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Journalism of Courage
Most people, when handed a role that feels intimidating, instinctively question whether they’re ready. Julie Sweet, now the CEO of Accenture, believes that’s exactly the wrong move. Speaking on Fortune’s Titans and Disruptors of Industry podcast with Alyson Shontel, she recalled the moment her career trajectory shifted in a way she hadn’t anticipated.
In 2014, just weeks before she was diagnosed with breast cancer, Sweet was finishing a meeting with then-CEO Pierre Nanterme. Out of nowhere, he told her: “I think you could run this place someday.”
At that point, Sweet was Accenture’s general counsel. She had trained as a lawyer, not a business executive, and didn’t look like the conventional choice for a CEO. She hadn’t spent her entire career inside Accenture, and every leader before her had been male. Even Nanterme admitted she’d likely need another role first before making such a leap.
But Sweet didn’t let doubt creep in. Instead, she leaned on advice she had once heard from Dina Dublon, former CFO of JPMorgan Chase: when someone offers you a stretch opportunity, don’t undermine their confidence by asking, “Are you sure?” More often than not, they’re just as uncertain as you are.
So, she simply replied, “Yes, I’d be interested. What did you have in mind?” That answer opened a new path, first leading Accenture’s North America business in 2015, and then, in 2019, stepping into the CEO role.
Sweet believes confidence shouldn’t just appear in career-defining moments. It’s something she expects her 770,000-strong workforce to bring to the table every day, alongside humility and excellence.
“We are constantly challenging each other and our assumptions,” she explained. “When you build a team that thinks that the status quo is challenging assumptions, embracing change, it means you’re constantly questioning. You don’t need to stop and have a big strategy… because you’re always working on the strategy.”
For her, confidence also means knowing when to admit you don’t have the answers. Even as CEO, she calls asking for help one of her “superpowers.”
Another principle Sweet credits for her success is approaching leadership as a student, not just an authority. “I think the idea of being a deep learner at the top is really critical, and that is not usual in a lot of companies,” she said. Too often, senior leaders assume their experience makes them the ones with all the wisdom, leaving little room for growth.
That mindset was shaped during her early days in Accenture’s legal team. Not particularly tech savvy, she quickly realised that to be effective she had to understand the business inside and out.
It’s a habit that ultimately distinguished her from her peers. As she put it, “transparency builds trust. Because the more value you can contribute [to] your company, the more likely you’re going to get that best next job.”
