I like to look and like how I
45:29
like to dress. But I find that a source of power
45:32
and I've turned that into kind of like one of my maybe
45:35
super power. Did you ever experience environments in which you had
45:40
to hide your Latinidad to be able to get ahead slightly and
45:45
and how you adapt to the different cultures and,
45:48
and, and you might think about it.
45:50
So, so when I entered,
45:50
for example, consulting,
45:52
I wasn't necessarily dressing the way I do or what the way
45:55
I really like to dress it.
45:57
It wasn't because they told me to do something.
46:02
I was just like reading the room and looking at others and
46:05
kind of like maybe trying to adapt and conform to what I
46:08
was seeing. That is where I think today with more maturity
46:15
like having lived a little bit longer,
46:17
I would say I shouldn't have done that because I could have
46:21
I'm glad it didn't last a long time.
46:24
And towards the, towards the end,
46:26
I was, I felt like I was being myself,
46:27
but those are silly things that I don't think you have to
46:30
compromise. I understand respecting organizational cultures,
46:33
but they just making sure that you're not necessarily compromising where it's
46:37
not worth it. That was like a trade off that I
46:39
personally made that wasn't necessarily true to myself.
46:44
And what do you think are the biases that you see in
46:46
your industry towards Latinas or Hispanics in general?
46:51
I do think to your point that there's a stereotype of what
46:54
like Latina beauty means and that's why I brought an example of
46:58
current influencers or other types of talent,
47:02
performers, celebrities that are disrupting and showing the breath of what
47:07
a Latina women can be,
47:10
or the trends that we can set so that it's not necessarily
47:14
only the bombshell or the fiery and fiesta,
47:17
like, like we're all feisty,
47:20
I agree. But that's not only kind of like,
47:27
another thing that I wanted to talk about of like,
47:30
when and if English is not our first language,
47:35
there are a lot of kind of like stereotypes or assumptions that
47:37
come with you not being,
47:39
having an accent or maybe at some point,
47:42
right? Like not finding the exact perfect word or for example
47:45
I'm an expert at like butchering all of these things in
47:51
that, that kind of thing.
47:53
There might be some negative connotations that people draw up on,
47:58
on themselves. And I really love to fight to fight those
48:02
And I think that is actually in another panel that I
48:04
was, somebody said it's actually racism because if you think about
48:08
it. And for example,
48:09
in beauty, there are many French people and European people,
48:11
nobody ever thinks that they're not smart because they have an accent
48:14
but they do think that of Hispanics and Latinas and that
48:18
is extremely unfair. So then I went to,
48:21
there's a Harvard study about a behavioral study and it demonstrates that
48:27
non native speakers are very good at decision making when you're making
48:33
decisions. And not your native language.
48:36
Because when you're talking,
48:38
when you're speaking in a foreign language,
48:40
you're better able to remove the emotionality from these decisions.
48:45
So you're better at making very clear moral,
48:49
moral decisions, rational decisions and even more risk taking than only
48:57
like speakers of just one language.
49:00
And when they operate in their own language,
49:02
and I thought that very insightful and I was,
49:05
maybe that's something that I was not necessarily aware,
49:09
English gave me and that maybe that is why I am decisive
49:15
If I try to be decisive to help my teams
49:18
and to help the company,
49:19
maybe these decisions come easier to me because of this,
49:23
because of our language of not being a,
49:25
not a native speaker.
49:26
And I thought that was very interesting.
49:28
It's amazing how getting just reinforcement on something that maybe you already
49:31
knew. But now you have the data.
49:33
Now there's a Harvard study.
49:35
now I can trust my instincts.
49:38
It was a study of like one of those kind of like
49:41
interesting and challenging moral dilemmas of like,
49:43
do you save this or do you save them or others and
49:47
how they did it with native speakers and with non native speakers
49:50
and consistently, it was faster and it was cleaner and clearly
49:53
the right choice when you were a non native speaker,
49:57
OK. I'll share it with you.
