Claire Midwood CEO Managing Director of Amorelie - discusses leadership and being a working parent.

Well hello Lisa, thank you very much for inviting me to this YouTube moment. I'm Claire Midwood, I'm British, I work for Amorally, which is a German-based company in the sexual wellness space. We sell sex toys, education, and all things necessary for sexual wellness. I have been a senior executive at Adidas for 20 years, moved to America to work with Apple as a managing director, and now I'm back in Germany as the CEO of Amorally. How did that come about? I realized that a CEO role was the right next step in my leadership progression. I also realized through research that this is a critical sector for everybody. Everyone has sex or thinks about it, but it's the least talked about. We worry about our health, we eat well, we do sport, but we forget that sexual well-being is also critical. If we don't understand ourselves inside, it's hard to form close bonds. This is an untapped space that will be critical for the future, especially with COVID-19 lockdowns. It's been six months and it's brilliant—great team, great opportunity, amazing conversations I never thought I'd have about toys and all the shenanigans.

I think the most important thing is communication. Whether in lockdown or not, your job as a leader is to communicate with transparency—share the good, the bad, and the ugly with the whole team, not just your directors. If everyone knows the reality, you can do something about it. In lockdown, you have to over-communicate and be over-present. You have to listen, learn, and understand what people are saying because there's a lot of fear. I can't predict the future, but by being vulnerable and honest, having open conversations, we can plan for the future regardless of circumstances. Sticking your head in the sand only allows fear to grow.

Absolutely. If you're honest about the situation, everyone knows where you are and can work on solutions. If decisions are made behind closed doors, no one feels empowered or accountable. Our job as a leader is to provide space for people to own and be accountable. You don't learn or grow otherwise. I'm not an expert in operations or finance, but I have people on my team who are, and they guide me. Collectively, we're stronger.

I think it's actually an exciting time for businesses. There's a lot of fear, but it's about how you manage that in your plan and communicate it. Coming into a company, you reset things. We've used this time to work on foundational practices and processes that were lacking. It's also been a time to challenge the norm. For example, we completely changed our home office policy. We used to require everyone in the office, but now we see it works and the team feels it's a real benefit.

Just a moment on working parents. I'm schooling a nine-year-old while working. I've committed to certain times to help him, and I communicate to the team when I'm available. They understand because that's my mode of working. We have to be flexible with working hours. Sometimes it's not 9 to 5, and we accept that. It all comes down to communication.

I have a different philosophy on recruitment. A resume only tells half the story—functionally what they're good at. I'm always interested in personality. I prefer an interview where I see they can do the job from their experience, but what's really important is whether they fit the culture and have the personality to cope with crazy things like COVID-19. My philosophy is: 50% of the job they can do from their resume, 25% might be new to them, and 25% is completely new. The most important thing is personality, communication skills, problem-solving, empathy, vulnerability. I always look at behaviors and personality. Sometimes I ask what they do on the weekend because their life drives them. What they post on Facebook is as important as what they post on LinkedIn. That's who they are as an individual. This culture shift is for the better good. I've always interviewed that way—I'm interested in you, not just your CV.