HIStory to HERstory
by Michael Trebony
On November 24, 2006 at 4:08pm my daughter was born. I remember like it was yesterday when the Doctor asked me to cut the umbilical cord and separate her from the security of my wife’s womb. As I held her in my arms, I looked into her eyes of fear and uncertainty, and with each breath she took, I knew that my life had now forever changed. I whispered in her ear that she would be protected and loved with all that I had to give. I warned her how the world would try to put a value on her worth and tell her of all the things she could not grow to become because she was in fact born a girl. I leaned over, kissed her on the cheeks, held her tightly, and committed to her that as her Father, I would fight to make sure she was seen as uniquely different but more importantly, equal to all. This would be accomplished together with a Father’s commitment to her. The world would try to shape her but she would in fact shape the world.
Five years ago, I began my first day of a new work assignment with the Women’s Leadership Forum at Best Buy. Many people asked at the time why I would subject myself to being one of a very few men in a network filled with women, not to mention a working team where I was the only man. To be perfectly honest, I asked myself those very questions in those early days. And after the first year of working on the team, surrounded by strong powerful women, those questions where an even louder alarm at night. What have I done? What have I gotten myself into? And then my daughter was born and the answers seemed to flow effortlessly. I knew that this work was bigger than business and more about a worldview.
While the business case was clear as to why the company needed a Women’s Leadership Forum, it was beyond the financial impact that this powerful human network impressed upon me. Over the first year of immersion, women taught me the art of listening, the selfless act of service, and the importance of sustainable business growth when both women and men are seen as equal in the quest for positive employee and customer value. Through women, I learned that I alone could not accomplish the mission I had promised to my daughter. Alone I would be weakened over time but collectively, both men and women, we are strengthened. This would forever shape my worldview of the importance of inclusion and lay the blueprint for my purpose in life.
Grow the business and change the world with her in mind.
What started with a few passionate women years ago has now grown into a vast movement of thousands of women and men. A movement that at its core reflects the soul of a company, and tells the world that Best Buy is in the people business and business is good. This business evolves from good to great when both women and men have a seat at the table to help bring a connected experience in service of the customer. I am fortunate to have been a part of this story of the Women’s Leadership Forum, and as I reflect on the past and present, it is in the future that my hope is best explained. You see, this movement is beyond a department, beyond a company, and even beyond a nation. This movement is about something bigger than the individual and more about the connected community. A community of business leaders, mothers, fathers, daughters, sons, and simply put, human life.
Through the Women’s Leadership Forum, I have evolved to become a better husband, father, and overall leader, and that is a gift that I will forever be thankful for. As we all move collectively together for a common cause of growing business with her in mind, we must collectively raise daughters in a world that embraces her uniqueness, sees her as equal, and provides her the same opportunities of boys. While many paths have already been created on the shoulders of giants before us, the road ahead is far and wide. The great news is we are on this journey together and the legacy we leave for our children will one day tell the story of how a movement within a company helped shape together how business can grow with men and women and ultimately change the game for all who follow in our footsteps.
HERstory…..Now that is a cause worth fighting for.
on:
The Helper: (over)Step
