Celebrating Women's History Month with Dhati Holohan, Revenue & Growth Planning Director

Ooh tough question! I’d like to have a drink with:

• Margaret Atwood, a brilliant visionary author best known for the Handmaid’s Tale. I’d love to talk to her about storytelling and social change.
• Indra Nooyi, former CEO of Pepsi-Co. She is an incredible role model as a woman of colour who has achieved huge success in business, and she could share her experiences in breaking barriers.
• Elizabeth the First. Besides being one of the most powerful and influential monarchs in history, I think she’d be great craic!

If I had to stick with one, I’d say a Bulleit Rye Old Fashioned. Check out this recipe.

I think professional achievement pales in the face of watching my now six-year-old daughter grow up. It’s incredible to watch and I don’t think of her as ‘my achievement’ but the responsibility of being a good mum to her is the one that I take the most pride in.

It’s a very interesting time to be in revenue category growth – against a backdrop of longer term trends of premiumisation and moderation, we’re facing into a cost of living crisis in a period of high inflation. As a business, we’re focused on growing market share, while protecting our margins and building brands and categories for the long term.

We’re seeing retailers focus on driving footfall and maximising customer value, while balancing their own retail margins that are squeezed. And from shoppers and consumers, we’re seeing people on fixed budgets trying to stretch them as far as they will go – for essentials but also for affordable treats - those “micro-moments of joy”. Put together these are huge challenge. But they also present a great opportunity for agile businesses with revenue growth thinking and super strong brands, like Diageo, to outperform the market.

For me the impact that our function has on the organisation, driving our strategy and rising to the challenge of internal and external volatility, is the thing I love about my job. There is never a dull day, and the big driver is that what we do is critical to making a difference to the organisation, achieving our performance ambition and winning with customers and consumers.

Working for Diageo has given me given me the opportunity to truly shape how the organisation goes to market, and that has made a huge difference to my career and my own development.

I feel incredibly privileged to be working here - in a vibrant industry, with great people, in an office in the heart of London, on amazing brands that are part of joyful occasions, and for an organisation that walks the walk when it comes to key issues like diversity and inclusion.

If I absolutely had to pick one, I’d say the best thing is impact. One of the wonderful things about Diageo is that despite being a big, successful organisation there is always the support from the business to make things better and the agility to change and adapt. I feel empowered and that what I do makes a difference.

I think the best advice I’ve been given is that when someone doesn’t agree with you, listen hard – they see something you don’t and it’s a huge learning opportunity.

I would strongly recommend it! Working in Revenue Growth & Planning gives you the opportunity to be at the heart of strategic decision making, shaping the future of our brands and categories. For me, designing, defining, and delivering commercial strategy is a critical skill to build for anyone looking to grow their career in sales. Both from a functional perspective and because of the opportunities it provides to grow your leadership capability.