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Writer's pictureZaharo Tsekouras

Chiefly Podcast: What it means to be a Chief of Staff with Adrianne Poyet-Smith, Chief of Staff @ VMWare

On the different aspects of the role, unconventional career paths, mentorship, and why building strong relationships is key to succeeding

 

Welcome to the Chiefly podcast!


Today’s guest is Adrianne Poyet-Smith, Chief of Staff to the VP GTM & Transformation at VMWare, a cloud computing and virtualization technology company.


Prior to VMWare, Adrianne was the Chief of Staff to the CMO at SAP Concur.


In this episode, Adrianne and I discuss:

  • Her experience transitioning into the Chief of Staff role

  • The importance of mentors

  • What it really means to be a Chief of Staff

  • Why taking risks is a core aspect of the role, and more


Check out the episode here!

Show Notes


00:00  How Adrianne knew the Chief of Staff role was for her

01:29  Learnings from mentorship & finding a champion at work

03:11  Adrianne’s biggest takeaways from her mentor/mentee relationship

05:12  Other career trajectories of former Chiefs of Staff at SAP Concur

06:47  Adrianne’s primary responsibilities

08:19  How the Chief of Staff collaborates with others on the team

10:09  Why the first 90 days are so critical for a Chief of Staff

11:35 — A Chief of Staff’s “breakeven point”

13:12 — The value of doing a listening tour during your onboarding

14:10  Taking risks and advice for aspiring Chiefs of Staff if there isn’t an opportunity internally

14:57 — How Lindsay Goldman (CoS at Rupa Health) landed her first Chief of Staff role

16:30 — Advice for current or aspiring Chiefs of Staff knowing what she knows now about the role

18:08 — What Adrianne believes in but isn’t as open to telling most people

19:34 — Adrianne’s contrarian viewpoint on remote work

20:49 — Tips for remote collaboration

22:38 — The top question to ask to really connect with someone

23:49 — The importance of EQ and psychological safety on the job

24:47  Parting thoughts for aspiring Chief of Staff

Key takeaways:

  • A Chief of Staff is a strategic thinker, communicator, and stakeholder and accountability manager.

  • Building relationships and trust as a Chief of Staff is crucial, especially within the first 90 days.

  • When you’re clear on what you want, be fearless and take risks.

  • Career paths look more like squiggles than straight lines, and that’s OK.

References

The First 90 Days by Michael D. Watkins

More about Adrianne:

More about Zaharo:

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