February 5, 2024 • 22 mins
Kara Demirjian Huss joined Jasmine for the latest episode.
Kara is the Founder and President of DCC Marketing, WBE/WBENC, a full-service marketing agency driving impact through their unique approach to multicultural marketing that creates stand out campaigns to drive consumer education and behavior change. She is also the Senior Vice President for TCCI Manufacturing a global leader in compressor technology and electric vehicle component manufacturing for the commercial vehicle and specialty automotive industry. TCCI is headquartered in Illinois with facilities in 10 countries. Kara was appointed in May 2023 by Governor Pritzker to the Illinois Workforce Innovation Board (IWIB) as part of the leadership team to oversee the development, implementation, and modification of the Unified State Plan for Illinois workforce development system. She has a B.S. from the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign.
Check It Out and Be Inspired! The Women Inspire Chicago Podcast is sponsored by Potbelly.
Kara Demirjian Huss:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kara-demirjian-huss-aa1b3029/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/dccmarketing
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/dccmarketing/
Twitter/X: @karadccmrktg
Kara is the Founder and President of DCC Marketing, WBE/WBENC, a full-service marketing agency driving impact through their unique approach to multicultural marketing that creates stand out campaigns to drive consumer education and behavior change. She is also the Senior Vice President for TCCI Manufacturing a global leader in compressor technology and electric vehicle component manufacturing for the commercial vehicle and specialty automotive industry. TCCI is headquartered in Illinois with facilities in 10 countries. Kara was appointed in May 2023 by Governor Pritzker to the Illinois Workforce Innovation Board (IWIB) as part of the leadership team to oversee the development, implementation, and modification of the Unified State Plan for Illinois workforce development system. She has a B.S. from the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign.
Check It Out and Be Inspired! The Women Inspire Chicago Podcast is sponsored by Potbelly.
Kara Demirjian Huss:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kara-demirjian-huss-aa1b3029/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/dccmarketing
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/dccmarketing/
Twitter/X: @karadccmrktg
Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
(00:00):
I Heard Media Chicago presents the WomenInspire Chicago podcast, hosted by I Heard
Chicago's SVP of Public Engagement, AngelaIngram, and produced by I Heard Chicago's
Jasmin Bennett. Angela hosts inspiring conversationswith some of Chicago's top women executives.
Kara Demersion Huss, founder and presidentof DCC Marketing and Senior Vice President of
(00:20):
TCCI Manufacturing. Join Jasmine for thelatest episode, check it out and be
inspired. My name is Jasmine Bennett, producer of the Women Inspire Chicago podcast,
and I am hosting for Angela today. Hi Kara, Welcome to Women
Inspire Chicago the podcast. For thosethat don't know, we need to dive
a little bit into your background andtell us just a little bit about like
(00:43):
the driving force behind your success.Sure well, thank you for having me
today. And it was an amazingexperience that we just had with some incredible
women leaders in their own right withme that got to share these experiences with
you know my background, I startedin the fashion industry back in nineteen ninety
two after I graduated from the Universityof Illinois. Worked for a men's clothing
(01:07):
store which was an incredible experience andI gained such an important mentor in my
life today still at Backcrack. Andthen I went on to work for my
father who had several manufacturing companies,and he recruited me to come work for
our family businesses in the manufacturing.So I went from fashion to manufacturing and
(01:29):
it was a big change for me. And you know, really working in
that industry in a male dominated industrywas just such a change from the fashion
industry. But I have to sayI absolutely love it today and I'm so
glad that I made that transition toour family business and working in that space.
I then went on in our ownbusinesses to start our real estate division
(01:53):
and revitalize our downtown area and Decatur, Illinois and build a large facility,
commercial mixed use facility that was thecore of our downtown and really transformed the
community from an economic development standpoint.And that really was a catapult for me
to get into economic development and communityengagement. And later started DCC Marketing,
(02:19):
which I founded and started back intwo thousand. Today is a women business
entity. We have a very strongfocus on multicultural marketing and are working on
campaigns such as distracted driving, impaireddriving things that are really making an impact
and changing lives nine eight eight suicideprevention, reimagine public safety. We work
(02:40):
a lot in the education sector,really transforming the enrollment marketing area and thinking
about how do we reposition marketing andeducation for the new jobs of tomorrow.
And that really led us also intoworking in the economic de development space.
