August 12, 2024 • 44 mins
How does a drinking water scientist become a cornerstone of diversity and supplier inclusion in one of the world's largest cities? Embark on Maria Osorio's incredible 25-year journey through New York City's government, where her passion for empowering minority and women-owned business enterprises (MWBEs) shines. As the Chief Diversity Officer for the Mayor's Office of Contract Services, Maria shares invaluable insights into how initiatives like "MOCs in your Neighborhood" and strategic alliances with local chambers of commerce are opening doors for small businesses to compete for the city's $40 billion procurement budget.
Transitioning careers is never easy, especially within unpredictable government landscapes. Maria's story reveals how she leveraged key transferable skills—such as research, analytical thinking, and effective communication—to navigate her shift from a drinking water scientist to a pivotal role in MWBE support. Discover how education, particularly an executive MPA, played a critical role in her growth as a leader. This part of her tale serves as a reminder of the delicate balance between personal development and professional adaptation.
Relationships are the cornerstone of career growth, especially within large governmental frameworks. Maria recounts her rise from the Department of Small Business Services to the Department of Youth and Community Development, emphasizing the power of networking and mentorship. With anecdotes of growing up in Harlem and ties to the Dominican Republic, Maria's journey is a testament to how cultural backgrounds can fuel a lifelong commitment to public service. Tune in for a compelling narrative filled with career strategies, essential advice on building professional relationships, and personal stories that illustrate the resilience required to succeed.
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The thoughts, views, and opinions expressed on Career Cheat Code are those of the individual guests and do not necessarily reflect those of the host, affiliated organizations & employers. This podcast is intended for informational and inspirational purposes, highlighting the guests and their unique career journeys. We hope these stories inspire you to chase your purpose, define success on your own terms & take the next step in your career.
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Speaker 1 (00:00):
I don't know.
I think she'd be like what iswrong with you?
You've been a science geeksince you were a child and I
still love.
I still love the sciences.
I still stay on top of my fieldof water quality science, but I
think I've I've done okay.
I think the I think everythinghappens for a reason and the
experiences that I had and thepivots that I've made brought me
(00:21):
here because this is where I'msupposed to be and what I'm
supposed to be doing, and againbeing able to see successes
within our community is sorewarding.
I mean, it just feels so goodand I think that alone makes
this a great choice and I thinkthe choices I've made have been
great.
I don't think I've changed anyof the choices I've made.
Speaker 2 (00:40):
Welcome to Career Cheat Code.
In this podcast, you'll hearhow everyday people impact the
world through their careers.
Learn about their journey,career hacks and obstacles along
the way, whether you're alreadyhaving the impact you want or
are searching for it.
This is the podcast for you All, right, Maria.
Speaker 3 (00:56):
welcome to the show.
Speaker 1 (00:57):
Thank you.
Thank you for having me.
Good seeing you.
It's been such a long time.
Speaker 3 (01:01):
Definitely Our paths crossed back when I was working
at Columbia University a longtime ago.
I was at SPS.
We were at the Small BusinessServices of New York City and we
were both working together tosupport entrepreneurs throughout
the city, so love that we'vebeen able to reconnect, stay
connected, all of the things andnow showcase you and your
(01:23):
career here.
Speaker 1 (01:24):
Awesome, excited, yeah.
So let's dive right in.
Let's tell the world what nowshowcase you and your career
here Awesome, excited.
Speaker 3 (01:26):
Yeah.
So let's dive right in.
Let's tell the world what it isyou do for a living.
Speaker 1 (01:29):
Sure, I'm Maria Tresa Osorio.
I'm a chief diversity officerfor the mayor's office of
contract services.
I've been with them coming intotwo years, but I actually have
25 years with the city of NewYork.
Speaker 3 (01:43):
Wow, what does that mean?
Your title sounds fancy.
What do you even do for aliving?
What does that mean on a Mondaywhen you walk in?
Speaker 1 (01:49):
For the city of New York chief diversity officer
really focuses on supplierdiversity.
So I'm the point of contact formy office for all things with
the minority and women-ownedbusiness program.
So it was actually under theprevious administration that it
was advised that every agencyhave a chief diversity officer
and be the point of contact forall procurement that are part of
(02:10):
the MDBE program.
So I do that for my office.
But we are also one of thethree oversights of the program.
So under the rules the mayor'soffice of contracts has
authority over the procurementsection of the rules small
business services or stilloverseas certification and
vendor services.
