Finding Your Voice with Jana Salamanca

[00:00:00] Welcome to the HigherHer Podcast by Talent Collective, presenting conversations with inspiring women in talent. And get ready ladies, because this is the last time you're going to hear a man's voice on this show.

[00:00:13] Hello and welcome to the latest episode of HigherHer Podcast put on by Talent Collective, our community for women in talent acquisition, where we hold conversations with inspiring women in talent.

[00:00:28] And today, of course, I'm joined here with my co-host and co-founder Krista Tan. Hello. Say hello.

[00:00:35] Hello. Hello, everyone. And we have a guest here, Jana from Seattle. Say hello.

[00:00:45] How's it going?

[00:00:46] You're welcome. And you are in Seattle today, right?

[00:00:51] I am in Seattle today getting ready for this bomb cyclone or whatever is going to happen tonight.

[00:00:57] It's supposed to be a big windstorm, so we'll see.

[00:01:00] Oh, no. Didn't know that.

[00:01:02] Yeah. Good luck.

[00:01:03] Yes. Thank you.

[00:01:06] Well, I don't know about up there, but it is very cold here.

[00:01:08] It feels very much like winter.

[00:01:10] Pulled out my sweaters.

[00:01:13] So we are excited to be here on Krista's Cozy Couch and hosting our next conversation with Jana.

[00:01:18] A little bit about her.

[00:01:21] She is head of talent with Logic 2020, and she is experienced in high growth, fast paced companies, and she's been in leadership roles, managing, coaching, mentoring, high performing teams.

[00:01:39] Prior, she was with Wes Monroe, a technology consulting firm, and she was recently awarded from the higher community, a similar community such as our own, but recognized as one of the top leaders in TA worldwide.

[00:01:55] Congratulations.

[00:01:57] Thank you.

[00:01:58] Thank you.

[00:01:58] I'm very, yes, very humbled and honored to be on that list for sure.

[00:02:02] Well, let's dive in there.

[00:02:04] If you want to formally introduce yourself, share a little bit about your journey, and then share about this recent, do they call it an award or recognition?

[00:02:14] How do they call it?

[00:02:15] How do they classify it?

[00:02:16] Yeah, award recognition.

[00:02:17] I'm a talent acquisition.

[00:02:17] But yes, a little bit about myself.

[00:02:21] Janice Salamanca.

[00:02:23] As Natalie mentioned, I am the head of talent acquisition here at Logic 2020.

[00:02:27] I have been in talent acquisition, gosh, for over 15 years, so a very long time, and grew up in the staffing and evolved to consulting environments.

[00:02:40] So historically have been focused in consulting environments, specifically technology and digital transformation, and helped to lead worldwide, as well as national recruiting teams.

[00:02:59] And yes, as you mentioned, recently was awarded and recognized as part of higher communities talent 100.

[00:03:08] And so the talent 100 is a collective community of talent leaders across the world that are essentially pushing the envelope and making strides and bringing innovations to recruiting in today's world.

[00:03:22] And so very, yeah, very honored and humbled again to be recognized as part of that collective.

[00:03:28] Very cool.

[00:03:29] That's exciting.

[00:03:31] And tell us a little bit more about Logic 2020.

[00:03:34] What do you guys specialize in?

[00:03:36] Yeah.

[00:03:36] And are you nationwide, global?

[00:03:39] Yeah, we are nationwide.

[00:03:40] So we are about a 200-person firm.

[00:03:44] And so we specialize in capabilities such as advanced analytics, digital transformation,

[00:03:51] strategy and operations across various industries like energy and utilities, high tech and telecommunications.

[00:03:58] And so helping our clients position themselves as competitive leaders in their space and helping to craft solutions that would also lend well to their competitive advantage in the industries.

[00:04:15] Got it.

[00:04:16] Okay.

[00:04:16] Thanks for that information.

[00:04:18] Okay.

[00:04:19] So we always like to start off with really kind of addressing vulnerabilities.

[00:04:24] What's really important to us on this podcast is we have an opportunity to amplify the female voices of the women that are a part of our community, but that doesn't always mean it's rainbows and sunshine.

[00:04:36] And not all of us have had the easiest of journeys.

[00:04:39] So our guests, we always encourage them to share something that has been a serious challenge that you've overcome in your career or your personal life.

[00:04:50] And if you don't mind sharing what that is and the more vulnerability, the better, because there are others that will definitely resonate with your story.

[00:05:00] Yeah.

[00:05:01] Yeah.

[00:05:01] Yeah.

[00:05:02] I think that's such an important, just an important question to acknowledge and also, you know, to your point, to call out the vulnerabilities and share the journey.

