Women leadership series - In conversation with Kavitha Thyagarajan

How would you introduce yourself?

I am a multidisciplinary designer, enjoying my current role as Head of Design for TechOps Digital platforms, where I am surrounded and inspired by the most talented techies everyday. In my past life, I worked as an Architect and landscape designer. I believe in Mies van der Rohe’s motto “Less is more” and my work often reflects the same.

Can you tell me a bit about your career journey? When did you first get into a leadership role?

I have extensive experience in designing digital applications for consumers and enterprise solutions. I manage an interdisciplinary team of designers and developers and deliver value across cross-functional, multiple stakeholder, and distributed environments working in a globally distributed team. I have helped organizations set up a User experience design team and UX practice and have led and mentored design teams.

My first role as a leader was when I was managing a bunch of designers and developers working across different products and services. This was my safe and comfortable zone and I never felt that I was doing anything different.

What were the top challenges you faced during your journey and how did you overcome them?

When you are leading a team that caters to different business functions that have its own priorities, it’s always a constant struggle to manage these priorities and at the same time delivering value. Initially this was a bit of struggle, but setting clear expectations with the global stakeholders, keeping them informed and making decisions along with them, helped me bridge the gap. I would always have an open and honest conversation with my stakeholders and would truly be invested in solving their problems. This gained me their trust and built a long term relationship with them.

A leader must also know to navigate ambiguity and give a sense of direction to the team when they look up to you. I always believed that I needed to have answers for all the questions which would stress me out. I slowly realized that it was ok to accept that you don't have an answer yet and be transparent about it. This created a special bond and mutual respect for each other with my clients and team.

What motivates you?

I am a dreamer and constantly get inspired by numerous people around me. I love to experiment and I thrive on creativity. Mundane and routine bores me and hence I always find something that lets my creative juice flow.

Do you have a role model in your life? Can you name a few people who you look up to?

There are so many amazing people around me who I admire and follow. Couple of folks I get my inspiration from are John Maeda from the Tech and design leadership angle, Dan Norman - the design guru, Irene Au - for her amazing design leadership role where she has built and led design teams for some of the top companies.

What does leadership mean to you? How would you describe your leadership style?

Leadership to me means leading by example and setting up a safe and fun environment for everyone to thrive. Investing in people's growth and achievement is a great asset to have as a leader.

Being open, honest, transparent, approachable and having empathy for others has helped me grow as a leader. At the same time, it is important to have a clear vision and strategy, direction, staying calm and focussed during adversity.

What would be your advice to young leaders?

When you take up the role as a leader for the first time, don’t get overwhelmed with everything around you. Take it slowly but stay connected with the key people on the team. Empowering others to make decisions, sharing responsibilities and communicating constantly with your clients and team is crucial. Active listening is an asset that every leader should have. Things will soon fall in place when you have empathy for everyone.

Another important aspect is to focus on your own personal development. Make sure that you allocate some time in a week specifically for this. This will help you grow as a leader you always aspired to be. Last but not least, make sure you have fun.