We do a lot of work withInnovate Illinois, which is working to bring
(03:04):
federal dollars back to Illinois and helpingposition Illinois and team Illinois as we think
about the importance of business in severalcategories, around decarbonization, around silicon and
quantum, around bio and bioprocessing,and all the things that are at the
heart of Illinois, and so bringingall those things for me and then today
(03:27):
I also sit as our senior vicepresident of TCCI Manufacturing, which is a
global leader in compressor technology. Wemake air conditioning compressors for both mechanical and
electric vehicles, cooling the cabins andcooling the batteries and electric vehicles. Wow,
So as you are a yell ofwhere I've been and how I've transitioned
through the years, you definitely dida huge pivot you know in your career
(03:51):
from fashions manufacturing, and that happensa lot, and we don't really like
to talk about it, you know, when we have to have pivots in
our careers because it always comes withthe challenge. It definitely is not easy
when you just have to like completelydo a one to eighty. So I
commend you you are a leader.I would agree one hundred percent. It's
really you know, as you thinkabout you know, your your your road,
(04:14):
your path as you move through andall of these pieces come together.
And I think today I look atthat, and you know, we talked
about this today, how important everystage was and it's really not about adapting
to change but growing for progress.Yes, exactly, exactly with your leadership
(04:34):
and all of these roles that youtake. One, how do the values
that you have like at your core, how does that come through your leadership?
Yeah, I think there's a coupleof really important values that I take
with me. One is this relationshiptrusted relationships. I kind of coin like
super connector you know, if youcan't get something done in three phone calls,
(04:56):
you haven't spent the time over thelife of your career really building those
partnerships in those relationships in a meaningfulway. And I'm not just talking about
knowing somebody just to know them,but it's really about developing a deeper relationship
with those that you meet throughout yourlife and throughout your career. And that's
been really important to me, andI think it helped me start DCC.
(05:18):
I was able to pick up thephone and get opportunities put in front of
me. Didn't mean I was alwaysgoing to get them, but understanding and
navigating relationships is a big part ofwhat I think being a great leader is
about. Whether that's in the peopleyou're serving in your clients, or in
our growing business, the employees withinthe culture that we're building and fostering.
(05:42):
I So I think relationships become suchan important part of a success for anybody.
It's something I always make sure Ilead with when I'm talking to younger
people as well. Use your rolodexto build your life, you know,
don't They're not just a number.Relationships you have to foster and it takes
time and energy to do that.So that is really one. The other
(06:05):
is active leadership in terms of activelistening and impact, you know, and
we think about that I always coinStephen Covey's phrase, begin with the end
in mind. You know, beingable to really know what is success going
to look like? You know,when we're working with clients or when I'm
working on a project, Understanding whatsuccess looks like for somebody is really an
(06:30):
important piece in my mind of successin leadership. If I can't understand that,
if I'm not an active listener understandingwhat those needs are, I can't
really build program, a product,a campaign, a strategy for transformation of
the electrification industry without that. Andso I'm a real big proponent of making
(06:53):
sure you have two ears in onemouth for a reason, to a lot
more listening than you do talking,and always be learning. You know,
I think building your skills. Ithink all the things that I'm doing have
honed skills in different areas that arecoming together now to really make an impact
in what I'm doing. Whether that'syou know, working for Governor Pritzker as
(07:13):
a board member for the Illinois InnovationWorkforce Board, or whether that's you know,
helping drive campaigns that are making majorimpact in people's lives, or whether
that's helping bring business to Illinois andfederal dollars to Illinois, whether that's transforming
the ev industry and how we thinkabout workforce development and our ecosystem and the
(07:36):
partnerships that we need to build withother businesses. I think we have to
hone our skills in those areas andyou know, really take the time to
understand what's happening out there from variousperspectives and diverse perspectives at that. We
can't live in a bubble, youcan say that. Yeah, yes,
(07:58):
talking about the you knowavigating relationships andit's all about people. What does playing
your position mean to you? Yeah, you know, I think I love
that phrase because it really is aboutyou know, positioning yourself and using your
resources. And I think I goback to you can't do everything, and
(08:18):
those relationships that you've built over theyears become critical in getting things done quickly.
Yes, you know. An exampleof that is, you know,
it just led our team's effort fora large grant with the Department of Energy,
and we put together a team ofthirty five people from across our state
to be on an advisory council andthat was done in three days, quite
(08:41):
honestly, without the relationships that hadbeen built over the years. You know,
you can't make that kind of connectivityand get that kind of trust and
commitment across a wide variety of peoplewithout having that. And so when I
think about playing your position, it'sreally about understanding how to build partnerships,
(09:03):
how to create resources in your lifeand during your time in your leadership career
before you even become a leader,knowing that these are things that you need
to be fostering throughout that time.It's really all about, as you said,
using people and using your resources andnot being afraid to do so because
those relationships will help you in thelong run. That's right. And everyone
(09:24):
has a different lens that they're lookingthrough, a different skill that they're bringing,
right, and when you collectively bringthat together, the impact is exponential.
