Women of Spiro Leadership: Terry Campanaro

What lessons can we take from savvy women leaders making strides in the events & experiences industry? Spiro’s global chief growth officer Terry Campanaro dishes insights—including why having a mentor is a game-changer, advice to women on how to handle uncomfortable professional situations, and the ever-present work-life balancing act. 

Supporting women leaders is important to Spiro and the events & experiences industry. Only 28% of women in U.S. leadership roles hold a C-suite position, making it even more important to elevate their voices and glean insights from their experiences & expertise.  

As part of our Women of Spiro series, we sat down with Terry to discover takeaways from her more than 25 years of experience developing integrated marketing solutions for clients. In addition to managing more than $300 million in global revenue & overseeing the efforts of Spiro’s sales & client-service professionals, Terry has helped Fortune 500 companies optimise their returns on their experiential marketing investments. While overseeing a rapidly expanding team, Terry has established herself as laser-focused sales leader, a trusted client partner & an industry mentor.    

Check out what Spiro learned in its recent Q&A:  

Q> What is the most difficult part of being a woman in a leadership role?

Terry> While any leadership role can be incredibly rewarding, it can also come with a myriad of challenges—motivating employees, allocation of scarce resources, navigating change, dealing with conflict resolution—and achieving financial and other objectives just to name just a few. But above and beyond the complexity of the role itself, there have been several other challenges that I’ve personally faced along the way in my more than three decades in various leadership positions. 

Early in my career as a young leader, I was part of an older, all-male leadership team, and even though I had earned my role, there were those little nagging thoughts of, “Do I really belong here?” Today, I believe this situation is called “Imposter Syndrome” & many women in leadership positions experience this. 

With male leaders being my primary role models up to this point in my career, seeing what worked for them didn’t necessarily feel natural or seem like it would work for me—being direct and to the point felt too aggressive, but showing too much empathy or emotion ran the risk of being considered too “soft” or not decisive enough for the job. Finding my own voice took some effort to finally get right. 

As I gained confidence in my role, I discovered that empathy was not a weakness, but a necessity as a leader, and that being very direct & assertive at times was also required but was not an excuse to be rude or hostile.   

Another lesson my early leadership experiences taught me was the value of having mentors—both male & female, but especially female. I was fortunate to have both in my career, but it was my first female mentor—a colleague with years of experience—who was key in helping me develop my unique leadership style & approach.  

This woman’s guidance, combined with that of other mentors throughout my career, taught me to believe in myself & trust my gut/inner voice. I have learned that this voice is rarely wrong, so I encourage all leaders—female & male—to refuse to allow self-doubt to be a limiting factor. It may sound trite or simplistic, but I really do feel that if you truly believe in yourself, you can do pretty much anything.   

Perhaps my biggest challenge, and one I contend with even today, is finding that elusive work-life balance. Whether real or perceived, as a young, female leader I felt like I needed to work harder than others to demonstrate my value and prove my worth. Combine this professional drive with the demands of a growing family, and I was suddenly faced with trying to do it all.  

Trying to excel at everything—be an inspiring leader, a caring & “present” wife & mother, and a loving parental caregiver—is exhausting. Chronic stress and lack of sleep take their toll & looking the part—showing up in the office every day looking put together while hiding the bags under your eyes felt like it was a requirement, especially for a woman.  

As I said earlier, I still wrestle with this today & I am trying hard to strike a healthy balance in this area, but it is not easy. When I look back at my career trajectory, I realise that I often sacrificed too much time with family and close friends & did not carve out the personal “me time” needed to create a much needed professional & personal equilibrium.  

I have learned over the years that a healthy work-life balance is very much a necessity, so I encourage everyone, regardless of gender, to please set boundaries, prioritise self-care, and give yourself and those in your personal life the time & attention they deserve. 

Q> What trend(s) are you seeing in sales that women in leadership should take stock in and incorporate into their business strategy? 

Terry> Relationship building skills—establishing, building, and nurturing your bond with clients—are still a key, if not the key, factor in sales success. I truly believe this principle to be the foundation for a successful selling career. 

As for trends, I am seeing that there are many more stakeholders & considerations involved in the purchasing decision now than there used to be. Procurement, legal, executive leadership, DEI, sustainability—they all impact the sales process. 

All these groups and issues must be factored into your business strategy today. In the past these considerations either didn’t exist, or they played a much less central role in the client/partner dynamic.    

Q> What is your superpower? 

Terry> Juggling. With a demanding job that dictates long hours and frequent travel, a close family that still wants me very involved as a wife, mother, daughter & sibling, and varied interests outside of my work & family, it can be quite challenging to keep it all straight and moving in the intended direction.  

I readily admit it is not easy at times & requires constant vigilance & attention, along with lots of endurance & energy—and lots of coffee!

