International Women's Day: Karina's story

By Karina Townley, Managing Director (Client Services for EMEA)

As we celebrate International Women’s Day, Managing Director, Karina Townley, shares her story and thoughts on her experience as a single working mum.

I joined Guidant in 2004 – 19 years ago!
As Managing Director (Client Services for EMEA), I am the executive sponsor for our client programmes. Delivering operational excellence in everything we do to our customers, suppliers, candidates and team is my key focus.

Career before Guidant
I’ve been fortunate to work across different industry sectors and roles within Guidant mostly focused on customer delivery. As with every business, change is inevitable and I have always embraced and enjoyed that. Every day is a learning day. Be curious, ask questions, broaden your network – seek your own opportunities to grow and develop.

Juggling work and family life as a single working mum
When I asked my daughter, Orla, how she thinks I do this, she responded with: “Err, you put us ahead of work and try to not have too many calls when we are around!” This is what she sees, and I’ll take that.

For every parent, there are times when it is a challenge. The truth is, for me at least, it is always going to be a bit of a juggle and there is reason I don’t work in the circus… However, my daughters are pretty cool little humans who understand that, at times, Mummy has to do some work. I will always endeavour to put them first, but to do this, I’m also very fortunate that Guidant has a culture of trust and flexibility.

Make your culture inclusive by being authentic in everything you do
Treat everyone as an individual and take onboard feedback to continually evolve and change. Also, accept that you can’t always get it right, but learn from it and move on.

​

Want to be a part of diverse and inclusive working? Join #TeamGuidant today >