Eclectic Career Paths with Microsoft’s Hayete Gallot

In Her Ellement

How do you find the right career path with so many options available? According to Hayete Gallot, Corporate Vice President of Commercial Solution Areas at Microsoft, the key is experimentation—trying new things, figuring out what excites you, and identifying what doesn’t.

In the final episode of Season 3, Hayete reflects on her eclectic career journey. She shares how her passion led her to frequently switch roles, gaining experience across diverse areas such as engineering, product management, marketing, sales, and business planning.

Where does Hayete find the confidence to continually explore new paths? She credits her mom as a major source of inspiration. After becoming a widow at 32, she worked full-time while raising four young children. Her advice to Hayete was simple but powerful: always strive to be independent because life can be unpredictable.

Hayete has a resourceful approach to balancing work and family life. When she became a mom, she developed a strict calendar management system to ensure she dedicated time to her children. This structure not only helped her be present with her family but also boosted her productivity within the time she allocated for work.

About In Her Ellement:

In Her Ellement highlights the women and allies leading the charge in business, technology, and digital innovation. Through engaging conversations, the podcast explores their journeys—celebrating successes and acknowledging the balance between work and family. Most importantly, it asks: when was the moment you realized you hadn’t just arrived—you were truly in your element?

About The Hosts:

Suchi Srinivasan is an expert in AI and digital transformation. Originally from India, her career includes roles at trailblazing organizations like Bell Labs and Microsoft. In 2011, she co-founded the Cleanweb Hackathon, a global initiative driving IT-powered climate solutions with over 10,000 members across 25+ countries. She also advises Women in Cloud, aiming to create $1B in economic opportunities for women entrepreneurs by 2030.

Kamila Rakhimova is a fintech leader whose journey took her from Tajikistan to the U.S., where she built a career on her own terms. Leveraging her English proficiency and international relations expertise, she discovered the power of microfinance and moved to the U.S., eventually leading Amazon's Alexa Fund to support underrepresented founders.

Subscribe to In Her Ellement on your podcast app of choice to hear meaningful conversations with women in digital, business, and technology.

Mentioned in this episode:

CEO Moments of Truth

Before we hear from our guest on this week’s episode of In Her Ellement, I want to take a moment to highlight a fantastic new video series from BCG that I think you will really enjoy. It's called CEO Moments of Truth, and it’s hosted by BCG CEO and previous In Her Ellement guest, Christoph Schweizer. Join Christoph as he talks to top CEOs about the most difficult decisions they’ve faced so far—how they navigated them and how those moments shaped them into the leaders they are today. Visit bcg.com/mot to watch the series.

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