Fairygodboss Radio: Julie Grzeda - Director, Early Career Talent at GE Aerospace

In this episode of Fairygodboss Radio, Kumud Bika, VP at The Muse, sits down with Julie Grzeda, Director of Early Career Talent at GE Aerospace. Starting as a chemistry major, Julie found her true calling in human resources during an internship at GE in the '90s, marking the beginning of her impactful tenure. 

From her early days on the shop floor to leading change in early career development, she shares insights on the power of continuous learning and building meaningful relationships. Hear Julie's candid stories about navigating dual careers, relocating to different geographies, and finding balance between work and life's rubber vs. crystal balls.

Julie is an accomplished HR leader and curious learner with diverse experiences building culture and capabilities for GE. She is a strategic business partner to senior executives across several industries and functions and has a proven track record for improving leadership team effectiveness, engaging employees, and developing people.

Julie currently leads a team and strategy focused on the early career talent pipelines for GE Aerospace. From university recruiting, internships and rotational development programs, her teams are inspiring, guiding and challenging the next generation of leaders and innovators.

Julie is a Chicago native and graduated with a B.S. degree in psychology from Indiana University. She is a graduate of GE’s Human Resources Leadership Program and progressed through HR roles of increasing responsibility and a wide range of GE businesses and markets.

Kumud Bika: I'm Kumud Bika, Senior Vice President of Account Management at The Muse and Fairygodboss. Welcome to Fairygodboss Radio! Today I'm joined by Julie Grzeda at GE Aerospace. Julie, welcome to the show. Excited to have you here today. 

Julie Grzeda: Thank you so much. I'm so pleased to be here.

Kumud Bika: All right. Well, we're going to dive right in. I would love to hear more about your career. How did you get to where you are today? 

Julie Grzeda: Today, I'm in human resources and I ended up starting out that way, despite being a chemistry major and thinking I was going to do all these other things. I was an unlikely pick for an HR internship at GE. Hold on to your seats. I've been with GE ever since. I was fortunate enough to be selected for the HR leadership program. It's a rotational program that exposed me to all different assignments and teams in several areas of HR, so I got to look at compensation and labor relations and some HR partner work. And I continued to progress in a wide variety of HR partner roles. I supported frontline leaders, labor relations in the manufacturing plant, contract negotiations. I supported sales and marketing teams, and over time more and different global scope as well. I had opportunities to do talent management and talent development roles with talent reviews, succession planning, workforce sort of insights and what kind of capabilities we need to build for our company's prospects and growth. I did some process improvement work. We had quite a lot going on with Six Sigma and Lean and other things. So even as an HR professional, I got to dig into some of our toughest problems and learn some of the methodologies that could help us in our work as well. And I was a HR leader for one of our GE Capital businesses, so financial services, where it was on a crazy growth track, expanding our Salesforce effectiveness, expanding our footprint in new geographies and so on around the world. 

I ended up moving to GE corporate and I supported our CIO, so one of our most senior leaders to really do a transformation on technology at GE and the workforce around that, which was incredible. And most recently, my Chief HR Officer asked me to move into a space that just didn't exist before, in creating what I now call the Early Careers Leadership role. It was new. My charge was to be a change agent and contemporize how we developed our next generation of leaders, how we renovated our go to market for university level talent around the world. It turned into probably the last decade of my career bringing me to now. I've decided I love this space. I truly have an appreciation for how much opportunity there is to do this well, and I guess the only big change is that my company continues to go through many different changes. So, of course, there are always twists and turns to my learning and my impact. I currently focus on GE Aerospace, where I used to focus on different GE businesses. So, my career is a windy path of HR, you know, building culture and capability across GE. I've had the fortune to have continuity at a company. I know that's kind of unheard of, but there's just always so much to do. I've always said, you know, 90 percent is what I love and the other 10 percent is my job to fix it. So lots of things to do across a human resources career. 