[00:05:14] And I think for women in general, like for me personally, and I've heard from other women as well, you know, I think sometimes it's difficult for us.

[00:05:25] And I also found it very difficult for me early on in my career to voice my opinions or contribute to meetings or just speak up in general, even when I had valuable insights to share.

[00:05:39] I had always worried or like, you know, the voice in my head would say, oh, well, you know, someone else will say it.

[00:05:46] Or, you know, maybe that's not the right thing or maybe it's wrong.

[00:05:50] And so then you just tend to, you know, I just tend to just keep it within, even though I'm engaged and listening.

[00:05:57] So throughout my career, like I have never been the loudest person in the room and I probably won't.

[00:06:05] But again, like for sure, like I'm engaged, I'm listening, I'm thinking and kind of, you know, planning my next move.

[00:06:14] And like, honestly, like this has always bugged me about myself, especially being a leader, because you, you know, for me, I've always thought, well, you know, I should be the loudest in the room or I should speak up more.

[00:06:27] And so, you know, I've made it a point in my professional development, be my own like hype person and speak up and prepare myself before meetings or before presentations in terms of talking points to kind of stake that claim within that meeting or, you know, presentation.

[00:06:51] And so, you know, just preparing myself to take that step and, you know, get out of my comfort zone to speak up.

[00:07:00] And I think what I've learned about that, it's funny because a couple of years ago at a previous company, it was performance review time.

[00:07:12] And I sent a project review to one of my stakeholders and, you know, you always fill out areas of opportunity.

[00:07:19] And I had listed, you know, I want to find my voice.

[00:07:24] I want to be, you know, I want to speak up more.

[00:07:27] And I sent it to my stakeholder.

[00:07:30] He was a member of the company's ELT team and he also ran one of the West Coast offices that I supported him on.

[00:07:41] And he received it a few weeks later.

[00:07:44] He was on a panel for our Women's Leadership Network for the company.

[00:07:50] And he goes, you know, it's performance review time.

[00:07:54] And I've received many reviews from women saying that they need to speak up or find their voice.

[00:08:00] And then he went on to say that, you know what, you don't need to find your voice because everyone already has their voice.

[00:08:06] And you don't need to be the loudest in the room.

[00:08:09] And I, it was a virtual meeting.

[00:08:12] And so I'm watching this meeting and I'm like, oh my gosh, I'm like, is he talking about me?

[00:08:16] I'm like, I feel heard.

[00:08:18] And then fast forward a couple more weeks.

[00:08:21] I was talking to him in person and he asked me, he goes, were you on that WLN call?

[00:08:28] And I said, yes, I was.

[00:08:29] And he was like, I, he's like, I was talking to you.

[00:08:34] And so that like really resonated with me.

[00:08:37] And he just went on to tell me, he's like, yes, he's like, I'm on the ELT.

[00:08:41] He's like, I will sit in those meetings and I won't say a word.

[00:08:44] He's like, you already have your voice.

[00:08:47] He's like, don't feel guilty because you're not speaking up.

[00:08:51] What you do through your actions, through how you lead, how you mentor speaks volumes.

[00:08:59] Like it's much louder than what you will say in a meeting.

[00:09:03] He's like, some people just talk to talk.

[00:09:05] He's like, you know when to insert yourself and when your words have impact.

[00:09:10] And he just reiterated, like, don't think that you have to be the loudest in the room because

[00:09:15] you don't.

[00:09:17] Like you already have your voice.

[00:09:18] You just know you are very unique in your perspective.

[00:09:21] And that is your voice.

[00:09:23] I love that.

[00:09:24] Well, thanks for sharing.

[00:09:26] Yeah, it's every leader has their own style.

[00:09:30] And, you know, it doesn't always have to be, like you said, through, through words.

[00:09:35] Like oftentimes actions are so much louder than words.

[00:09:38] And clearly, you know, you are making that impact by the work you're doing.

[00:09:43] And maybe it's more one-to-one-to-one-to-one rather than, you know, broadcasting that message

[00:09:51] to the entire company.

[00:09:53] Right?

[00:09:54] Totally.

[00:09:55] Yes.

[00:09:55] Well, awesome.

[00:09:56] Thanks for sharing that.

[00:09:57] But so talking more about challenges, you know, specifically being a woman in leadership

[00:10:06] or just in your career, can you maybe drill down and share anything specific that you think

[00:10:13] you've faced or overcome specifically about being a woman in your career?

[00:10:19] Yeah.

[00:10:20] Yeah.

[00:10:21] I think, I think I, for me, like imposter syndrome is, it's real.

