Katherine Lucas, Managing Director, Head of Marketing Technology and Solutions, State Street won Excellence in Marketing & Communications at Markets Media Group’s 2022 Women in Finance (U.S.) Awards.
What was your reaction to winning the award?
Honored, of course, but honor quickly turned to humility when I found out I was nominated by my incredible team. Success comes not from any one individual but from a team – and I am truly lucky to have one of the most amazing ones in the business!
What have been the main drivers of your success?
I am an extrovert – but to my surprise, my cheerful smiles and warm approach gave others the impression that I was less intelligent and lacked leadership skills. In 2015, I gave a TED talk that identifies the different types of extroverts and argues that the workplace needs them all. I would like to think that maintaining my authentic self has been a key driver of my success.
What is your greatest professional achievement?
Two years ago, State Street announced the acquisition of Charles River Development, and the industry closely watched as we began to execute our vision to connect clients’ front, middle and back offices, which we named State Street Alpha.
Launching this new platform-based line of business that focuses on delivering a seamless end-to-end experience for our institutional clients by creating a true front-to-back office open architecture platform – was a significant due diligence, branding and communications exercise that has continued to take shape over the past several years. It was also a noteworthy milestone for our company and for the financial industry. Since the launch of State Street Alpha we have seen the industry – competitors and clients – embrace the concepts of a front-to-back office open architecture platform – and I am quite proud to have been a part of this transformational endeavor.
Tell us about a passion you have outside the business.
That’s an easy one – my family! I have an amazing and supportive husband and two gorgeous children, a three-year old girl and a five-year old boy, who make me laugh and smile every day. To watch my kids learn and grow is simply unbelievable; both have them have taken to ice skating, so we skate and play hockey together as a family on the weekends on our backyard ice rink in the winter. As they both begin school and start on their own journeys, I hope to impress upon them the principles that have helped guide me – to always be genuine, to value kindness to others, and to understand that success grows from people.
Who have been the main influences in your career?
Fundamental to my journey, have been the people who have helped me to navigate my career. While I have had some amazing managers and colleagues who have helped shaped and guide me in my career including Hannah Grove,
Nadine Chakar, Julia McCarthy, Julie Barys, Katelyn Sullivan, Andy Muncer and Jim Knowles, the two major influences in my career have been my mother and father. They taught me that success can only come from hard work and focus, with a willingness to be a lifelong learner. More than the value of hard work and diligence, however, they instilled in me the belief that kindness and empathy cannot be left out of that equation.
My mother in particular, who was a pretty tough executive in her day, taught me how to advocate for myself and others, create a voice and find a way to take time and be proud of my efforts and achievements and ensure that I was pausing to recognize my amazing team. She is, to this day, my greatest advocate and ally, reminding me to challenge myself and hold myself to lofty standards and never ever stop learning or smiling.
What are three positive things your colleagues would say about you?
As I write these answers, I’m actually sitting with part of my team in a conference room, as we all sit together to better connect when we go into the work, as opposed to sitting in individual offices. So the direct answers from them are – a positive attitude, active listening, strategic solutioning and empowering them as individuals while supporting the team.
