Answer: Vicky was prominent in the community and it was no surprise, given her track record at the agency, that she would be regularly approached to consider job opportunities. She was offered a corporate position with a major technology company in trouble. While many would see the role as too risky, Vicky saw potential and accepted the job.

It was a wonderful chance to transition to an environment where her accomplishments could be clearly recognized for what she had been able to achieve as head of the communications group. There was no place to go but up. Failure was not an option in her mind. She said, “When I started, the media thought they (the company) had gone out of business and look at them now.” The corporation today is a global leader providing data storage solutions employing over 72,000 people.

She remained with the company for about 8 years and during that time for family reasons, relocated to another state. The company was convinced that she could manage the department and continued to employ her as a full-time remote employee. Her talent for building a cohesive team was a key reason for the vote of confidence. That arrangement continued until 2000. Vicky said, “I am still friendly with most of them.”

The relocation was due to an opportunity for her spouse to take ownership of a consumer healthcare business in the new community. While Vicky was not employed by the business, she contributed to its growth and learned a great deal about marketing and customer satisfaction in a highly competitive environment. That provided her with real-world insight about what it takes to make a sale. She gained a visceral, instinctive, practical understanding of a mindset that was professionally invaluable in her work.