Accenture North America CEO Julie Sweet discusses her path from practicing attorney to corporate leader and her perspectives on the most significant trends driving the technological transformation of the economy – from AI to 5G.
On taking risks: “I often will counsel leaders that if you feel comfortable, then you probably aren’t pushing yourself enough and you’re probably not pushing the business enough either. And it’s really become a litmus test…. So thinking about it that way instead abstractly - like I need to take risks, I think it’s been a key to having people think differently and also be comfortable with, yes, there should be a little bit of a knot in the pit of your stomach, right? Or again you’re not challenging yourself.”
On being an innovative leader: “When I’m talking to the CEOs who are thinking about doing new things, it’s never about the technology, it’s about how prepared are you as a company and how prepared are your leaders. Because you can bring the coolest new solution, but if you don’t have a leader that’s willing to think differently and able to bring people along on a journey, you’re not going to be able to change. You won’t be successful. And so I think as we look at leadership, the ability to continuously learn has to be a leadership characteristic.”