Let's talk about on your journey.You know, we said that you
made a big pivot, but whatabout some other like detours and challenges along
the way, because I'm sure therewere plenty when you made the pivot,
(09:46):
and how did you get past those? Yeah, there were a lot of
pivots. I mean a milestone forme was when I took over the real
estate portfolio that we were just gettinginto the real estate area and doing a
big revitalzation project that was a hugeundertaking. And at the same time,
I was running the marketing for twoof our corporations, and this was prior
(10:09):
to having the AD agency. SoI was hiring ad agencies to help support
me in the work I had todo on the marketing side for our global
companies. And it became really difficultfor me to manage all of that at
one time. And I was twentyseven years old at the time, and
so you know, I was alot of making things up as I went.
(10:30):
And you know, that's what leadersdo, right, They pave their
path. They just they jump inand they do things, and they learn
how to do that. They findmentors that become critical resources for them.
You know, it was really difficultfor me to manage all of that at
that time, and so as Iwas hiring agencies, I found very quickly
that it was really difficult to havethat relationship. I wasn't getting what I
(10:56):
wanted out of that relationship, andso I decided, as an entrepreneur,
the best thing to do would beto start putting a business plan together to
start on my own because I wasreally realizing that other people, at least
in our region were having similar issues. And so, you know, I
put a business plan together and startedDCC Marketing back in two thousand and that
was a huge risk. I startedit out of our real estate division.
(11:22):
Didn't really know what I was doing. I was running the marketing but had
never run an agency before. Ibrought on a business partner to do that
with me, and so there werea lot of pitfalls. You know,
a lot of support from my father, who very much entrepreneurial and is in
his business was very much three tofive years to get a business going.
You have to dedicate your time andenergy to that. If it doesn't work
(11:45):
the first time, you have tokeep looking at new ways to grow and
change and modify that. And sothere were a lot of pitfalls with that.
In twenty fifteen, I hired someonethat almost took the company down,
and at that point I wasn't surewhether I was going to continue or not.
And I had a huge support networkwithin our own organization, and my
father said to me, you've startedthis path. Great leaders don't give up.
(12:11):
They find ways to take what they'velearned from their failures and reinvigorate a
new path to new opportunities that lieahead. And I think that when he
said that to me, it wasa huge impact on me. And then
the support that I had from ourcompany and our employees was was something that
(12:31):
helped me get through the tribulations ofa business that was almost going under,
hard to make payroll, cash flowis bleeding, and we just we became
at this point of this turn dowe shut down or do we keep going?
And I'm really glad that, youknow, my dad was over mentoring
me and that we kept the pathgoing. I made a lot of changes.
(12:54):
I made structural changes to the organization. I made some major changes in
what our strategies were for business growth. I became a women business entity,
which was a big undertaking in termsof paperwork and realizing what the benefits of
that could be for the opportunities thatit could open for us as a small
(13:16):
business. And I think that wasreally in twenty nineteen the trajectory change for
us and the work that we're doing. And again, you know, I
think it all goes back to believingthat you're doing good work and not worrying
so much about the impact the profitthat it's having. Like if we do
good work, it will come witha good business strategy. So there were
(13:39):
a lot of pitfalls throughout that career. And would you say your willingness to
like adapt in modify whatever you needto change, was that part of what
helped you become a successful leader?Yeah? I think, I think again,
you know, change is growing.I think as I grew through the
years, and I am definitely onethat builds on mentorship. I think people
(14:01):
that have been in my life orhave provided a resource to me and knowledge
have been critical into where I amtoday. And I definitely think that one
of my fortes is this relationship piece, the piece of building relationships that are
meaningful that help guide growth so thatas we need to change for the industry,
(14:26):
or as the industry changes, Ishould say, we can adapt and
grow. And talking about what youwent through in you know where you are
now and how you use everything toget to where you are, you kind
of just explain the connection between pitfallsand success. There is a bridge,
a literal bridge. You know,success happens even faster and further when you
(14:48):
do have failures. Some are small, some are big, but it helps
you learn from what you've done sothat you can really start to grow and
put things in place that help younavigate to that next stage. And I'm
in Young President's Organization and it's beena huge resource to me. The forum
(15:09):
of other CEOs and business leaders thatyou know, you learn from. So
as you think about these learning experiences, as you go through these times,
you garner such great insights from others, yes, and what they've experienced,
and it helps you navigate those pitfallsthat you're facing and build a better,
(15:31):
stronger company for the future. Oh, gar, I love everything you are
saying. So where do you seewomen in leadership in the next like five
to ten years. I remember yousaid you were really excited to see like
the next ten years, but specificallywomen in leadership. Where do you see
it going? You know, Ithink women hold a very strong place in
(15:52):
leadership roles. I think we're seeingthat. I think as women build the
confidence. It's hard for me toreally I mean, I think leadership doesn't
in my true sense. I thinkwomen in leadership has been there in the
past and is growing in the youknow, as we look to the future.
