CTE is celebrating International Women’s Day
Interview with women leaders – Yuan Yu

#WomanWhoLeads – Interview with Yuan Yu

Yuan Yu, Deputy Managing Director of China Telecom (Europe) Limited (CTE), is responsible for managing the company’s network planning, construction and business operations support. She is leading CTE’s further network expansion and continuous performance optimisation. Her aim is to provide customers with competitive products and industry-leading solutions. And to deliver excellent customer experience – including timely response, rapid delivery and consistent, stable service.

Yu has worked in the communications industry for more than 20 years. Her expertise covers the operation and maintenance of various networks, including transmission, IP and wireless. She’s skilled in telecommunications product development, specialising in business process design. She also has extensive customer service experience.

Q: How do you motivate yourself and stay motivated?

I believe that we live in a world where potential is limitless, you just have to explore. So when the challenge comes, I always try to get out of my comfort zone while telling myself “you can do it” until I succeed. So in the course of one challenge after another, I stay motivated to aiming for self-improvement and professional excellence.

Q: What advice would you give a young woman starting out in her career?

As Confucius used to say: 三人行必有我师 ( There’s always someone to learn from), I believe no matter what role one’s playing, there’re always some qualities that you can learn from. Just look at your managers,  there’re definitely some aspects you can look up to and improve yourself, whether it’s their dedication to work, communication skills or problem-solving skills etc. The most important is to find the things you will need to learn most and learn from others.

Q: What qualities do you believe are inherent to women and how do they add value to a business?

Generally speaking, women take a good role in coordination and are natural team-player. This is of great importance to build an united team in a complex working environment. Also women tend to be more detail-oriented, a quality that cannot be neglected. As we say  “details make a difference”. Some companies have the right vision and direction but fail to pay attention to details which results in lousy customer experience or product delivery. As women can observe the small details sometimes hidden in the picture, companies wouldn’t have to pay for the mistakes that can be avoided.

Q: For those young women who want to take a role in leadership but are afraid to fail, what suggestions do you have? 

I think the key to this question is “young”, being young means that you can actually fail because failing at young age allows you to have a better understanding of yourself. Throughout the adversity you will be able to strengthen courage. Endurance or resilience cannot be acquired without challenges. So don’t be afraid to go out of your comfort zone or fail, it’s what you do that make a real difference.

As we say “opportunity favors only the prepared mind”, only when you are constantly improving yourself can you seize the opportunity when it comes.

Q: What would you tell your younger self today? 

“Be braver, just do it.”

Read more stories of women at CTE here.

About China Telecom (Europe) Ltd.:
China Telecom (Europe) Ltd. (CTE) provides integrated telecoms and communications services as a local solutions provider for Chinese companies and a global solutions provider for multinational corporations. CTE’s unrivalled knowledge of the Chinese market, and regional offices across Europe, make CTE an ideal partner for European and Asian businesses looking to work in Europe, China and Asia. To find out more about CTE business, go to www.chinatelecomeurope.com.