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Member Spotlight with Rose-Marie Nathan

Our latest Member Spotlight is Rose-Marie Nathan, CMgr FIML. Rose-Marie is a Partner & Senior Sourcing Specialist at Customise Talent Group – a recruitment consultancy working with leading organisations in New Zealand. Rosey hosted the Rosey On Recruitment & Career podcast and publishes 5 Questions With… weekly on her blog.

We love Rose-Marie’s leadership philosophy which highlights the importance of self-awareness. Rose-Marie shares her wisdom with us below, including how good leaders will focus on bringing out the best in others.

What has been your biggest achievement as a leader?

Working with, supporting, advocating, and amplifying other leaders, candidates, hiring managers, and employees. I realise from my career I have a skill that can allow these groups to improve communication, relationships, opportunity, and value that may have otherwise been missed or overlooked.

Leadership is both a responsibility and gift. When chosen by a person or business as a leader, or to mentor someone, especially if that person is a successful leader in their business, it is both a privilege and a sign that I’m doing the right things in the right spaces with the right intent.

It’s important to me that I walk in the authenticity of who I am, both the failures and the successes, showing that vulnerability and providing a safe space for others in their journey.  I advocate messages that some may see as idealistic, but that I believe create outstanding workplaces of transparency, positive challenge, diversity, inclusion, and real solutions to human problems.

Although it has taken a lot to be brave and stand in that space, to embrace my imperfect, whole human, real self, I also know this has allowed others to do the same, so I know it is absolutely worth putting in the mahi (work) every day!

What advice would you give to an upcoming manager and leader?

To not judge how your team members arrive at their results by your process. It’s a hard one and I have to remind myself of this some days too!

As a leader you have a specific set of skills and strengths that have allowed you to be successful, those are authentic to you.  Importantly then, don’t automatically impose your frame of reference, how you would approach a project, or your process on those you lead.  By doing this you are creating boundaries and limiting the ability to leverage their natural strengths, which could if they are nurtured, lead to greater results.

Ask instead what really must be done, what is a minimum acceptable result, and what is the optimal outcome. Anything outside of that is usually a check box for process’s sake and can be getting in the way of moving from minimum to optimal.

Don’t be fooled by what has always been, be a champion of removing the unnecessary and allowing some creative freedoms, if results are clear of course! Be who you are, and let others be who they are; understand each individual so you can lead and lift them in the ways that encourage the best they can be.

How do you continue to grow and develop your management skills?

There are a few ways, I love to stay connected with leaders I admire and trust, this gives me perspective on what is and isn’t working across a variety of industry, environment, and business size types.  I also learn so much while mentoring senior leaders, brainstorming solutions and next steps for business and team strategy, and employees who are struggling with their managers, both are so very satisfying.

Another is my current favourite way to consume education, through LinkedIn Learning. I enjoy it because you can jump in and out of courses, and completed history is on your profile so those who may want to work with you, or want to understand where possible alignment is, can see the areas you’re interested in growing in.

On top of that it’s a lot of conversations, webinars, podcasts, audio books, YouTube, and documentaries. I try to look for topics/themes/perspectives that challenge my own, to continue to push my boundaries beyond what could otherwise become an echo chamber.

I’d like to complete more IML / Coursera / University courses over the next 1-2 years, but would need to allocate time to that commitment, so it’s a consideration work in progress.

What do you do to maintain a good work/life balance?

I’m probably not the best person to answer that!  In recent years, especially with COVID, I tend to be all on, or all off, so am trying to minimise the gap between the two and gain some consistency with sleep, nutrition, and exercise.

What does help me right now is having an amazing team at Customise Talent Group that are always available and supportive. Professionally and personally, I know they have my back if there is a lull or a bad day where I need to lean into someone who gets the challenges unique to sourcing and recruitment.

Importantly also having those at home and great friends that understand, listen, are encouraging, and cheerlead or console through the ups and downs has saved my sanity. They have reminded me of what is really important, countless times. I’m so very lucky to have an unconventional and wonderfully functional family unit, and dedicated friends, in my corner.

I’ve also just started getting into short hikes, so escaping into nature with our dog truly shifts to a place of mindfulness with great physical benefits, but when I don’t feel like a hike and goblin mode hits (it is an actual thing!) I’ll binge TV episodes, or a couple of movies, and not do much else.

So, I don’t know if that’s a good work/life balance to aspire to but being kinder to myself where I am while working on consistency is helping me get closer.

Complete this sentence: Leadership matters because….

When done well it creates space, safety, and inspiration that develops the best in others.

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