Yeah, for me, a leaderisn't it isn't about their gender,
(16:15):
it isn't about their race. It'sabout their characteristics and their abilities. What's
important as you're building those skills asa good leader, and women have an
innate ability to do that. Theyhave to believe in themselves and you know,
be able to commit to the growthin their endeavors. And I think
(16:41):
a lot of that goes back toconfidence and believing in yourself. Whoever you
are, a leader is built fromwithin. So let's talk about harmony,
not balance between career and family.So getting the little personal who is team
huss Yeah? I think you know. I think one of the things people
(17:02):
ask me is how do you managethe work life balance? And I always
am like, well, it's notwork life balance, because that's one or
the other, right, Like it'swork or life, And to me,
it's harmony. Everything is about creatingand integrating together. And maybe that's the
entrepreneurial spirit of it. Everything collidesand when you work in a harmonious way,
(17:25):
you understand all of the things aroundyou are important to your success,
and so you don't put numbers onactivities like Okay, if I work this
much and I'm at home this much, I'm gonna have balance. That's not
how it works in my mind personally, I feel that harmony is something you
(17:51):
find from within. I am veryconfident within on the time and the commitments
I put towards things across the board. And it's that self confidence in that
and not feeling guilty because a lotof women feel guilty. And I think
that is sometimes where you asked me, like, how do you, you
know, move to that next levelof leadership as a woman. We can't
(18:14):
feel guilty about always having to havewhat people call balance. We have to
feel good about ourselves and the harmonythat we have from within, and that
will breed better leaders and more ofus in leadership roles. So everyone has
a different perspective on that, exactlylike you said, a different lens.
It's good. It's a good thing. So along with the self confidence,
(18:37):
what other advice do you have forlike the next generation of leaders I want
to go back to this Rolodex idea. I think building relationships. I think
people today get so caught up inthey work hard. There's no doubt there's
a hard work ethic, you know. I see in my office from the
top down, the work ethic andthe commitment to what they're doing is so
(18:57):
strong. One thing I'm always teaching, and I would say preaching a bit
is pull your head out of yourdesk and look around and get out and
be around. Build these connections,real connections, meaningful connections with the people
that you're working with. Care aboutthem and what they're doing, not just
(19:22):
in their office, but them aspeople. Because as we go through life,
whether it's at work or home,having those deeper relationships are going to
serve us incredibly well. If Ididn't have that, I wouldn't be the
leader I am today. And sofor me, that is the number one
thing I tell people is the relationshipsthat they build are critical to them.
(19:45):
Now they may not see that,but in ten years, if they've fostered
that relationship and built a deeper one, it's going to be an important part
of their growth and where they aresomeday. And would you say, the
people that you've built relationships with,do they inspire you? Oh my gosh.
I mean today I asked if Icould bring more people than that were
(20:07):
there. I mean, I'm inspiredevery day by those around me. Men.
Women, You know, when Icame on here, I had a
friend of mine say, you know, don't forget about you know, you
inspire men as much as you inspirewomen. And you know, I thought
that was a really interesting not interesting, but I thought that was a really
great comment because you know, Ithink you don't realize sometimes that you are
inspiring others. Yeah, And sothat's the other thing I would encourage the
(20:33):
younger generation always, is that whatyou say and what you do impacts others
and you may not even know that. And so remember that as you walk
into a room, as you're workingon a project, as you're having dinner
with somebody, the story that youhave or the things that you're doing are
touching somebody in a way that youdon't even know. Yeah. And so
(20:56):
I think really making sure your hypeaware of that, and that you're always
having this attitude that's positive, thatyou have a hardworking, positive aura around
you, I think is really importantand that can do attitude. I just
I love that when I see thatin people, when they shine, when
(21:19):
they walk into a room, it'sjust special and you notice it, and
it's immediately to me the sign ofsomebody, whether they are right now or
going to be in the future,a really strong leader in a very large
position. And I can say thankyou right now. I needed to hear
that everything you just said. AndI always like to end these conversations with
(21:41):
a quote, so I have oneready and the theme of playing your position.