And then the mayor's office ofMDBE is our lead.
(02:30):
They are our legislative arm,our policy writing arm.
They're the ones that really goout to Albany and petition the
governor and other electedofficials when we need changes
to the state procurement ruleswhich really lead what changes
can happen in city government.
Speaker 3 (02:45):
Wow, which makes sense, right, because I know
you've built a career onsupporting MWBEs and supporting
not only entrepreneurs but justpeople within our communities,
right?
So I think this is in some ways, a natural kind of progression
to your career, althoughsometimes the way that we look
at DEI is really lookinginternally, so we don't always
(03:06):
see it kind of manifest in thisway, but in your case, I think
it actually really makes a lotof sense.
Speaker 1 (03:11):
Yeah, definitely.
It's something that's importantto look at both internally and
externally.
You really need to support yourinternal network, your
employees, your system, makesure you have an office culture
that's positive and supportiveof your people who are doing all
the work, but also make surethat you're giving something
back to the community and doingsomething to help those small
businesses.
It's no secret that smallbusinesses are the ones who
(03:33):
really hire local and they'rethe ones that bring money into
our neighborhoods, so we reallyneed to support them and get
them to learn what are thechallenges of procurement, how
to find available access tocapital and finance and so that
they can compete for contracts,because we spend $40 billion a
year in procurement and it'smostly the big boys who get them
(03:54):
.
We need to be able to sharethat wealth.
There's enough opportunity forgrowth and enough businesses who
can actually win and be part ofthe city's procurement system.
Speaker 3 (04:03):
That's great.
So how are you going about that?
How do you actually teach someof these get the word out work
with these minority women inbusiness enterprises, MWBEs I
realize we speak in acronymsbecause we've been in the world
for a while.
How do you actually go aboutdoing this, or create new
programs that support theseMWBEs, and how do you do your
job that way?
Speaker 1 (04:23):
Sure, it's a combination of both outreach, so
us hosting events, both as anagency.
We have what's called Mocs inyour Neighborhood where we have
a learning and development teamthey're part of our strategic
arm of the office who reallyschedule and network with
organizations to host events totrain vendors on understanding
(04:45):
the procurement process,understanding enrollment to our
citywide digital procurementsystem passport, and to actually
learn how to find and competefor contracts.
So it's everything from workingwith the different chambers
chambers of commerce.
We work with localorganizations that actually have
vendor membership, likeRegional Alliance, small
(05:05):
membership of small contractors.
We work with other agencies.
We know an agency has a largeprocurement coming up.
They need multiple vendorsthey're going to award to.
We partner with them and withCity Hall and we help organize
actual events, networking events, bring the vendors in, talk to
them.
Let them learn who the bigprime contractors are and where
(05:26):
there's sometimes opportunityfor subcontracting if they can't
be a prime themselves.
Speaker 3 (05:31):
That's great and I really appreciate this part of
the conversation right, becausebeen in the city in city
government for a long time, soyou know how complex it can be
to navigate that.
But then we have people likeyourself that are working to
make it easier for entrepreneursand make it easier for
entrepreneurs and make it easierfor people to come in and
actually secure some of thesecontracts that sometimes
entrepreneurs don't know thatthey can work directly with the
(05:53):
city of New York or withdifferent agencies, and I think
you've just been spearheadingthis work for a while to make
sure that those opportunitiesare created.
So I just appreciate you alsosharing that, because there are
a lot of entrepreneurs andbusiness owners in the city of
also sharing that because youknow there are a lot of
entrepreneurs and businessowners in the city of New York
that may not even know this.
And then there's another levelof then you work with the state,
then you work with federalright but, like just in the city
(06:14):
of New York itself, that's awhole ecosystem that if you, if
you're able to contract withthem, you can do some really
good work.
Speaker 1 (06:25):
Yeah, and I think part of the issue is also we're
also kind of working silos.
In addition to like, we havethe mayor's office and we have
over 40 agencies that fall underthe mayor, but there are a lot
of big dollar, highly budgetedagencies that are not under the
mayor, that have their own MDBprogram, their own rules and
procurement systems, so I try toteach those also.
Health and Hospital Corporation, new York, new Jersey Port
(06:46):
Authority, mta these are stateauthorities.