Kumud Bika: I love that so much. You made a few references to starting out as a chemistry background and landing your first opportunity at GE. And then more importantly, your tenure is just so impressive and it sounds like there's been many opportunities during your time with the organization. And I'd love to just take a step back and really understand a little bit more how you've navigated those career transitions. And what were some of the most crucial decisions you had to make along the way?

Julie Grzeda: The most notable that come to mind are those really tough ones. So I guess I'll start somewhere in the middle where my husband and I had to make decisions about our dual career and moving geographies to take new responsibilities. We had a couple of those. One we had when he was working in a different company and doing well, and it was a very localized company. And my opportunity was to move across the country to a different part of the world. And he took the leap with me. We landed well. We probably in complete candor scratched our heads and wondered if we made the right decision for the first, I don't know, six months, maybe even a year. But in all, I can safely say we both thought it was a great move in the end. We both were quite happy with the growth and new opportunities that it brought us. Later he actually worked for GE also. And we made a big move and it was the easiest move we ever made because there were lots of people ensuring that we both had growthy opportunities in the same geography, and that was quite wonderful, actually.

I guess navigating change comes in a lot of forms. Like I said, that one comes to mind quickly because it was such – I don't know, you know, it's all the pillow talk of like, what are we going to do? Navigating those also is on the work front. So it's about, how are you going to learn a new space and take on the hill? How are you going to build relationships to be resourceful and comfortable with getting in the groove to make impact? And I would say you have to do both the personal side and the work side to really make some of these changes become a good decision, a good step forward.

Kumud Bika: I appreciate that so much because there's so much that we're navigating throughout our lives, right? Both on the personal front and professional front, and they do collide, right? To your point, finding balance and being able to approach taking the right steps to ensure that there's balance throughout. So I do love hearing that. And it's amazing. Yeah. Just navigating a new role in itself is challenging. I can't imagine, you know, making a big decision to move. Moving in itself is a big decision, but to be doing both simultaneously is quite a bit, but it's also a big part of your role. I love hearing about that. And actually, it's a great segue to my next question, which is, your personal experience, but you know, I think we talk a lot about gender and how that plays a role today in particular, but I'd love to hear how that has played a role in your career specifically.

Julie Grzeda: Sure. I will go in the way back machine, like way back in my earliest days, I would say it played a role because I was sort of unexpected. Maybe it was my youth. Maybe it was my gender. Maybe it was both, but I was on the shop floor with a unionized workforce and doing union relations and labor relations. And I would say, I felt like I had to figure out my voice both physically like how I projected I couldn't talk softly and because it would just play right into some stereotype or something like that. To this day, my husband will tell you, I am a loud talker at work. 

I'll fast forward, and of course something that I think many of us experience is having a child, and anticipating childcare, and anticipating all of the wonderful and scary things that turn your life upside down and reprioritize your world. So I would say, while I think this is true for parenthood, it's not just my gender, I think that that is something that is a really important milestone to embrace and understand how much you give, but how much you get back. And some of those trade offs that we all make, whether it's for children or not, really are times that take reflection about what's important to us and how we're going to make something that's scary and new work out. And I would say I have three children, so I survived, I figured it out. My husband is an incredible partner to help me figure that out. But I would say from a career perspective, don't let that limit your thoughts. I really wondered, oh, do I have to go part time? Do I need to have a job that requires no travel? And other people wrestle with all of these things. So I would just say, I'm incredibly proud that I have not only figured that out, but my children are watching.

