Three lessons that I take to my new venture
Published on 5 January 2024 • Written by Dr Lisa Colledge
Twenty-two years ago, to this very day, I had completed my first day at Elsevier. It was a big deal for personal reasons: my first day as an employee in the corporate world rather than in academic research, and the means by which I could stay in The Netherlands in my own right rather than as someone’s partner. I have had a blast for most of the 22 years I’ve worked there, and now I find myself inexorably at the brink of an even bigger deal.
I am stepping into a new venture as founder and CEO of my own company. I am kind of surprised to find myself becoming an entrepreneur, but if I follow my instinct and interests, and trust everything I have learnt during my Elsevier journey (including the accompanying ‘illuminating’ personal journey), it’s the only possible next step. I am going to help organizations improve innovation, talent management, and business performance by modifying their culture so that it becomes a true cognitive mix: attracting, empowering, and engaging neurodivergent talent with the highly desirable skills that are enriched among autists, dyslexics, and ADHD, for example, as well as neurotypical talent.
During the last 22 years, I count roles in six different departments within the Academic and Government-facing division – product, strategy, academic relations, publishing, sales, and, most recently, marketing. I started as a Junior Publishing Editor and leave as a Vice President. I’ve been part of leadership behind the launch of the new Research Intelligence venture, and of establishing research metrics and their use as a strategic competency for Elsevier. I’ve collaborated with customers on more projects than I can remember. I’ve traveled around the world, physically and virtually, with many colleagues. I met my lovely husband Marcel Vonder and we welcomed our two children, Elise and Chris, into the world against the Elsevier backdrop. And I found my way into a completely new kind of world, driven by the impact on our family of Chris’ autism diagnosis, of which leading the wonderful members of the Elsevier Enabled ERG was an important and healing part.
What have I learnt during that rollercoaster ride? Three key learnings keep coming to mind because they have all been reiterated multiple times.
The collective genius is a wonderful thing. My value changed as my tenure lengthened and I moved higher in the organization. It was no longer about knowing every detail of a project as I used to, but became more about asking questions of experts with diverse skills and experience in increasingly multi-functional teams, and piecing together the different knowledge and insights they contributed using my perspective and experience, so that the whole ended up being more than the sum of the parts. Teams can do anything; individuals working alone can’t.
Understand your customers’ perspective and see how you can help. External or internal customers, it doesn’t make any difference. Open questions, active listening, and a non-judgmental attitude are powerful tools to build understanding. People are generous with their time and insights, and always provide illumination, especially if they know you’re trying to make them more successful and their lives easier. It’s never a good idea to become so attached to your brilliant idea that you force it to fit a customer's need.
Evidence-based decisions are great, only when informed by the people the evidence is about. Any audit of culture, performance, needs, or whatever else you can think of, definitely needs input from data and analytics, but there are people behind the numbers, and their jobs, careers, lives, and families are impacted by the decisions we make based on those facts and figures. You inevitably learn a lot about what the stats mean, and also about gaps in what they reveal, by taking the time to talk to people. I don’t think there’s any excuse not to include human input as part of any evidence-base.
“Where can we learn more about your new venture?” I hear you eagerly cry, “It sounds fascinating!” Indeed, it is, and you will be able to learn more, dear friends and connections, by keeping an eye on my LinkedIn feed. If you have comments, and of course if you’d like to learn more, I would absolutely love to hear from you, and you can expect to receive an enthusiastic response!
In the meantime, thank you to you all for helping me, in whatever way you have contributed, to get to this place in my life where I have the opportunity to launch this venture, which is so close to my heart, and such a good fit with my skills and experience. Ikigai, anyone?!!
I'm Lisa, and I help leaders create inclusive cultures that embrace all neurostyles. By empowering every team member to contribute at their best, while fostering mental well-being, you will boost innovation, retention, and talent acquisition—leading to enhanced business performance.
Click here to learn more about how my services can transform your team.
