This article was originally published on LinkedIn.

And we’re off! I’m both proud and delighted to be taking up the role as Chief Executive Officer of Avanade, especially in this, our 20th anniversary year. Over the summer, I’ve had time to meet with some of the team and in my conversations so far, people always ask about my personal story – what has shaped me and what I value. So, as I step into my new role, I thought I’d share my perspective on what inspires me, how I’ve built my confidence and why feeling cared for is important:

Inspired - Throughout my career, I have been driven to make a difference and help inspire others by my actions. My mother was my first source of inspiration – pushing my siblings and me to put ourselves out there and encouraging us to find our voice. (As an example – she once gave us a copy of the book “Feel the fear and do it anyway” by Susan Jeffers – which I still recommend to people today!). She was the one who encouraged me to be the first one in my family to go to university. At the same time, inspiration is a two-way street so I’m looking forward to being inspired by the Avanade team, by our clients, by our partners and by all the fantastic things that we can do together.

Confident - I learned the importance of being confident and resilient from an early age when we moved from living in London to Basingstoke which was a small town back then. Sports are one of the things that really helped me break down barriers that I faced because I was different. My Dad taught me how to play cricket at a young age, so my hand-eye coordination is really good – which the kids in my school didn’t realize until I stepped up to bat in a game of rounders and whacked the ball right to the other side of the field! Being confident isn’t always easy, so throughout my professional career, I have sought out mentors as trusted advisers to provide honest feedback, connect me to others, freely share their wisdom and help me to continue to learn and grow. I’ve personally felt the power of this model and my job as CEO is to create the environment that fosters mentorship, along with growth and development, for everyone. 

Cared for – There’s no doubt that the Avanade culture has something special and over the last few weeks, I have been touched by the personal messages and expressions of support that I have received from inside and outside the organization. Feeling cared for is something I am deeply committed to helping our clients and our team feel every day.

So now that I’ve shared my perspective, I’m keen to hear yours. What makes you feel inspired, confident and cared for in your workplace?

This post is adapted from Pam Maynard’s first CEO message to all Avanade employees.