Erica Keswin

Start with People, Get Results with Jeannie Weaver, VP of Retail Marketing at AT&T

Whether joining a meeting from Zoom, on a walk, or in-person, Jeannie Weaver knows that intentional connection is key to how she leads a team of 45+ in the retail marketing and special experiences space at AT&T. The pandemic disrupted so much, but it never changed—only reinforced—her approach to leadership: start with people. Her team has been able to thrive through these turbulent times by recognizing individual contribution, curating experiences together, and focusing on gratitude. In this episode, Erica and Jeannie discuss how to actually walk the walk, how daydreaming helps Jeannie feel most like herself, and why grace and vulnerability for ourselves and others is the most important takeaway from the past two years. Jeannie is a model of leadership for anyone responsible for a large team in an even larger corporation. Listen in for a human-centered approach to this type of organization.

Quotes

“When you start with people as your approach, the results come.”

“We will get together because there’s just this craving of the energy, the human connectedness, right? I want to be with people, but I want to be with people with intention.”

“I need to make sure this is not a ‘do as I say,’ but truly ‘do as I do,’ and I need to tell you that I am doing those things—‘Oh, I took a walk today.’”

“Starting with gratitude in the book club and in meetings [equalizes everyone]. People you normally didn’t hear from now put forward things that are on their heart, that are important to them. And then that starts to snowball. Other people start lighting up and engaging and participating.”