It is actually funny that this isone of my favorite all time quotes,
like ever from Babe Ruth. Neverlet the fear of striking out keep
you from playing the game. Ohmy god, that's it. I love
that. Yeah, I mean youjust I think I talked about that earlier
today. How fearful I was youngerto walk into a room and mingle.
(22:03):
And as you build that confidence andyou do that, you know, you
realize that if you don't overcome thosefears. You know, I do a
lot of self talking, you'll neverget to that next stage. And so
I think those are really great.That's a really great quote. I just
wanted to say thank you again somuch. Care You inspire women, You
inspire men, boys, girls,you inspire Chicago, and you inspire us
(22:26):
all. So thank you, thankyou for having me, thanks for listening
to the Women Inspire Chicago podcast,hosted by Angela Ingram, presented by iHeartMedia
Chicago and produced by Jasmine Bennett.The Women Inspire Chicago Podcast is sponsored by
pot Belly feed your group from smallto larch with pot belly catering pot Belly,
you gotta get it hot.
I Heard Media Chicago presents the WomenInspire Chicago podcast, hosted by I Heard
Chicago's SVP of Public Engagement, AngelaIngram, and produced by I Heard Chicago's
Jasmin Bennett. Angela hosts inspiring conversationswith some of Chicago's top women executives.
Kara Demersion Huss, founder and presidentof DCC Marketing and Senior Vice President of
(00:20):
TCCI Manufacturing. Join Jasmine for thelatest episode, check it out and be
inspired. My name is Jasmine Bennett, producer of the Women Inspire Chicago podcast,
and I am hosting for Angela today. Hi Kara, Welcome to Women
Inspire Chicago the podcast. For thosethat don't know, we need to dive
a little bit into your background andtell us just a little bit about like
(00:43):
the driving force behind your success.Sure well, thank you for having me
today. And it was an amazingexperience that we just had with some incredible
women leaders in their own right withme that got to share these experiences with
you know my background, I startedin the fashion industry back in nineteen ninety
two after I graduated from the Universityof Illinois. Worked for a men's clothing
(01:07):
store which was an incredible experience andI gained such an important mentor in my
life today still at Backcrack. Andthen I went on to work for my
father who had several manufacturing companies,and he recruited me to come work for
our family businesses in the manufacturing.So I went from fashion to manufacturing and
(01:29):
it was a big change for me. And you know, really working in
that industry in a male dominated industrywas just such a change from the fashion
industry. But I have to sayI absolutely love it today and I'm so
glad that I made that transition toour family business and working in that space.
I then went on in our ownbusinesses to start our real estate division
(01:53):
and revitalize our downtown area and Decatur, Illinois and build a large facility,
commercial mixed use facility that was thecore of our downtown and really transformed the
community from an economic development standpoint.And that really was a catapult for me
to get into economic development and communityengagement. And later started DCC Marketing,
(02:19):
which I founded and started back intwo thousand. Today is a women business
entity. We have a very strongfocus on multicultural marketing and are working on
campaigns such as distracted driving, impaireddriving things that are really making an impact
and changing lives nine eight eight suicideprevention, reimagine public safety. We work
(02:40):
a lot in the education sector,really transforming the enrollment marketing area and thinking
about how do we reposition marketing andeducation for the new jobs of tomorrow.
And that really led us also intoworking in the economic de development space.
We do a lot of work withInnovate Illinois, which is working to bring
(03:04):
federal dollars back to Illinois and helpingposition Illinois and team Illinois as we think
about the importance of business in severalcategories, around decarbonization, around silicon and
quantum, around bio and bioprocessing,and all the things that are at the
heart of Illinois, and so bringingall those things for me and then today
(03:27):
I also sit as our senior vicepresident of TCCI Manufacturing, which is a
global leader in compressor technology. Wemake air conditioning compressors for both mechanical and
electric vehicles, cooling the cabins andcooling the batteries and electric vehicles. Wow,
So as you are a yell ofwhere I've been and how I've transitioned
through the years, you definitely dida huge pivot you know in your career
(03:51):
from fashions manufacturing, and that happensa lot, and we don't really like
to talk about it, you know, when we have to have pivots in
our careers because it always comes withthe challenge. It definitely is not easy
when you just have to like completelydo a one to eighty. So I
commend you you are a leader.I would agree one hundred percent. It's
really you know, as you thinkabout you know, your your your road,
(04:14):
your path as you move through andall of these pieces come together.
And I think today I look atthat, and you know, we talked
about this today, how important everystage was and it's really not about adapting
to change but growing for progress.Yes, exactly, exactly with your leadership
(04:34):
and all of these roles that youtake. One, how do the values
that you have like at your core, how does that come through your leadership?