They're not state agencies norcity agencies, so they live in
their own bubble and they have alot of opportunities for
vendors and we want to make surethat they have that message and
they learn that you need tolook and seek and connect with
those authorities as well,because there's a lot more money
(07:06):
and more opportunities in thoseindividual agencies than some
of the groups of agencies withinthe mayoral system.
Speaker 3 (07:13):
You seem very passionate about your work.
What's your favorite part ofyour?
Speaker 1 (07:16):
job, who I worked with to get certified when I was
at SPS.
I see them at events now andthey're like I remember you.
You helped me with this.
You connected me to that person, bridging gaps like I've met,
like recently, with the asylumseekers.
One thing my office has done iswe've connected a couple of
(07:38):
vendors who we knew were havingdifficulty finding opportunities
to those agencies that we knewwere gonna have opportunities
upcoming Nothing definite yetbut we knew that it was in the
pipeline.
We got their capabilitystatements out there, got them
connected, introduced them toindividuals, told them you have
to come to this event becausethere's going to be certain
agencies there.
(07:58):
Let them know who you are, whatyour interests are and then
seeing that connection actuallygrow to an actual contract award
and someone actually being ableto profit and make money.
I mean winning a contract.
Yeah, it's providing a good ofservice to New York City but to
that business owner that'sincome to their family, that's
(08:19):
them being able to pay theiremployees and seeing that just
knows that the work that I'mdoing matters and that there's
actual impact long-term.
Speaker 3 (08:30):
That's great.
What are some of the challengesof your type of role?
Speaker 1 (08:33):
Politics I mean city, state and federal government
are the same.
Whenever there's a change inleadership, the surrounding
teams around that leader alsochange.
So there's also differentfocuses on what's priority, what
isn't priority, with certainprograms, certain legal activity
changes.
(08:53):
It's hard for have goodconsistency with different
mayors when you have a change ofpeople at the top.
So that makes that's part ofthe challenge.
And also even before mayor'schange, like we've noticed,
since late last year into thisyear, there's already been
senior level people in theadministration leaving.
(09:14):
Now, within this administration, certain agencies have changed
leaders.
There's going to be a change infocus because everyone wants to
put their mark on the work thatthey've done.
It's hard to be consistent indoing work that we know is going
well when you have changesbeing made on top and then
wanting to refocus what we'realready doing that is successful
.
Speaker 3 (09:34):
That makes a lot of sense and I'd imagine if you
hire a new leader, they're goingto come with their own ideas,
their own ways to do things.
That just may disrupt the waythat things are going and
sometimes that goes great.
Sometimes it lands in themiddle, Sometimes it's not the
best success, but you know it's,it's, it's part of the process.
So that makes a lot of sense.
Is this role what you alwayswanted to do for a living?
Speaker 1 (09:56):
Oh no, no, it fell on my lap.
I actually started as adrinking water scientist.
My my bachelor's and my firstmaster's are in environmental
science.
And after grad school I movedto the state of Massachusetts.
I worked for the MassachusettsDEP Great learning experience.
(10:17):
The work was amazing.
Getting a different perspectiveon the environmental field in a
different state and what theirchallenges are and also what
their successes are, wasfantastic.
But it was a verydiscriminatory and sexist work
environment.
I had difficult.
I mean, I did great work-wisebut socially was very isolating
and people treated me as if Iwas different.
I didn't have.
(10:37):
I wasn't treated like the restof the scientists and wasn't
really part of the crew.
So I made it to three years butI couldn't stay that much
longer.
So I came back to New York Citybecause I got a job with the New
York City DEP Department ofEnvironmental Protection.
So I was excited.
I was back in Harlem.
I was like great, I'm going tobe working with city government
here where there's morediversity.
(10:59):
And my division was the samesituation.
I was the only person of color,I was given very simple work,
wasn't treated at the same levelas all the other scientists,
but I had the bachelor's andmaster's that matched it.
So it was a challenge.
I will have to say that myfirst director was fantastic.
He retired after my first yearthere and then there was another
(11:23):
scientist who was a wonderfulwoman who I'm still friends with
, but I never worked directlyfor her, so I was dealing with
other supervisors, otherdynamics, and it made it hard to
stay.
But I love the field so much Istayed for five years, five very
difficult years, but it's anarea that I just love and I
still keep on top of the fieldand I know what's going on in
(11:46):
drinking water science.
But it was really my first love.
Speaker 3 (11:50):
That's such an interesting pivot, right From
drinking water science tosupporting MWBEs, which you've
done for quite some time now.