Kumud Bika: I think that's such a great point, and I think there's so many people who share that sentiment, especially women. It is hard to believe that in this day and age, we are still grappling with the idea of do we have to make a choice between being a parent, being a mother, and choosing our careers. And so it's really great for you to reinforce and restate that you've been in a position where you don't have to make that choice. It is still balanced. And I think it is important to get that message out there because again, it's not one or the other and there's no right or wrong, you know, I think that's the other piece of it. And if you work for an organization that allows you that flexibility and the time to really figure it out. Because to your point, there's a lot of uncertainty. I think when it comes to parenthood, right? It's almost like taking. I don't want to say this entirely – it's like taking a new job. You don't know what you're getting yourself into, but it's nice to have that opportunity to figure it out over time. And it sounds like you've done a really, really amazing job doing that over your time here with GE. And this actually brings me to a follow up question that I have, you know, we know how important the connections that we forward with others, especially those who share our experiences can be profoundly impactful. And with that in mind, I'd love to hear your insights on any interactions you've had with other women in your career and who's had the greatest influence on you.

Julie Grzeda: There are so many amazing women that I've worked with and learned from. Since we were just talking about becoming a parent and some of the things that go along with that, I would say it stands out to me. I worked with one very senior leader who herself had not only accomplished a lot, but she was a great mom as well. And the fact that she was so willing to be vulnerable about that and to share some of her setbacks with a teenage girl and she had an incredible way – and I've heard this same analogy used elsewhere, but she had an incredible way of relaying the crystal ball and rubber ball story, which is this something you can drop and it'll bounce, or is this something you drop it and it'll shatter. And I think that that's incredibly important when it comes to all the guilt or sorting out we do with the time we spend with different folks, certainly our children. And, you know, is this soccer game a rubber ball or a crystal ball? Is this particular business trip in a different country on your son's birthday, is that a rubber ball or a crystal ball? And I think that that answer is going to differ for different years, different days, different people. And I respect that my answers won't always be the same as yours, but I do think the fact that I was able to work with women that shared that. In fact, I was an early member of creating the Women's Network in GE, it was a really important place for people to share these stories. Again, not just women, but men who came to sponsored events as well. You always have to have your people to compare notes with and if nothing else, reassure you that you're on the right track. So many, many different encounters with women, role models, folks that would be willing to let me confide in them or they confide in me to just figure it out.

Kumud Bika: I really like that analogy, the rubber ball or the crystal ball. I think I'm going to use that, I think I used a different version of it, but I think it is really important. And to your point, that answer will vary across the board, but that perspective goes a really long way, right? It gives the individual on the receiving end a moment to pause. And maybe look at things a little bit differently. I really do like that one a lot. I think I'm going to take that. You know, this kind of goes hand in hand with the last question, but you know, how do you go about mentoring or supporting other women? It seems like in your role in particular, you're probably doing that on a daily basis where it's not necessarily formal, but yeah, I would love to just hear a little bit more on that.

Julie Grzeda: I certainly have had and do today. I have women who are mentees. And by the way, I learn just as much from them. As I just shared, it's really important to just open up and be able to either share an experience that I have that can help them have insight to their decision, whatever that be, you know, say relocation or trying to manage your time or, wrestling with the fact that maybe it's worth outsourcing something in your life that gives you a little slack in the rubber band. But I think I'm empathetic to that because it has played such a role in helping me make sense of things. So I don't think it has to be a formal mentor relationship. I think that has to do with how I help my staff through different items. It has to do with how I help some of my customers. Today that's early career, but in other spaces, it was all kinds of different leaders in the business, or employees in the business. And it's true in my work in culture and capability building means that I'm going to help give confidence about taking a risk or taking a chance on someone. I'm going to point out when we might be letting bias creep in about different decisions and so on. And I hope that to call myself a good advocate that way, but we're all learning and I learn more every day yet.

Kumud Bika: Yeah, I think that's really incredible to hear that from you. You know, someone who's had just a wealth of experience. You do so much. You've had so many amazing opportunities. It is a reminder that we are constantly learning, right? And even acting as a mentor that you still have the ability, like we are all here to learn, and there's so many lessons for us to learn on a daily basis. So I love hearing that from you while you're clearly providing a lot of amazing advice for your mentees, which is incredible. I think we've talked a lot about your experience and what you've been able to offer during your time at GE. I know this is a tough question here, but what would you say has been one of the most impactful lessons you've learned in the workplace? 