Yeah, I think there's a coupleof really important values that I take
with me. One is this relationshiptrusted relationships. I kind of coin like
super connector you know, if youcan't get something done in three phone calls,
(04:56):
you haven't spent the time over thelife of your career really building those
partnerships in those relationships in a meaningfulway. And I'm not just talking about
knowing somebody just to know them,but it's really about developing a deeper relationship
with those that you meet throughout yourlife and throughout your career. And that's
been really important to me, andI think it helped me start DCC.
(05:18):
I was able to pick up thephone and get opportunities put in front of
me. Didn't mean I was alwaysgoing to get them, but understanding and
navigating relationships is a big part ofwhat I think being a great leader is
about. Whether that's in the peopleyou're serving in your clients, or in
our growing business, the employees withinthe culture that we're building and fostering.
(05:42):
I So I think relationships become suchan important part of a success for anybody.
It's something I always make sure Ilead with when I'm talking to younger
people as well. Use your rolodexto build your life, you know,
don't They're not just a number.Relationships you have to foster and it takes
time and energy to do that.So that is really one. The other
(06:05):
is active leadership in terms of activelistening and impact, you know, and
we think about that I always coinStephen Covey's phrase, begin with the end
in mind. You know, beingable to really know what is success going
to look like? You know,when we're working with clients or when I'm
working on a project, Understanding whatsuccess looks like for somebody is really an
(06:30):
important piece in my mind of successin leadership. If I can't understand that,
if I'm not an active listener understandingwhat those needs are, I can't
really build program, a product,a campaign, a strategy for transformation of
the electrification industry without that. Andso I'm a real big proponent of making
(06:53):
sure you have two ears in onemouth for a reason, to a lot
more listening than you do talking,and always be learning. You know,
I think building your skills. Ithink all the things that I'm doing have
honed skills in different areas that arecoming together now to really make an impact
in what I'm doing. Whether that'syou know, working for Governor Pritzker as
(07:13):
a board member for the Illinois InnovationWorkforce Board, or whether that's you know,
helping drive campaigns that are making majorimpact in people's lives, or whether
that's helping bring business to Illinois andfederal dollars to Illinois, whether that's transforming
the ev industry and how we thinkabout workforce development and our ecosystem and the
(07:36):
partnerships that we need to build withother businesses. I think we have to
hone our skills in those areas andyou know, really take the time to
understand what's happening out there from variousperspectives and diverse perspectives at that. We
can't live in a bubble, youcan say that. Yeah, yes,
(07:58):
talking about the you knowavigating relationships andit's all about people. What does playing
your position mean to you? Yeah, you know, I think I love
that phrase because it really is aboutyou know, positioning yourself and using your
resources. And I think I goback to you can't do everything, and
(08:18):
those relationships that you've built over theyears become critical in getting things done quickly.
Yes, you know. An exampleof that is, you know,
it just led our team's effort fora large grant with the Department of Energy,
and we put together a team ofthirty five people from across our state
to be on an advisory council andthat was done in three days, quite
(08:41):
honestly, without the relationships that hadbeen built over the years. You know,
you can't make that kind of connectivityand get that kind of trust and
commitment across a wide variety of peoplewithout having that. And so when I
think about playing your position, it'sreally about understanding how to build partnerships,
(09:03):
how to create resources in your lifeand during your time in your leadership career
before you even become a leader,knowing that these are things that you need
to be fostering throughout that time.It's really all about, as you said,
using people and using your resources andnot being afraid to do so because
those relationships will help you in thelong run. That's right. And everyone
(09:24):
has a different lens that they're lookingthrough, a different skill that they're bringing,
right, and when you collectively bringthat together, the impact is exponential.
Let's talk about on your journey.You know, we said that you
made a big pivot, but whatabout some other like detours and challenges along
the way, because I'm sure therewere plenty when you made the pivot,
(09:46):
and how did you get past those? Yeah, there were a lot of
pivots. I mean a milestone forme was when I took over the real
estate portfolio that we were just gettinginto the real estate area and doing a
big revitalzation project that was a hugeundertaking. And at the same time,
I was running the marketing for twoof our corporations, and this was prior
(10:09):
to having the AD agency. SoI was hiring ad agencies to help support
me in the work I had todo on the marketing side for our global
companies. And it became really difficultfor me to manage all of that at
one time. And I was twentyseven years old at the time, and
so you know, I was alot of making things up as I went.