So can you talk about whatskills were transferable there
and what you were able to bringover, like what you were able to
bring over and how you wereable to like make that first
pivot into this type of work?
Speaker 1 (12:09):
Sure.
So skill-wise, it's acombination of research being
analytical, communication skills, writing skills.
I mean everything that I did inthe sciences.
But I was also able we also hadto have the capacity to talk
about science in layman's term,because not everyone in
leadership understood thetechnical area when we gave
(12:31):
presentations.
So I already had experiencespeaking to people in the
community and speaking atcommunity boards.
So that was kind of what helpedme transition to other areas.
(12:53):
Where I went to after DEP wasthe Office of Environmental
Coordination, which was part ofthe Mayor's Office of Operations
.
So I still worked onenvironmental issues, just not
specifically drinking water, andat that time the city council
was putting out a numerous locallaws that were specific to
sustainability and environmentalprotection and some of them
(13:15):
were procurement related had toimplement a series of
environmental policies.
All of a sudden I got a call.
I said hey, because I was inthe same building Environmental
Coordination for Operations, thesame building as Mayor's Office
of Contracts.
I got stopped.
I got a call.
I said hey, let's talk, becausewe're looking for someone who
(13:36):
can do A, b, c and D and we knowthat you have a technical
background in environmentalscience.
Would you be interested?
And I ended up working for mycurrent office back under the
Bloomberg era for five years.
Speaker 3 (13:47):
Wow, I love that.
And during that time you alsoended up going back to school
right For a second master's.
Speaker 1 (13:54):
I did.
I started to get staff to manage, Started working with and it
started low level managinginterns, managing temp staff,
and then I started managingother staff and I was like, wait
a minute, and when you study aphysical science you don't learn
anything about budgets, HRmanagement, organizational
(14:15):
behavior.
I mean there were skills that Ifelt that I was lacking and I
couldn't really be successful asa manager.
So I went to Baruch and I didan executive MPA on Saturdays so
I wouldn't interfere with work.
Because I needed to work, Ineeded to make money, you know,
be able to pay my rent with work.
Because I needed to work, Ineeded to make money, be able to
pay my rent.
But at the same time I wantedto make sure that I had the
skillset to succeed, because Isaw how some of the managers I
(14:37):
work with didn't have thoseskills and how it was really
hurting their staff and I didn'twant to do that.
I saw good examples but I sawnegative examples and I wanted
to make sure I went the rightpath.
So I earned a second master'sto learn those skills that I
felt I needed and it helped metransition also into other areas
in government.
Speaker 3 (14:55):
Do you feel like that master's in public
administrations actually paidoff for you, do you?
Speaker 1 (15:01):
feel like you got what you were seeking out of it.
Oh, definitely, definitely.
I learned so much aboutactually understanding and
writing policy, researchingpolicy, really having a
different focus on the work andbeing able to address the work
in a different way, because whenyou're in the sciences, you're
still technical and in the weedsI had to really learn how to
look at things big picture,which I never had a skillset in
(15:22):
doing that.
So it really helped me look atwork differently, interact with
individuals differently,understand our budget what was
feasible for us to do as agovernment office and what
wasn't our budget, what wasfeasible for us to do as a
government office and whatwasn't.
So it definitely helped.
I have to say the HR managementpart was fantastic because I
actually interacted with staffreally well.
Then I have staff from back inthe day asking me if I have any
(15:42):
opportunities because they'dlove to come work with me.
So it's always like a goodfeeling.
Speaker 3 (15:46):
So now you've been at that point, you've been in the
city for about 15 years or so,right, and you continue to do
some great work over theDepartment of Small Business
Services.
And then you ultimately wentover to the Department of Youth
and Community Development.
Can you tell me about, kind of,your roles there and what you
(16:06):
were responsible for doing andhow you continue to grow in your
career during that time,because you've held multiple
positions at each of theseagencies agencies, right, it was
clear that you were doing goodwork and folks were recognizing
that.
Speaker 1 (16:16):
Yeah, one of the senior management employees of
DYCD.
We were seeing how MDBE was ahuge impact and DYCD had good
numbers, but he wanted to reallyincrease their utilization of
MDBEs.
I was doing numerouspresentations at all of our
quarterly meetings, citywidemeetings, so people knew who I
(16:37):
was.
You know they were used tohearing me speak and talk about
data and talk about initiativesthat we were doing at SBS and
they actually created a positionfor me to be their special
advisor for MDBE.
