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Lead to Soar: Career Advice and Guidance for Ambitious Women Leaders

Celebrating Women's Leadership: Heather Polinsky on her path from Public Servant to C-Suite

Season 8, Ep. 177
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Heather Polinsky is an environmental consulting professional with over 20 years of experience. She started as a civilian project manager for the US Army Environmental Command. She found herself in consulting not too long ago and has had a wonderful career trajectory that's taken her from Project Management through Program Management and Client Development. She is now a leader of leaders in Operations. In this episode of the Lead to Soar Podcast, Heather reflects on some of the ways mentors have helped her most, the best career advice she's ever received, and how she has developed The Missing 33% (business strategic and financial acumen) throughout her career. Heather was recently appointed as the Chief Operating Officer of Arcadis North America, with a staff of ~6,000 professionals.


Learn more about Arcadis by visiting Arcadis.com

 

Notable Quotes from Heather Polinsky:

On advice for professionals growing in leadership: "Really make sure that you're willing to ask questions, and the second part is - trust your team... We're all at the table because of something we offer that's unique... and if you've built a good team, it's designed that way. So use it!"

"You have to understand what your picture looks like and be happy with your picture. Don't spend your days comparing yourself to other people, families, or pictures. Because they might not be the same, but it's OK..."

"My message is: go for it now. If you think you'll be ready in a year, you're probably ready now."

Lead to Soar is a podcast for ambitious women and the leaders who support them. Hosted by Michelle Redfern and Mel Butcher, it delivers evidence-based, practical advice on leadership, career progression, and closing the gender gap. Join the Lead to Soar Network at leadtosoar.network or get Michelle’s book The Leadership Compass at michelleredfern.com/book.

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