Q> What is one tip to be successful in managing a global team? 

Terry> I truly enjoy the diversity of talent, cultures, backgrounds & perspectives that comes with managing a global team, and I love that I have the ability to travel the world virtually every day via Teams calls!

As a global sales leader, my single best tip is to realise that people are people all over the world & they have the same set of basic needs & motivations, regardless of geographical location. 

While you should acknowledge & be sensitive to cultural & other location-based differences, the same set of basic leadership principles still apply. These, such as ensuring everyone feels valued, respected & heard; establishing & working toward a common purpose or goal; and having lofty yet reasonable expectations of your team are universal in nature.

Q> What is your personal brand & and how has it evolved? 

Terry> This is a tough question because I never looked at myself as having a personal brand, so I don’t think of myself in those terms. 

From the start of my career, I dedicated myself to being that person who can be counted on to get the job done no matter the difficulty, while also being that person who knows that no one does it alone & you need to surround yourself with the best talent you can find.

I began my career with this viewpoint—and if anything—it has only gotten stronger as my career progressed. 

Q> What advice do you have for other female professionals?

Terry> My advice for female professionals is that if you think your gender will hold you back in the business world, it will. Don’t accept gender bias as inevitable; and when you experience it, find a more suitable organisation for your skills, talents, disposition & career aspirations.

As I stressed earlier in our conversation, I also think it is critical for female professionals—for all professionals for that matter—to find a mentor & a partner. While it is great if they are the same person, they do not have to be. 

For me, my mentors fulfilled the role of teacher, coach & sounding board. And my partners have been those who I have relied on to be there to collaborate, commiserate & tell you what no one else may tell you, but is something you really need to hear.   

Q> What is a daily or weekly habit that has helped set you up for success?  

Terry> Each morning as I start my day & grab my morning coffee, I try and take a few minutes to practise gratitude. 

Life can be extraordinarily hectic & it comes at you fast. Taking a few minutes to be mindful & grateful every day helps centre me, clear my mind, keep my priorities straight & energise me. 

That—and a daily piece of dark chocolate or three—help keep me going & allows me to do my job to the best of my ability. 

Q> What are you most proud of in your life?

Terry> While I have had my share of success in my professional life, my family is far & away my greatest source of pride.  

As a person who works in an industry that is 24/7 & requires a load of travel, work can frequently get in the way of personal time & family plans. Throughout all of this, I’m proud & grateful that my husband has been very understanding of these demands & has been extremely helpful & encouraging. I believe with any successful person there is a person behind the scenes that has helped them get there & he’s been that for me.  

Perhaps my greatest source of pride & achievement is being a mom to two remarkable daughters. Like any proud mom, I could go on endlessly about my kids, but let me just simply say I could not have asked for better children. That gleam you see in my eye is from the delight I feel when I think about the amazing individuals they’ve become. 

Q> How will AI change the status quo for the Sales Industry?

Terry> I believe that AI has the potential to offer tremendous benefits to both society & business, but it is not without its drawbacks, and it is a tool that must be used with care. 

When I look at the sales landscape, I can see AI having a dramatic & positive impact on our sales processes, customer service, speed to market, and ability to scale & grow. AI will allow us to automate processes & deliver 24/7 customer service that mimics the flexibility & personality of human interaction, delivered with speed & the ruthless efficiency of the microchip. 

Speed to market & revenue growth will be driven by AI’s ability to harvest & analyse massive amounts of data & synthesise it into actionable answers, recommendations, or iterations. The pace of innovation is dizzying in this area and the trick is to keep up with it & figure out how to take advantage of this. I don’t think anyone has truly figured this out yet. 

AI will also be able to provide meaningful information that will help with connections & relationship building. However, I don’t think AI will change the fact that most sales success will still revolve around relationships & one’s ability to offer the best solutions to your clients’ challenges. The promise of AI is huge & I see it as an ever-evolving tool that can help shape & propel the relationship dynamic, improving the pace & quality of the solutions offered. 

While I am incredibly hopeful about its promise, we know that with all new technological advancements we need to be cautious about any potential drawback. This is particularly important with AI, as its potential to deceive & mislead is great. I think that it is our responsibility as business leaders to be able to recognise & take advantage of the benefits of a particular innovation or technological advance while also minimising any risks.   

Q> What’s your favourite podcast or publication that you follow?  

Terry> Honestly, I don’t have a favourite podcast or publication. My tastes & interests are extremely eclectic. I try to read & watch as much as I can about everything. That includes reading multiple news feeds, several industry & general business publications, and as many books as I can jam into my free time. 

I also must admit to my guilty pleasures of YouTube cooking videos—great for when walking on the treadmill—and the occasional US and People Magazine issues for those long plane rides home when I just want to be a vegetable!