One of my favorite parts about working at NetApp is our focus on growth and learning. We encourage our teams to think about their path forward and chart a legacy that they can be proud of. One of the ways we encourage forward-thinking and planning is through the NetApp® Sales, Support, and Services (S3) Academy, a 2-year global development program for early-in-career talent who aspire to become the next generation of NetApp leaders, sales professionals, and technical pioneers.
I recently had the pleasure of meeting with the S3 Academy participants to answer questions, share my experiences, and inspire their journeys at NetApp. Their insightful questions led to a conversation about career priorities, market insights, and advice for building their legacies. Here’s a deep dive into what we discussed.
In our fast-evolving industry, maintaining structure and priority is key to meeting our vision for the future. Making a clear plan for our customer success and team development is at the top of my list. During our discussion, I emphasized the importance of planning and prioritizing time effectively.
For example, I plan out my schedule 12 months in advance, balancing among people, customers, and partners. When I set out my plan ahead of time, it allows me to center on my goals and prioritize my time well into the future to meet that vision.
The S3 colleagues and I chatted about diversity and inclusion, and I wanted to make something very clear: We need to be proud of being diverse. One of the most important elements of diversity is curiosity—your willingness to understand others and actively learn about them.
I offered a simple example: If I throw a party for people from all around the world but only speak to my friends in Spanish, others will feel excluded. To truly be inclusive, we must understand the diversity of cultures, opinions, languages, and experiences. When we explore and understand the diversity in our teams, we build a legacy of inclusion and community that we can truly be proud of.
Interestingly, most organizations share similar overall goals. They value the top line, the bottom line, value to shareholders, and customer success, and they care about their people. There might be differences in a region’s internet availability or the youth of the workforce, but the basic customer experience is very similar in every language and country. Well-run organizations achieve their goals by focusing on the most important priorities: the financial goals and the stakeholders who play a part in success. When we understand how similar we all are, we build a more inclusive and productive team.
Early in my career, I believed that relentless work was the key to success. I measured success by how many hours I spent at the office. I often only got a few hours of sleep and even worked Saturdays, because working from home did not yet exist. This mindset led me to sacrifice personal time with my family. Over time, I realized what I had missed with my young family, and I learned to balance my professional and personal life, making compromises to ensure that I show up fully for both. Thinking about my legacy and my life, I had to be honest and authentic with myself: To leave the legacy I desired on my workplace, I needed to commit to creating a better balance between my family and working hard.
Being authentic means being true to yourself, your values, and your happiness. It’s about understanding that each person’s journey and definition of success are unique. Happiness, as I see it, is the most important aspect of life. You need to find what happiness means for you—whether it’s personal interests, service to others, or climbing the corporate ranks—and work to make sure that your legacy is well envisioned.
My meetings with the S3 Academy are always interesting, insightful, and fulfilling. I care deeply for everyone at NetApp—and their careers, families, growth, and happiness. I hope we all feel challenged with the opportunity to expand and learn new things. Finally, I hope we are all curious and trying to understand one another so we can truly live NetApp’s value of sharing a growth mindset. When we do that, we can leave a lasting legacy for those who follow us.
César Cernuda is the President of NetApp, Inc, the world’s leading intelligent data infrastructure company. As President of NetApp, Cesar leads the global integrated go-to-market organization spanning all sales, marketing, services, and support. With almost 30 years of experience in the technology industry, César is well regarded for his customer centric approach to leadership and has a proven record for delivering customer success.