10 Guiding Principles with Microsoft's Kati Quigley

I recently had the pleasure of hearing Microsoft’s Kati Quigley speak at the Women in Technology (WIT) breakfast during the recent Worldwide Partner Conference planning meetings in Toronto.
The room was packed and people – both men and women – were there to hear her speak. She shared her 10 Guiding Principles.
She added color and personal stories to each point. You had to be there to hear those. Or, seek her out at the WPC this July in Toronto. I’m pretty sure she’ll be talking about these again there. Perhaps at the WIT luncheon – either on the dais or with the attendees (or both).
She mixed her 10 Guiding Principles with a few quotes that helped tell the story. She mixed these in at just the right time. She also utilized a well known quote from Eleanor Roosevelt to emphasize one of her 10 Guiding Principles.

"In a gentle way you can shake the world" ~ Gandhi

Here they are … in order. But, the nice thing about them is they can take on a different order depending upon where you are in your day, your career, your life.
Kati’s 10 Guiding Principles
As Kati said … these are not 100% her ideas. Rather they are a distillation of things she’s learned on her own and especially from some of her best teachers – her father, her managers in early roles, and her kids.

1. Always give 110%
2. Don't let 'em see you sweat
3. Hire people that are smarter than you
   
   The Next Three are important. They ask and allow you to be you and to take things at the pace they come while being respectful that everything doesn’t always happen when you expect.
   
   
4. Celebrate successes and always say thank you
5. Allow for peaks and valleys
6. Be your own favorite person
   
   The 3rd Set is something she emphasized throughout her presentation. One key aspect was to be a Lifelong Learner. She added that when she interviews and mentors people she looks for this trait.
   
   
7. Learn, learn, learn
8. Be direct and specific. Don't just say "good job"
9. Do something every day that scares you. ~ Eleanor Roosevelt
   
   Last, but not least …
   
   
10. Don't compromise your beliefs

I was very happy to be invited to this breakfast meeting. The questions at the end were indicative of the audience interest in the primary topic of Women in Technology. Again, you had to be there to get the real-time questions, but the gist is … everyone in attendance wants to help Women in Technology.

“… pursue the things you love doing and then do them so well that people can't take their eyes off of you." ~ Maya Angelou

If you are interested in learning more about Women in Technology and Microsoft’s commitment to helping drive this effort check out the Microsoft Partner Network.

Key Point: Although this was a Women in Technology breakfast meeting there is still a place for men in the meetings and the activities. So, if you are a guy and interested in helping drive awareness, education and inclusion please consider checking out you local WIT efforts.

Also, if you will be attending the Microsoft Worldwide Partner Conference this July in Toronto you can meet with Kati and her incredible team there. If you haven’t signed up yet … the time is now. Discounts are in place and the event always sells out.

Image Credits: Harry Zgnilek (an awesome Microsoft partner, IAMCP Montreal leader, and all around good guy)
Jeff is an expert in the Enterprise Content Management industry. He brings over 20 years of Channel Sales, Partner Marketing and Alliance expertise to audiences around the world in speaking engagements and via his writing. He has worked for Microsoft, Kodak, and K2. He is currently the consulting with Microsoft and partners to drive Community Engagement and Alliances.

Tweet him @jshuey or connect on LinkedIn, Facebook, or Google+ He is active in the Microsoft Partner Community and is the co-founder and President of the IAMCP Seattle chapter.

He is a contributing author to Entrepreneur, Elite Daily, Yahoo, US News and to the Personal Branding Blog