Agata Fischer – Comfortable outside of the comfort zone

我们都知道舒适区的危险（并吸引）。全世界有很多聪明人的报价鼓励我们“走出您的舒适区”，或者“只有在您不舒服时才会发生成长”。当您学会喜欢在自己的舒适区域外面时，那是您自己成长的自己。

This is how Agata Fischer, business director for detection and services at Leica Geosystems, describes her success and the consistent forward trajectory of her career. Rising up through organisational structures, she was recently recognized as one ofXYHT 2020年40岁以下的40岁以下.

The commendation reads:“尽管她的学术背景从事业务流程和营销，但Agata对地理学和地理空间理论，实践，尤其是新兴技术有了一个模范的了解。她的稳定崛起首先是希尔蒂（Hilti）和莱卡（Leica Geosystems），这是令人印象深刻的，但引起我们注意的是她的演讲和著作。精通技术和商务以及出色的演讲者是一种有力的组合。多语言菲舍尔女士是上述所有内容。”

确实令人印象深刻，但这是一种强烈的职业道德，以及向自己证明自己的渴望，她甚至可以超越自己的期望，即意识到自己实际上享受着挑战，并且始终如一地超出了自己的舒适区域。

做出改变

Fischer受过商业管理和市场营销的教育，首先在实习生开始职业生涯中首次接触产品管理。她首先将头扔进了未经宪章的水域，她发现自己只提供几天来学习材料的产品培训。她很好地管理任务，并以强大的导师的角色管理，她渴望自己成为产品经理。

“With a great mentor who was a product manager, I always had a clear idea where I wanted to be,”said Fischer.“作为一名产品经理，我可能很像企业家在驾驶员座位上。我可能会与客户接近，了解工作流及其需求，并提供带来价值的解决方案。”

With this experience, Fischer also wanted to better understand the marketing side of business, so her first role after her internship was as a marketing manager. Here she learned the process of features, benefits and values, and conducting market research.

Her sights, though, remained on her goal of becoming a product manager. Putting her networking skills to the test, Fischer was able to work on projects in other departments. Once again stepping outside of her comfort zone, she travelled alone to the UK to meet customers onsite and learn their needs firsthand. With her desire to learn and her willingness to work hard on full display, she pushed herself to prove she had what it took to succeed in the role.

“Though I prepared myself to fully succeed in this role, I was also willing to take a risk, really push myself into new territory,”recounts Fischer.“I was given opportunities to really think and act like an entrepreneur, being held responsible for the success of a complicated project.”

While transitioning from a marketing to product manager, Fischer took on the complex work of turning a services line into a profitable part of the business. First, using skills built in her marketing role, she conducted market research to better understand the customers she was now working with on a closer level. She then created a network of stakeholders who she turned into supporters.

“There was a learning curve to overcome here, and I identified the people who I knew were key to making this line successful and gathering their input,”said Fischer.“在依靠其他人以成为负责任并完全拥有该项目之前，我的过渡一直持透视。”

When the services line turned into a successful part of the business, Fischer knew she had finally proven herself. Along with her determination to reach her goals, she also attributes her success to a strong sense of curiosity.

“I’m a really curious person, especially when it comes to customers. I want to know what they are doing, what drives them, what pains them,”菲舍尔解释。“This genuine curiosity helps me to build trust with the customer and enables them to open up to me so I can help build better solutions for their problems.

我也总是愿意学习，这就是我认为将我推向新的水平。”

今天，菲舍尔（Fischer）领导着列卡地理系统建筑工具部门的产品经理和培训师团队，再次从产品经理晋升为业务总监。她现在负责开发和指导Leica GeoSystems检测解决方案的产品路线图，进入市场和销售策略。她从自己的职业旅程中学到的知识，旨在通过对他们的强烈信念和信任他们的能力来增强自己的团队能力。

“Working in my role and within this company and with the leaders I’ve had plus always learning willing to grow while being uncomfortable, I’ve built a sense of strong confidence and pride in myself. I want to give that back now to those I have the privilege of leading,”said Fischer.“I focus on developing my team by showing them I believe in them, enabling them to grow in their positions with new responsibilities; essentially also pushing them outside of their own comfort zones to try new things even if they think they can’t do something. When they prove they can, it’s not only a celebration for them but the whole team.”

在工作场所建立自信的妇女

人的器官nisation Fischer says empowered her to take on challenging opportunities is Construction Tools President Katherine Broder. Fischer says Broder’s leadership skills inspired her to pursue her goals and model her own leadership style.

“凯蒂从一开始就鼓励我成为产品经理，”菲舍尔解释。“She was and still is open to all of my questions, and she empowered me to design my own work programmes and style, implicitly believing in me.”

The feeling is mutual as Broder explains the mentoring relationship between the two actually goes both ways.

“Drive, dedication and the willingness to go beyond, that’s what makes Agata successful and a strong leader. It’s inspiring to me to see her grow and continue to unfold her talents,” said Broder. “Agata has truly become an asset to our business and organization. Meanwhile she has become my sounding board and mentor – a perfect development not only for me personally but also for the company.”

Seeing a minority of women leaders in the workplace, Fischer advocates for more opportunities for women to prove themselves in the boardroom. She points to the unique problem-solving and social skill set women possess to build strong results and more diverse work environments.

“Women, unfortunately, are not as initially confident in business as men even though they possess skill sets that are sorely needed to make business thrive,”菲舍尔解释。“不过,当我们腾出空间来构建confidence, as was done with me in the company, they surprise not only themselves but those around them in how much they can actually accomplish.”

Fischer is currently working with the company’s Human Resources department to chair a working group to further review how the company can better support women in the workplace, such as reducing hinderances due to childcare concerns. As an up-and-coming woman leader in the company, she’s now also mentors to other women, paying back the mentorship she received earlier in her career.

她建议妇女和其他人找什么g to prove themselves?

“尝试。那是关键。总是愿意尝试学习新事物。选择可以继续学习和受到挑战的角色，”菲舍尔鼓励。“Growth doesn’t happen unless you leave your comfort zone. Get comfortable with being uncomfortable because that’s where we truly prove what we’re capable of and succeed.”