(10:30):
And you know, that's what leadersdo, right, They pave their
path. They just they jump inand they do things, and they learn
how to do that. They findmentors that become critical resources for them.
You know, it was really difficultfor me to manage all of that at
that time, and so as Iwas hiring agencies, I found very quickly
that it was really difficult to havethat relationship. I wasn't getting what I
(10:56):
wanted out of that relationship, andso I decided, as an entrepreneur,
the best thing to do would beto start putting a business plan together to
start on my own because I wasreally realizing that other people, at least
in our region were having similar issues. And so, you know, I
put a business plan together and startedDCC Marketing back in two thousand and that
was a huge risk. I startedit out of our real estate division.
(11:22):
Didn't really know what I was doing. I was running the marketing but had
never run an agency before. Ibrought on a business partner to do that
with me, and so there werea lot of pitfalls. You know,
a lot of support from my father, who very much entrepreneurial and is in
his business was very much three tofive years to get a business going.
You have to dedicate your time andenergy to that. If it doesn't work
(11:45):
the first time, you have tokeep looking at new ways to grow and
change and modify that. And sothere were a lot of pitfalls with that.
In twenty fifteen, I hired someonethat almost took the company down,
and at that point I wasn't surewhether I was going to continue or not.
And I had a huge support networkwithin our own organization, and my
father said to me, you've startedthis path. Great leaders don't give up.
(12:11):
They find ways to take what they'velearned from their failures and reinvigorate a
new path to new opportunities that lieahead. And I think that when he
said that to me, it wasa huge impact on me. And then
the support that I had from ourcompany and our employees was was something that
(12:31):
helped me get through the tribulations ofa business that was almost going under,
hard to make payroll, cash flowis bleeding, and we just we became
at this point of this turn dowe shut down or do we keep going?
And I'm really glad that, youknow, my dad was over mentoring
me and that we kept the pathgoing. I made a lot of changes.
(12:54):
I made structural changes to the organization. I made some major changes in
what our strategies were for business growth. I became a women business entity,
which was a big undertaking in termsof paperwork and realizing what the benefits of
that could be for the opportunities thatit could open for us as a small
(13:16):
business. And I think that wasreally in twenty nineteen the trajectory change for
us and the work that we're doing. And again, you know, I
think it all goes back to believingthat you're doing good work and not worrying
so much about the impact the profitthat it's having. Like if we do
good work, it will come witha good business strategy. So there were
(13:39):
a lot of pitfalls throughout that career. And would you say your willingness to
like adapt in modify whatever you needto change, was that part of what
helped you become a successful leader?Yeah? I think, I think again,
you know, change is growing.I think as I grew through the
years, and I am definitely onethat builds on mentorship. I think people
(14:01):
that have been in my life orhave provided a resource to me and knowledge
have been critical into where I amtoday. And I definitely think that one
of my fortes is this relationship piece, the piece of building relationships that are
meaningful that help guide growth so thatas we need to change for the industry,
(14:26):
or as the industry changes, Ishould say, we can adapt and
grow. And talking about what youwent through in you know where you are
now and how you use everything toget to where you are, you kind
of just explain the connection between pitfallsand success. There is a bridge,
a literal bridge. You know,success happens even faster and further when you
(14:48):
do have failures. Some are small, some are big, but it helps
you learn from what you've done sothat you can really start to grow and
put things in place that help younavigate to that next stage. And I'm
in Young President's Organization and it's beena huge resource to me. The forum
(15:09):
of other CEOs and business leaders thatyou know, you learn from. So
as you think about these learning experiences, as you go through these times,
you garner such great insights from others, yes, and what they've experienced,
and it helps you navigate those pitfallsthat you're facing and build a better,
(15:31):
stronger company for the future. Oh, gar, I love everything you are
saying. So where do you seewomen in leadership in the next like five
to ten years. I remember yousaid you were really excited to see like
the next ten years, but specificallywomen in leadership. Where do you see
it going? You know, Ithink women hold a very strong place in
(15:52):
leadership roles. I think we're seeingthat. I think as women build the
confidence. It's hard for me toreally I mean, I think leadership doesn't
in my true sense. I thinkwomen in leadership has been there in the
past and is growing in the youknow, as we look to the future.