49:59
I'd like to know how being a Latina has helped you what
50:04
elements of your identity and Latini that you can pinpoint and like
50:08
because I'm a Latina,
50:09
even if it's a bias or a stereotype,
50:13
we're discovering from accent is to bi culturalism,
50:16
bilingualism, but also to more intelligent decisions.
50:19
So what else were I'll tell you another one that I,
50:22
that I love, I think it's not only relevant to Colombians
50:26
I think it's for many other countries.
50:27
I obviously equate it to being Colombiana,
50:30
which is like, what I'm first and foremost and it is
50:33
optimism. I believe optimism is key in being a good leader
50:39
I believe optimism is key in business and in life
50:44
And I do think that my culture tends to be very
50:48
optimistic. If you think about it,
50:50
we're kind of like put in very hard situations.
50:54
Our countries are all very facing like different types of social or
50:57
economic crises, right?
50:59
Hyper inflation, economic downturns.
51:03
I don't know, at Colombia,
51:05
guerrillas and you have to have a certain positive attitude to get
51:10
through it and to not be bogged down as a country.
51:13
And like, I feel my country at least is like the
51:15
little engine that could,
51:16
like everything is falling apart by the end we're there and we
51:22
Exactly. And then you have a little music and you turn
51:25
it around. So optimism I think would be the one I
51:30
think humor and humor translating into not taking yourself too seriously and
51:34
being self deprecating because that gives you perspective as well.
51:38
Like that helps not have an ego that overtakes your decision making
51:42
And I think humor is also a big part of it
51:45
and then it's kind of like combined with this but resilience like
51:48
you, you knowing that in the conviction that you can get
51:51
through these things somehow and there are many things about Manana Sera
51:56
Mejor or like M de Senna was like the that's resilience,
52:01
right? Resilience and great.
52:03
Exactly. All of the things that you mentioned were,
52:05
were that, that's amazing.
52:07
And I I think that we created this podcast pretty much
52:11
to make sure that we're bringing to the level of awareness that
52:15
people know, our Latinas know the companies that are willing to
52:19
hire Latinas know so that we can make it in half the
52:22
time. So if you could give yourself an advice and have
52:27
look when you were like 2530 years old,
52:31
What would be the playbook that Maria Salcedo would give to Maria
52:35
Salcedo Junior and say like,
52:36
do this. I think it's so interesting because honestly,
52:39
I don't think I would have listened to anything 30 years.
52:42
So it probably would have been wasted Omega over my over me
52:45
because I'd be realistic like I'm telling you're not really paying attention
52:54
But I would tell myself to trust the process because there are
52:58
moments that are very sticky,
53:00
right? That you feel like you're treading in mud.
53:02
And those moments are really hard.
53:04
But those are the moments that really test you and kind of
53:06
like trusting the process because having focus,
53:09
as I mentioned then helps align energies,
53:14
intentions people around you,
53:15
your efforts. So that that way you achieve your goals or
53:19
continue on a path towards your goal because that's another part of
53:22
it. The goal is not everything,
53:24
actually the journey you have to enjoy.
53:26
So that's part of like that,
53:27
that trusting the process and then more tactically one thing that I've
53:32
loved about how the world has evolved.
53:34
I shared with you guys how I saw my dad be kind
53:37
of like an employee at a,
53:38
at a, at a big company and that I,
53:40
and that I followed that path.
53:42
I however had ideas throughout my life of like products or companies
53:48
but I never acted on them because I didn't grow up
53:51
in an environment. And I don't think in general the world
53:54
where we grew up in was really positioned for entrepreneurship.
53:58
But now it is so I don't necessarily think I'm going to
54:02
become an entrepreneur right now.
54:04
But I would tell my younger self,
54:06
like when you have those inklings of products or ideas,
54:09
just know that there is a way and you could create a
54:12
company from scratch because honestly that remember how he said,
54:15
you cannot be what you cannot see.
