Hong Kong
Notes from... Jane Hertzmark Hudis
Company Feature, Mar 28, 2017
In celebration of Women’s History Month, we are featuring a series of first-person essays from female leaders from The Estée Lauder Companies who share their perspectives on a range of topics primarily relating to women and the workplace.
March 28, 2017 - Estée Lauder once said, “I didn’t get there by wishing for it or hoping for it, but by working for it.” After working at this Company for more than 30 years, currently overseeing some of the world’s most beloved prestige beauty brands as Group President, I know exactly what Mrs. Estée meant.
I’ve been fortunate to have learned from some of the greatest leaders at The Estée Lauder Companies, starting with Mrs. Estée Lauder, a powerful and courageous female entrepreneur – ahead of her time in every way – who continues to be an inspiration on so many levels; Evelyn Lauder (pictured below), who understood and exemplified the power of women helping women; and Leonard A. Lauder, who took me under his wing early in my career and has been my mentor ever since.
I am humbled to have contributed to the success story of this incredible organization and I am committed to cultivating its next generation of leaders. We are a Company with a heritage of nurturing people and one of my greatest joys is to develop talent – to help people build their capabilities and to watch them grow in their careers. My approach consists of a few main themes: passion, risk-taking, respect for history, and hiring the right people.
Advice I consistently provide to younger people who are at the start of their journey is that you need to find your passion to achieve professional fulfillment. Passion is the secret ingredient for success. For me, the ability to marry my love of art and beauty with business comes to fruition almost every day here. If you love what you do and you do what you love, life is a beautiful thing.
The idea of experimenting early on and having the courage to change and take risks and try new things is also important. You don’t really know your full potential unless you take something on that is big and beyond your reach. I encourage people to get out of their comfort zones. I learned this first hand when after 10 years in marketing and product development I packed up and moved out to California to experience a completely different side of the business, as regional sales manager for Prescriptives. It was far from what I knew but I gained a valuable new perspective working closely with our beauty advisors and most importantly, our customers. It provided me a 360 degree look at the business and helped me become a brand leader.
Another point I make with aspiring leaders is the importance of respecting history while welcoming innovation. We are working with some of the most trusted brand names in the world that have stood the test of time. It’s essential that we understand why, and that we uphold our promise to our consumers while delivering new experiences and benefits. Whether it’s collaborating with Kendall Jenner to introduce a new generation of beauty enthusiasts to the Estée Lauder brand, or teaming up with Victoria Beckham (pictured above) on a new collection of signature products — we remain true to the essence of who we are, with beautiful strong women bringing excitement to the brand.
And finally, the best advice I ever received, which I’m eager to share, was from Leonard Lauder who said: always hire people who are smarter than you are. I didn’t fully appreciate what this meant at first, but it has made all the difference. I am energized by some of the youngest employees on my team who add so much value, particularly in digital, social, and online. The magnetic attraction this company had for me early on remains just as strong as we continue in our female founder’s footsteps – redefining the beauty business and pushing innovation to new heights.
Read more about Jane Hertzmark Hudis, Group President.
