People of Beam Suntory: Natasha Teo
People of Beam Suntory: Natasha Teo
“In the last two years, I’ve seen a huge change in my confidence.
At a young age, I was taught to respect my elders. There wasn’t a lot of room to challenge authority. It’s fairly common in Asian culture. As an adult, I wanted to shed some of that thinking. But I lacked the confidence to speak up. I wasn’t comfortable sharing my opinion.
When I joined Harmony [Beam Suntory’s Asian Employee Impact Group (EIG)], I felt a sense of belonging being part of a community of people who shared similar experiences as me and understand certain challenges Asian people face growing up. I found a safe space to talk, listen and share my experiences with others. It’s helped my confidence at work – and outside of work.
I also volunteered to lead Beam Suntory’s International DEI workstream focused on generational awareness. We created forums to listen and learn, but also share. I had to lead many of the sessions and mentally prepare to speak up. The more I participated, the more I shared, and the more at ease I felt discussing uncomfortable or difficult topics – or having a difference of opinion. It was empowering.
As I started speaking up more often, people would reach out and share affirming responses. I truly felt I had the ability to be a leader for others, but also for myself. I’ve found that Beam Suntory can be a place where everyone has a seat and a voice at the table to challenge ideas and personally grow into the best version of ourselves.
My recent experiences have helped me build a sense of community, but they’ve also unlocked a boldness that I didn’t know existed. My life-long dream was to move to America. There was an opportunity to move into a global marketing role in California. In advocating for the role, I realized that when you’re confident, you can portray and deliver who you really are. The moment I accepted my new role, I felt like a football player … like I had just won the Super Bowl, in tears because I had just won for my team. It’s surreal and genuinely how I felt – overwhelmed with gratitude.
Now I’m in LA with my husband, fulfilling my dream. And I am incredibly grateful for this opportunity to stretch in new ways, widening my functional skillset and becoming a more globally-minded marketer.”
- Natasha Teo, Brand Manager, Australia --> Los Angeles