Julie Grzeda: Wow. I suppose my mind goes to relationships. I've always been known for getting things done, and I probably stress myself out a little too much about trying to do it all and all those kinds of things. But I would say what probably was reinforced in a lot of series of events is just through navigating all of the things we have to do, all of the hills we have to take, all of the whatever it is that we are so focused on doing, I think I have certainly learned a lot about where I need to just step back and understand what is this doing to the relationship, how the relationships are going to be there when this task is done, how do I be respectful of the people that are involved in this process, whatever that implementing change or other kinds of things. I want to make sure this is sustainable because people are what make that happen. 

So, my shop floor example of this in the early days was that I would talk to the operators on the assembly line and they would talk, “Oh, I didn't get this. And this is wrong about my paycheck…” I don't know any kind of complaint that came up and I would race back to the office and I fix it. I was so proud that I got it done. And they said, honey, I just wanted to talk to you. Like, so the fact I had raced away was not what they were trying to accomplish. I know that's kind of a silly little story to tell, but even at that point, I was like, Oh, there's like more than what she's just saying to me. It is about building relationship of trust, and therefore I can get all those things done or resolved.

Kumud Bika: I couldn't agree with you more. You know, it seems easy to say that it is about relationships, but as you and I both know, meaningful relationships, impactful relationships, they take time. And to your point, people recognize that when you are being authentic and you're really taking the time to have those conversations and the person on the other end feels like they've been heard.

And it really brings me to another question I have for you is these past few years have been incredibly challenging and in many ways. I'd love to just hear, you know, what are you doing differently as a result and what advice would you have for our audience on how to persevere?

Julie Grzeda: Goodness, there are so many experiences that we've all had. It's true. We just talked about relationships, and I would say that probably gave me the most resilience of anything. Despite the fact it might not be an in person conversation, I could still have a meaningful conversation with people anyway, using video. By the way, I can't underscore this enough. I find many people who are camera shy, they don't want to turn the camera on. And certainly I work with a lot of early career professionals who are sort of learning the way. It's really important to turn the camera on if you want to have a meaningful conversation. Many overlook the fact that that can be so beneficial to them if they open themselves up for that. So, I know that might be a strange takeaway for the change that we've all gone through, but I think little things adapting to our work environment that has gone through so much change is important. And I think that how we build those relationships in some cases, be it remote work or other things have also, there's just as important, they’re just going to take a little different shape along the way. 

I think navigating change has never been easy. Navigating tremendous change has never been easy. But I would say, you know, sometimes we just have to take one bite at a time. And hopefully that allows us to not only make progress, but not lose our minds in the process. 

Kumud Bika: Yeah, thank you for that. I do agree. It is interesting just with the last few years in particular with more and more people working remote, you know, initially it was forced upon us and now it's been more the norm, hybrid and or remote. To your point, just even enabling the camera goes a really, really long way. And for many, it did take a long time to get there, but you're right. You just got to keep at it because it's the best way to really foster a true relationship, right? Or at least making headway to getting there. 

One other question I have for you, because this is the main reason that we are speaking here today, and we want to make sure that our audience has an opportunity to hear directly from you. What advice would you have for those who are interested in careers at GE Aerospace?