Yeah, for me, a leaderisn't it isn't about their gender,
(16:15):
it isn't about their race. It'sabout their characteristics and their abilities. What's
important as you're building those skills asa good leader, and women have an
innate ability to do that. Theyhave to believe in themselves and you know,
be able to commit to the growthin their endeavors. And I think
(16:41):
a lot of that goes back toconfidence and believing in yourself. Whoever you
are, a leader is built fromwithin. So let's talk about harmony,
not balance between career and family.So getting the little personal who is team
huss Yeah? I think you know. I think one of the things people
(17:02):
ask me is how do you managethe work life balance? And I always
am like, well, it's notwork life balance, because that's one or
the other, right, Like it'swork or life, And to me,
it's harmony. Everything is about creatingand integrating together. And maybe that's the
entrepreneurial spirit of it. Everything collidesand when you work in a harmonious way,
(17:25):
you understand all of the things aroundyou are important to your success,
and so you don't put numbers onactivities like Okay, if I work this
much and I'm at home this much, I'm gonna have balance. That's not
how it works in my mind personally, I feel that harmony is something you
(17:51):
find from within. I am veryconfident within on the time and the commitments
I put towards things across the board. And it's that self confidence in that
and not feeling guilty because a lotof women feel guilty. And I think
that is sometimes where you asked me, like, how do you, you
know, move to that next levelof leadership as a woman. We can't
(18:14):
feel guilty about always having to havewhat people call balance. We have to
feel good about ourselves and the harmonythat we have from within, and that
will breed better leaders and more ofus in leadership roles. So everyone has
a different perspective on that, exactlylike you said, a different lens.
It's good. It's a good thing. So along with the self confidence,
(18:37):
what other advice do you have forlike the next generation of leaders I want
to go back to this Rolodex idea. I think building relationships. I think
people today get so caught up inthey work hard. There's no doubt there's
a hard work ethic, you know. I see in my office from the
top down, the work ethic andthe commitment to what they're doing is so
(18:57):
strong. One thing I'm always teaching, and I would say preaching a bit
is pull your head out of yourdesk and look around and get out and
be around. Build these connections,real connections, meaningful connections with the people
that you're working with. Care aboutthem and what they're doing, not just
(19:22):
in their office, but them aspeople. Because as we go through life,
whether it's at work or home,having those deeper relationships are going to
serve us incredibly well. If Ididn't have that, I wouldn't be the
leader I am today. And sofor me, that is the number one
thing I tell people is the relationshipsthat they build are critical to them.
(19:45):
Now they may not see that,but in ten years, if they've fostered
that relationship and built a deeper one, it's going to be an important part
of their growth and where they aresomeday. And would you say, the
people that you've built relationships with,do they inspire you? Oh my gosh.
I mean today I asked if Icould bring more people than that were
(20:07):
there. I mean, I'm inspiredevery day by those around me. Men.
Women, You know, when Icame on here, I had a
friend of mine say, you know, don't forget about you know, you
inspire men as much as you inspirewomen. And you know, I thought
that was a really interesting not interesting, but I thought that was a really
great comment because you know, Ithink you don't realize sometimes that you are
inspiring others. Yeah, And sothat's the other thing I would encourage the
(20:33):
younger generation always, is that whatyou say and what you do impacts others
and you may not even know that. And so remember that as you walk
into a room, as you're workingon a project, as you're having dinner
with somebody, the story that youhave or the things that you're doing are
touching somebody in a way that youdon't even know. Yeah. And so
(20:56):
I think really making sure your hypeaware of that, and that you're always
having this attitude that's positive, thatyou have a hardworking, positive aura around
you, I think is really importantand that can do attitude. I just
I love that when I see thatin people, when they shine, when
(21:19):
they walk into a room, it'sjust special and you notice it, and
it's immediately to me the sign ofsomebody, whether they are right now or
going to be in the future,a really strong leader in a very large
position. And I can say thankyou right now. I needed to hear
that everything you just said. AndI always like to end these conversations with
(21:41):
a quote, so I have oneready and the theme of playing your position.
It is actually funny that this isone of my favorite all time quotes,
like ever from Babe Ruth. Neverlet the fear of striking out keep
you from playing the game. Ohmy god, that's it. I love
that. Yeah, I mean youjust I think I talked about that earlier
today. How fearful I was youngerto walk into a room and mingle.
(22:03):
And as you build that confidence andyou do that, you know, you
realize that if you don't overcome thosefears. You know, I do a
lot of self talking, you'll neverget to that next stage. And so
I think those are really great.That's a really great quote. I just
wanted to say thank you again somuch. Care You inspire women, You
inspire men, boys, girls,you inspire Chicago, and you inspire us
(22:26):
all. So thank you, thankyou for having me, thanks for listening
to the Women Inspire Chicago podcast,hosted by Angela Ingram, presented by iHeartMedia
Chicago and produced by Jasmine Bennett.The Women Inspire Chicago Podcast is sponsored by
pot Belly feed your group from smallto larch with pot belly catering pot Belly,
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