In honor of the Feb. 15 celebration of U.S. women’s suffrage on Susan B. Anthony Day, enjoy this excerpt case study from MPI’s Women in Leadership certificate showcasing lessons from Alison Taylor, senior vice president of global sales and distribution for American Airlines.

 

They key to great leadership is a focus on people, according to Alison Taylor, senior vice president of global sales and distribution for American Airlines.

“What matters most, in any role, is what we’re able to accomplish for our team members,” she says. “Developing great talent and investing in resources, bolsters not only retention and performance, but localization. Ensuring local, relevant leadership in-market has always been, and will continue to be, instrumental to the success of our company and our customers.”

Take the time to understand where your team is coming from and what it needs. “When I started at American Airlines, my goal was to host town halls in every destination and division to get a good viewpoint of the team, their hurdles and how I can support them,” she says. “That led to one simple goal: Be the easiest sales organization to do business with, which we are working towards every day.”

Related Certificate Courses: Women In Leadership

Equally important is strong customer focus. “Active listening, connecting personally and understanding customers’ needs – that’s how we ensure that we’re exceeding expectations and ringing the cash register,” Taylor says. “Those same tools are also fundamental to successfully motivating and collaborating with your teams.”

• Other leadership advice from Taylor includes the following.

•  Find strength in diversity, especially when it comes to your team’s composition.

• Learn by keeping up with trade publications, attending trade shows and conferences and networking.

• Start from a place of trust, and it will cultivate greater trust, performance and loyalty among your team and client base.

• Validate the trust placed in you by being an engaged leader and supporting others.

• Work hard to advance, take on more responsibility whenever you can, make education a priority, and be flexible enough to move around your company.

• Seek global experiences to help you understand how to work with different people and cultures. The empathy, insight and compassion you develop as a global citizen will help you effectively work across literal and metaphorical borders.