Julie Grzeda: Go for it. Yeah, GE Aerospace is such an exciting business. Our purpose is pretty inspiring. We invent the future of flight. We lift people up, and we bring them home safely. And you can talk to any of my colleagues near or far, and that actually has a lot of meaning. Both in terms of the technology and advances, but also in the way that we build our work environment to really do our best work. The opportunities in my world, we have internships and co-ops and apprenticeships to really help university level talent get immersed in the kind of work that they hopefully have been studying or exploring and get a realistic view of the kinds of work that they can further choose. You know, if you're an engineering major, it's not just one career. There are many, many different ways. We all solve problems for a living. It's just a matter of how or what kind of technical aspects there are and who benefits from them. So the opportunities that we offer for our new grads are rotational development programs. I mentioned that I completed one myself. These programs are premier. They're amazing introductions to your field of work with mentored guidance, with ongoing learning, which it doesn't stop at your degree, I promise, and a community of people to help you thrive. So I think we have rotational development programs in engineering, in manufacturing, in finance, HR, digital technology, and more. And I would say, you know, please check us out at invent.ge/careers. If you're a university student, I'll take you straight to the student section, invent.ge/students, and check out the opportunities that can really open up a whole new world for you. 

Kumud Bika: Wonderful. Thank you for sharing that, Julie. I really appreciate that. Again, the fact that you've been there over 20 years, I think speaks volumes to the opportunities that GE Aerospace has to offer. Well, we can move on to the final section, which is one of my favorites, which is our fast five questions. What's your go to karaoke song?

Julie Grzeda: I would say my go to karaoke song would come out of the Beatles collection. So I go way back on this one and I say, Love Me Do. 

Kumud Bika: Love that. Okay. The next question. What is your favorite way to practice self care? 

Julie Grzeda: So important. I did not learn this very quickly, by the way, but today I love to go get my nails done, so mani pedi. I love to curl up in a comfy couch and read a good book. And I love exploring new places, so whether it's a new restaurant to indulge in or a new activity to explore the city, I'm all in.

Kumud Bika: I love that. Okay. Well, you mentioned dinner, but my next question is, who is one celebrity that you would like to have dinner with?

Julie Grzeda: It's hard to just choose one. You know, I would say Barack Obama. There is a lot going on in the world. I would love insights and some good humor.

Kumud Bika: I'd love to join you on that dinner. You also mentioned reading as one of the things that you like to practice in terms of self care. What book would you recommend to our audience? 

Julie Grzeda: Well, given the topic today, I will call out The Unspoken Rules by Gorick Ng. Incredible piece of work that was published a couple years ago. It is incredible for early career talent, but I would argue it's pretty incredible for anybody if you really want some reflections on how to do well and I highly recommend it.

Kumud Bika: Okay, I'm going to take note on that one. All right, my final question. At Fairygodboss, we have a tradition here. So, it's a known that women sometimes aren't very good at bragging about themselves. And so we firmly believe that you'll only get better if we practice. So, with that, I'd love for you to brag for us right now.

Julie Grzeda: I'll start with my kids are amazing adults now. We survived and I'm so proud of them. I am a caring and supportive manager and I build teams that love to work together and do great work. I am trustworthy and empathetic. I get things done. I'm a loyal champion and a caring connector. Love connecting people and ideas. I have positive impact on many lives and careers. I'm a foster parent. I'm involved in my community. I'm very involved in my work community as well. And I love my career. How about that?

Kumud Bika: That's wonderful. That’s perfect. Julie, you mentioned so much about relationships and I think that speaks volumes about what you just said and hear just now in terms of you bragging and sharing what you bring to the table. And I think so much of that just stems from the relationships that you've been able to foster over the years. 

What is the number one piece of advice you would want to leave with our audience here today? 

Julie Grzeda: The most important thing that we do is navigate. You know, you can have people tell you what to do or take orders or other kinds of things, but getting the confidence to take a step when things are uncertain. You can't just talk about it, so my piece of advice is just, it's okay to feel the pain when you're on the learning curve. It's okay to feel the discomfort when it's uncertain next steps. But muster that courage to take that step anyway. And growth happens that way.

Kumud Bika: Thank you for that. I think that is a great piece of advice for anyone. Thank you so much for joining us here today, Julie. It truly was a pleasure speaking with you. Thank you for all of your advice and taking the time to meet with us here today.

Julie Grzeda: It was a pleasure. Thank you so much Kumud.