[00:10:29] Like I, you know, I continue to struggle with it, you know, and I think, you know, women

[00:10:35] continue to struggle with it to a degree, whether, you know, it's, it's very loud or maybe it's

[00:10:40] just like a, you know, a small showing from time to time.

[00:10:43] Um, but yeah, like, I think I, um, as a woman in my career, you know, overcoming imposter syndrome

[00:10:49] and the feeling that I don't fully belong or like my accomplishments were, you know, not

[00:10:55] earned.

[00:10:56] Um, and so I, you know, I, I have noticed that, you know, certainly the mindset holds me back

[00:11:04] in terms of, um, again, speaking up during meetings, maybe sharing ideas or pursuing opportunities

[00:11:09] outside of my comfort zone.

[00:11:11] Um, and so for me, what has helped, um, is one like seeking mentorship and support.

[00:11:19] Um, so connecting with mentors, um, other women who are also in similar leadership roles, um,

[00:11:28] and just hearing the stories and hearing similarities, um, hearing differences and recognizing, wow, like

[00:11:36] I, like we are the same, like we are experiencing the same challenges.

[00:11:41] We are in similar roles.

[00:11:44] Um, we have certainly earned the roles that we are performing in.

[00:11:48] Um, and we shouldn't shy away from those accomplishments and, um, and be proud of where,

[00:11:54] where we are and how far we've come.

[00:11:55] Um, and, you know, just keep reminding myself that, you know, my skills, ideas are certainly

[00:12:03] worthy of recognition.

[00:12:04] Um, and so that has helped me kind of reframe, you know, signs of self-doubt or periods of

[00:12:11] self-doubt, um, rather than, um, you know, feeling inadequate.

[00:12:17] Awesome. Thanks for sharing.

[00:12:18] And I think like so many women experience that, like you said, um, I know I've told Krista this

[00:12:26] many times over the course of our career, we've worked together in a variety of ways for many

[00:12:31] years and it has shown up for me differently, um, at different ages or different companies or

[00:12:39] different leaders that I've reported to.

[00:12:42] And, you know, I resonate with you saying like, you found a mentor and I found a mentor.

[00:12:48] Um, but it was often like I needed that mentor to validate the things.

[00:12:53] Like I needed to hear that person say, yes, yes, you're onto something or help me like

[00:12:58] recraft it a little bit and then hype me up to like, then go in and say it.

[00:13:03] Um, so I just encourage other women who go through that to like find a mentor, but leverage that

[00:13:09] mentor in the specific part that you need from them.

[00:13:13] You know, maybe it's like, in your case, I want to learn from a peer that has been doing

[00:13:17] something similar for me.

[00:13:18] It was, I just needed someone to tell me that it was good or quality or, um, of value so

[00:13:25] that I could like gain the confidence.

[00:13:27] Um, so mentors really can have an impact, but I feel like sometimes women even struggle to

[00:13:33] figure out like, well, how do we best leverage a mentor?

[00:13:35] Right.

[00:13:36] Like that word is so broad.

[00:13:37] So, um, thanks for sharing that example.

[00:13:40] Yeah.

[00:13:41] Um, okay.

[00:13:42] Well, kind of expanding on women and leadership roles.

[00:13:47] Um, what do you believe are really essential qualities for a woman in a leadership role

[00:13:53] and, and how do they cultivate these?

[00:13:55] How do they learn them themselves?

[00:13:57] Um, do you have any examples of a leader that kind of stood out to you or maybe how you've

[00:14:02] grown as a leader?

[00:14:02] Yeah, yeah, I think, um, yeah, I think authenticity is a, is a big one.

[00:14:12] Um, you know, for me personally, um, like I look for that in my leader, um, in, and I think

[00:14:21] that being able to like be transparent, um, and be empathetic, um, one being able to build

[00:14:31] trust and credibility with, you know, your peers, your team.

[00:14:36] Um, I think that that is, um, yeah, I think that that's pretty crucial for women in leadership

[00:14:42] roles.

[00:14:43] Um, strong communication, I think, um, you know, again, not, you don't have to be the loudest

[00:14:51] in the room, but, um, having, uh, you know, effective communication, um, I think also lends

[00:14:57] to, you know, building those strong relationships and influencing, influencing others.

[00:15:02] Um, and also, um, I might be biased here.

[00:15:06] Can I, can I say that out loud?

[00:15:08] Um, but emotional intelligence, I think that women just in general have, um, just more awareness

[00:15:15] and being able to understand and manage, um, you know, one's emotions as well as empathizing

[00:15:21] with others, um, which I think is also really important in, in a leader.

