The Importance of Authenticity

Suzanne Ginsburg brings the people-first leadership style she employs at Uber Freight to her new role on mpd²’s Industry Advisory Board.

For Suzanne Ginsburg, leadership starts with authenticity.

When an employee decides whether or not to continue working at a company, much of that decision is influenced by their manager. That is why, as head of design and research at Uber Freight, Ginsburg consistently invests her time and energy into the organization's managers to make sure they focus on the complete employee experience — day in and day out.

That doesn't just mean creating professional development programs or bringing in guest speakers, although those each are important. To Ginsburg, the key to being a good leader is being open and genuine with those you lead.

"My team and those who work with me appreciate that I'm being honest and real with them, from my regular interactions to how I deliver news to when I cascade vital information," she said. "That authenticity leads to greater trust, psychological safety, and ultimately team happiness. As a result, my team brings their full self and best self to work — therefore producing their best work."

As the newest member of the Industry Advisory Board (IAB) for Northwestern Engineering's Master of Product Design and Development Management (mpd²) program, she is looking to share authenticity's value with the program's current and future students.

While that might sound too cozy for the corporate world, Ginsburg emphatically believes it is not. Employee retention is widely recognized as one of the key factors to a business’ overall success. Retaining the best and the brightest often comes down to that very real, very purposeful interest in employees’ goals and aspirations, Ginsburg said.

That is particularly true for roles mpd² students routinely pursue.

“Designers and researchers need to feel like they have a career path, that they find the work rewarding, and that they feel there's a community and connection among the team,” she said. “As a leader, if I don't get that right, I limit what we're able to create. We won't ever reach our full potential.” 

Ginsburg thinks about that relentlessly at Uber Freight, where she's worked since 2020. Her job is to create an easy-to-navigate, intuitive user journey that connects those who have products to move from Point A to Point B with those who have the trucks and drivers to make it happen.

Ginsburg reports directly to Uber Freight’s CEO — which she said reflects the importance the company puts on product design. In her day-to-day work, she's charged with balancing her team's interests and perspective with business needs.

Much of Ginsburg's work is focused on relationship building, both with her team members and with leaders from across the organization.

Ginsburg is excited to bring her perspective on authentic leadership and the importance of design in product development to mpd². She's new to the IAB, but she's not new to the program.

Several mpd² alumni have interned on Uber Freight's design team under Ginsburg's leadership. Her appreciation for the students — and the program — grew with each interaction.

“The mpd² students have been really diligent, hardworking, committed, curious, and great collaborative partners with my team members here,” Ginsburg said. “My team has really enjoyed working with the program.”