"Change of the culture at an organization is a challenge and it can take time. For example, I was part of an organization that wanted to eliminate passive-aggressive behavior from our culture. So the first thing we did is communicate the types of behaviors we'd like to see. And then we had to personally demonstrate the right behavior, confronting any conflict openly. And then lastly, we needed to reward publicly those who demonstrated the right behavior." -- Janice Chaffin
How can you change a company's culture?
Janice Chaffin is group president of Symantec’s Consumer Business Unit (CBU), which includes Symantec’s Norton brand, the world’s security market share leader for consumer software and services. In this role she leads engineering, sales, marketing, strategy, business development, support, and services worldwide for the consumer group. In FY ’09 the CBU grew to become a $1.8 billion business.
Under Chaffin’s leadership, the CBU developed and launched Norton’s 2009 products, which have won more than 130 awards and are the fastest, lightest consumer security products in the industry. She also led an effort to expand the consumer portfolio, both through acquisition and internal development, to drive more customer value in areas such as online backup, consumer PC services and software utilities.
Providing the best possible customer experience is a cornerstone of Chaffin’s leadership. During her tenure, Norton customer satisfaction and loyalty has reached record levels. For two years running, Symantec has received a STAR Award for its outstanding support from the Service and Support Professionals Association.
Most recently, Chaffin served as Symantec’s executive vice president and chief marketing officer. As Symantec’s first CMO, Chaffin built a global marketing operation, which was named as a leader in the 2006 IDC Marketing Performance Matrix.
Prior to Symantec, Chaffin spent 21 years at Hewlett-Packard in general management and marketing leadership roles. She has been publicly recognized for her career accomplishments and community involvement, including being named to Women 3.0 Magazine’s “Top 100 Women in Corporate America.” Chaffin is a member of the Dean’s Advisory Council for the UCLA Henry Samueli School of Engineering and Applied Science. She is the President of the Saratoga-Los Gatos Chapter of National Charity League, Inc.
Chaffin graduated summa cum laude from the University of California, San Diego. She earned a master’s degree in business administration from the University of California, Los Angeles.