[00:15:27] Mm-hmm.

[00:15:29] Um, funny you should say that because I was just listening to, and I can't remember because

[00:15:33] I listened to a million podcasts and whatever you hear on podcasts must be true.

[00:15:37] But this one podcast was saying, it was talking about, I think, CEO, women CEOs and their greatest

[00:15:44] strengths overall, you know, like in, in general are, is that EQ and just having more of a pulse

[00:15:53] on the culture of the company and the relationships with people in the company and even like clients

[00:15:58] and, and, um, customers and whatnot too.

[00:16:01] So I totally agree about that.

[00:16:04] And then I think your authentic, authenticity point, um, really brings true with what you

[00:16:09] talked about in the very beginning about being, you know, not being the loudest voice in the

[00:16:14] room and that's not the kind of leader you have to be.

[00:16:16] And you're authentic in your own way and people see that and know that and trust, trust you

[00:16:24] for those things.

[00:16:26] I think authenticity really builds that trust, um, that so many people seek out in a leader

[00:16:31] too.

[00:16:32] Yeah, absolutely.

[00:16:33] Um, okay.

[00:16:34] And then going, um, along the, maybe the bias route, this'll be our last question.

[00:16:41] Um, but talking a little bit about like the differences of men and women in leadership

[00:16:46] roles and how those styles might differ, you know, what have you seen maybe some advantages

[00:16:52] of what those differences might be, or is there anything else you've noticed with regards

[00:16:58] to the differences of men and women leadership styles?

[00:17:01] Yeah, I think that, um, and also what I have experienced, um, is women.

[00:17:11] I tend to, and myself too, um, I place greater emphasis on the wellbeing of team members, um,

[00:17:21] as well as others, you know, within the company in being able to foster a, you know, a positive

[00:17:27] work environment.

[00:17:28] Um, whereas I've seen men put more emphasis on the doing of, you know, just the doing and

[00:17:39] not necessarily, um, again, like the wellbeing where I think the wellbeing and making sure

[00:17:46] that your team members are taken care of kind of goes hand in hand with the doing.

[00:17:50] Um, right.

[00:17:52] Like I don't, I don't think that someone's going to do good work for a leader that maybe

[00:17:56] they don't resonate with, or maybe that they don't connect with.

[00:18:00] Like there's a feeling of, um, you know, uh, that connection, right.

[00:18:04] You want to do good work for good people that you work for and with.

[00:18:09] Um, so I think that that, you know, I have seen that difference for sure.

[00:18:13] Um, and then I also think the, um, uh, collaborative style and maybe participative, um, where women

[00:18:24] and myself too, I tend to prioritize building relationships, um, and involving and bringing

[00:18:30] others along in their journey, um, of maybe a new process or decision-making, um, whereas, um, sometimes

[00:18:39] with men, um, it is the, well, you know, this is what I've seen and this is what we're going to do

[00:18:46] with kind of no collective, um, you know, opinion or conversation, um, from others.

[00:18:55] Yes.

[00:18:55] I've seen a lot of the similar things in, in my years.

[00:18:58] So must not just be your world.

[00:19:01] I think these are some, some themes that, um, we can all probably relate to.

[00:19:07] Um, Jana, it was so, so great connecting with you today and hearing your story and, um, just

[00:19:13] learning more about you and, um, your perspective on women and leadership in the workplace.

[00:19:19] Um, so where can our listeners find you and what can they connect with you about?

[00:19:25] Yeah.

[00:19:25] So I am on LinkedIn.

[00:19:26] Um, so Jana Salamanca, um, you know, certainly, um, I, I just love meeting new folks in the

[00:19:35] industry, um, and being able to, to mentor and, you know, lend an ear.

[00:19:40] Um, so I would be happy to connect with you on there.

[00:19:43] Awesome.

[00:19:44] Well, maybe you could be a mentor for our mentorship program.

[00:19:47] So I'll have to send you a link to that.

[00:19:51] Yeah.

[00:19:51] Um, but thank you again.

[00:19:53] Thanks for your time.

[00:19:55] Yeah, it's been great.

[00:19:57] Great getting to know you.

[00:19:58] So to everyone else, please continue to subscribe and like us.

[00:20:03] And, um, you can find Talent Collective on LinkedIn and YouTube and all the places.

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[00:20:12] All right, everyone.

[00:20:13] Well, thanks for tuning in and we will see you next time.

[00:20:16] See you next time.

[00:20:17] Bye-bye.

[00:20:17] personãy subscribe and see you next time.

[00:20:17] Bye-bye.

[00:20:17] Thank you.