Gisel Ruiz: On How to Take Risks In Your Career And Triumph
Gisel Ruiz: On How to Take Risks In Your Career And Triumph
by Luisana Rodríguez
With 26 years of experience in distinguished companies like Walmart and Sam's Club, Gisel Ruiz is a global chief executive, board director, strategic advisor, and speaker. She is an Independent Board Director for brands including Cracker Barrel Old Country Store, Inc., serving her passion of contributing significantly to a company while enjoying the success she and her husband have realized over the past two decades.
As the first in her family to go to college, her parents taught her that the only challenges they would face were those she allowed to affect her. She was taught to believe that there is nothing she cannot do as long as she works hard.
“I realized and appreciated that I was the first woman and Latina in many of my roles. I never viewed it as a disadvantage. I was confident I would provide a unique and fresh perspective in the roles I held because I’m Latina. In my mind, that would always be an advantage”
Her parents' values of integrity, tenacity, and perseverance are why she can follow her dreams. According to her, "my father never went to school, and my mother has no further education than middle school. Nonetheless, they both were brilliant, ambitious, hard-working people who each opened up a small business in California.”
As time passed and her exposure grew, Gisel began her journey as a board director. She reminisced about her first exposure when she was an executive at Walmart: “In my roles occasionally I presented in front of the Board. Each presentation was like a coaching session from a group of world class executives and directors who guided me through their engagement in and outside of the board room." As part of her development, Walmart offered her the opportunity to serve on three different boards inside the company, "I was fine-tuning my own strategic thought process while I was providing value."
Her best advice to a future board director is to provide questions and insights that help management's think through key strategic decisions. The interactions with management and board colleagues continually builds your base of knowledge beyond your previous experience, Ruiz adds. “Besides your fiduciary duties and board responsibilities, you are contributing to the team's development." When reflecting on what should be the top priority for a corporate director to maximize their efficiency, Gisel states that it’s been challenging after the pandemic's impact on the economy. “Priorities have intensified - global challenges, investor pressures, the uncertainty of uncertain times, plus a stakeholders set that is continually expanding have all added a level of complexity to how boards balance time and resources."
Consequently, discussing the benefits of having a diverse board is essential. Ruiz points out the many reports and studies on the performance level of companies with diverse boards, such as Cracker Barrel Old Country Store where she became a director in 2020, versus those who don't have diversity in their team. Ruiz says, "Whether at board-level or management level, diversity is not something corporations should ignore." Gisel likes to emphasize that the richness of diversity does not only come from ethnicity, but it is a mix of all human experiences throughout their life.
Gisel is proud to be part of a generation of trailblazers breaking down barriers for gender and ethnicity and paying it forward is part of her mission. Ruiz advises taking risks in one's profession and doing jobs that push outside the comfort zone.
"Risks and new experiences are going to broaden your skill set and perspective. No matter the outcome, it’s one step closer to success because you’ve learned something new. Be resilient, persevere," urges Gisel.
Gisel Ruiz has been on this unique career path. She represents Hispanic grit and determination in the U.S. and can now reap the rewards of the seed her parents planted years ago.
**photo credit: Courtesy of Gisel Ruiz
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Ruiz says, "Whether at board-level or management level, diversity is not something corporations should ignore."