So I actually went to DYCD,initially just focused on MDBE,
working with their smallpurchase team which is where the
bulk of the money is that theyhave available for minority
(16:59):
women-owned businesses andreally transformed the program,
got the purchasing staff to lookat MDBEs more so for
opportunities, train them on therule, train them on how to find
opportunities, and it just blewup and started to do really
well.
Then within the organizationthere was some reorganization of
the agency and I was asked if Iwould be interested in becoming
(17:22):
their deputy COO.
Speaker 2 (17:24):
The.
Speaker 1 (17:25):
COO at the time oversaw purchasing and the work
that I was doing, so it wasreally a position where I was
now reporting directly to him,not only doing the MDBE work but
now actually helping himsupport the organization,
overseeing HR and facilitiesmanagement.
Speaker 3 (17:42):
Wow.
So you see, I love hearing thesestories because you
incrementally kind of continueto get more responsibilities,
continue to learn more things,right, like you had not
necessarily managed an HR teambut now you were comfortable in
doing that in different pointsin your career.
And you, I think, are a shiningexample of place, of how you can
(18:03):
have so many different careers.
Just in city government.
Right, like within citygovernment, you can spend your
entire career and literally havelike entirely different paths.
Like you can start off as ascientist and now be the expert
in DEI and working withbusinesses and contracting and
and all these other areas inways that I don't know, that you
(18:23):
know a lot of folks give itcredit for in in working in the
city because you can, you knowyour, your, your scope can
change so much and leadershipschange and bring different
opportunities for folks.
And as long as you're willingto own your career and not
necessarily stay like, if youlike your role, great you stay
there.
But if you want to seekdifferent things, you can go to
different agencies and trydifferent things out and have a
(18:46):
youth lens now on the work thatyou're doing and have an
entrepreneurship side on thework you're doing so.
I just think it's fascinatinghow you've been able to navigate
your career through the city.
Speaker 1 (18:54):
And it wasn't easy, but I cause I've always, even to
date.
Networking is tough for me, butnetworking is how you get jobs.
It really is like one of thebiggest ways to get
opportunities.
Most jobs are not posted, youknow.
So government gives you theopportunity to meet folks in
different agencies, participatein events.
One thing I always participatedin events, attended seminars,
(19:16):
lecture series that otheragencies were having that were
topics of interest.
So it gives you a chance toreally network and meet folks in
other industries, otheragencies.
You know we have agencies thatare small, only 40 people, up to
NYPD, that's 40,000.
So,000.
So there's a lot of opportunityacross the board and we hire
everyone, everyone from peoplewho do legal services,
(19:40):
accountants, scientists, everytype of scientist you can
imagine.
Also you name it.
The city hires them physicians,doctors.
There's so much opportunity.
I think government is a greatplace to not only do well in
serving the public, but alsowhere you can grow and learn a
lot of different skills and youhave opportunity to move around.
It's easier to move around onceyou're in government than
(20:03):
coming in from the outside.
Speaker 3 (20:04):
That makes sense.
So let's backtrack a little.
Tell me a little bit about yourupbringing.
Where were you born, raised?
Where are your parents from?
All of that?
Speaker 1 (20:11):
Born and raised in Harlem.
My parents are from theDominican Republic.
My family came in the late 50sto escape Trujillo, the last
dictator.
So Harlem was a hub for a lot ofDominicans who came in the 50s.
Harlem and Hamilton Heights, soa lot of the original
Dominicans are in that region.
And on 135th Street, betweenBroadway and Amsterdam, my
(20:34):
grandparents, two of my unclesand one of my aunts all had
apartments on that one block.
So when I was growing up thatwas a party place.
Every Saturday we got together,you know, we used to have the
little Miller beers we wereallowed to drink under
supervision, learn how to dancemusic and then Sundays would be
Sunday dinner at mygrandmother's.
(20:55):
So that one block.
I really spent a lot of mychildhood and then, once folks
got older, started gettingmarried, moving around, people
started spreading around, but Iwas raised to know my culture.
I was one of those stubbornkids who didn't learn Spanish
well, but my father never spoketo us in.
Stubborn kids who didn't learnSpanish well, but my father
never spoke to us in Spanishbecause he didn't want us to
(21:15):
have accents in school.
So my mother would do all theSpanish speaking my father in
English.
Speaker 3 (21:28):
Wow, first of all, I love that because that's a real
New Yorker story, right.