54:16
That was not even an option in my mind as I was
54:24
It is right now for many people.
54:26
I think that's super exciting.
54:28
That risk is achievable,
54:30
manageable, something that we can do.
54:35
Yeah, companies were not created the way they are right now
54:38
Yeah. There's venture et cetera.
54:40
Were there any moment in your life or people in your life
54:43
that you feel like you wouldn't be where you are if they
54:46
weren't there or those moments hadn't happened?
54:48
Yeah, definitely. And I think that recognition of those moments
54:52
and how pivotal they're in your life is very,
54:54
very valuable at one of my companies,
54:57
there was a very senior person in hr who at some point
55:00
told me he thought I was starting to get lost in the
55:04
mix and he thought I had incredible potential.
55:07
And that although I was in,
55:09
he was in hr and it probably was not in the best
55:13
interest of the company for him to tell me this.
55:16
He said if you don't get X or Y here in this
55:19
time frame, you need to go out and get this type
55:23
of role because you're that good and I cannot have you kind
55:27
of like waste your potential here and sometimes these things happen in
55:30
companies and that really taught me to take also ownership of my
55:36
career and acknowledge they don't all work out.
55:39
Not all places work out,
55:40
not all jobs, work out.
55:42
So when you start noticing that,
55:44
that you have options and go look for them and,
55:47
I'm always very grateful for him.
55:50
And then my husband,
55:51
we talked, we started talking about partnership at the beginning and
55:54
my husband has always been a fabulous partner.
55:57
He also pursued an MB A.
55:58
He did it after I was,
56:00
and I remember some of my favorite moments with him were when
56:04
he was a student at the NBA.
56:05
And I was already working at mckinsey and we would have some
56:08
of his school events.
56:10
And obviously at that in those,
56:12
I was the wife and people immediately assumed that I was the
56:17
wife just like in the US for two years with him having
56:21
babies and hanging around which OK,
56:24
it's just don't assume like that's an option,
56:27
right? And he would stand there and he told me that
56:30
this was his favorite thing to do is to just stand there
56:33
and wait for people to ask me questions.
56:35
And then suddenly they realized,
56:37
oh, she also did an MB A and she's working at
56:40
mckenzie and actually that they wanted my job and that they needed
56:43
to talk to me and that he loved that moment when the
56:45
conversation turned around to flip the script and he watched it and
56:49
I never knew that he was looking at that.
56:51
And that he was observing that moment and that he was proud
56:54
of that moment. So find a partner that supports you every
56:57
day. And that came from your parents because you saw that
57:00
you saw that level of party and your grandparents because your
57:03
grandmother was also professional.
57:04
Yeah. Absolutely. OK.
57:07
Do you have any other Latina in mind that you think we
57:10
should invite to the podcast that can help our audience?
57:13
Yes, I think I have many Latinas in and,
57:16
and beauty that are extremely impressive.
57:19
So I'll just give you a list and we have,
57:22
I don't know if you've met Michelle Frayer.
57:25
She's the president of Clinique,
57:28
her super insightful, great mentor,
57:31
great human, exceptional business person.
57:35
I was just mentioning Kimberly Villa Toro.
57:38
She's the CEO of Patrick Ta,
57:41
a wonderful, wonderful person and also exceptional business person.
57:45
Malena Ira. She's the General Manager at Urban Decay.
57:49
Agnes Landau is the CMO at sho I actually am so so
57:56
proud and so privileged and humbled by this group of women and
58:01
I can continue the list.
58:03
I can continue. And I also did another episode.
58:05
We need to do something bigger like that to coalesce these amazing
58:10
women in the level of mentorship and sponsorship and influence that we
58:17
could have together across our companies in the industry.
58:20
This has been an incredible episode.
58:23
I have learned so much and I grew my admiration and respect
58:26
for you Maria Salcedo from Alta living Latina.
Series