That's like just one of thosestories that's just so relatable
when you have your parents comeover here and a lot of them
settle very close to each otherand you have that dynamic and
all that and then you know thelanguage for sure is part of
this part of the culture.
All right, tell me about someof the things that you do
outside of your job.
So, are you on any advisoryboards or boards that you
support other organizations andlend some of your, your
(21:49):
expertise to?
Speaker 1 (21:50):
I'm on the board of the Dominican Day Parade.
I have been since 2016.
I'm the secretary.
We are the national DominicanDay Parade, so we're the one
that runs down Sixth Avenue andit's coming up in a couple of
weeks.
So you know there's a lot goingon, but we're very excited.
I'm on the board.
I recently joined the board ofthe Dyckman Farmhouse Museum,
(22:10):
which is it's a little houseright on the corner of 204th
Street and Broadway.
It's actually the lastremaining piece of the Dyckman
family farm, which covered asignificant portion of Inwood,
the largest farm that everexisted in Manhattan.
And that little sliver of land.
It's an organization thatreally focuses on anti-racism.
(22:31):
That little sliver of land,it's an organization that really
focuses on anti-racism.
So it's a really amazingorganization.
They partner with communitygroups, educational programs,
they have a lecture, a series,so it's just a great place to
learn about the history ofManhattan, to learn about the
impacts we had on the NativeAmericans who inhabited the area
that the Zachman family tookland from, but also trying to
(22:55):
merge the community with what wedo and what we have to offer,
because we know it's a majorityLatino community.
It used to be more Irish, NowLatino Dominicans are taking
over, but we want to give themservices and do stuff with
programs with children.
There's a lot of educationalprograms there.
The museum is open for tours,we're having renovations done in
(23:17):
the main house and actuallyfound slave quarters and
information on who the slaveswere and what their names were.
So it's just a great, greatplace to go visit and they have
a slew of events that we do yearround.
So I love, I really love theDyckman Museum.
Then I'm also I just joined theDominican American Chamber of
Commerce, so I'm hoping to getmore involved with them.
(23:38):
They are bridging business notonly with New York but also with
the island, and the twoprincipals actually have been
icons in the MDBE, certified.
They've done a lot of work inthe community.
Manuel Lebron is the principaland Maria Curi, who's the chief
counsel to the organization.
She's also been a longtimeBronx resident, Riverdale.
(24:01):
Her family has had businessesthroughout here and in the
Dominican Republic.
So there are two people whoreally look to support all
Latinos not just Dominican allLatinos in understanding
business and really growingtheir business.
So it's a nice combination ofconnecting my MDBE world with
stuff that's happening real timein the community.
Speaker 3 (24:20):
That's great.
Yeah, it sounds like you're veryintentional about, kind of
where you join some of theseboards on right Because you know
, like the Dominican Day Parade,dykeman House, like all of
these things that are likerooted in culture, rooted in
community, and it's just a goodway for you to then bring in all
of the things that you'velearned through your career
Right and lend that perspectiveto support those organizations
and help them grow and help themexecute on their missions, but
(24:42):
still for you, tied to thethings that you love.
So I think it's just remarkableand I think one of those things
that I like to encourage folkslike try to get on boards of
things that you actually careabout Right, try to like be
connected to things that you'regoing to be passionate on,
because being on a board is alot of work.
So like it can be a lot of workdepending on the organization,
and like you want to make surethat it's worth your time, worth
(25:04):
your investment and it'ssomething that makes sense for
you and that you're not dreadingdoing the work for.
Speaker 1 (25:10):
Yeah, and I wonder if subconsciously I gravitated to
these organizations because ofmy experience in the start of my
career.
So I think maybe I was meant todo DEI work and really support
that space and my experienceswould let me here.
Speaker 3 (25:27):
How do you think younger Maria would feel about
the person and professionalyou've become today?
That may be a little far awayfrom her aspirations to be in
the medical field, but stilldoing remarkable work.
Speaker 1 (25:39):
I don't know.
I think she'd be like what iswrong with you?
You've been a science geeksince you were a child and I
still love.
I still love the sciences.
I still stay on top of my fieldof water quality science, but I
think I've done okay.
I think everything happens fora reason and the experiences
that I had and the pivots thatI've made brought me here
(26:01):
because this is where I'msupposed to be and what I'm
supposed to be doing, and againbeing able to see successes
within our community is sorewarding.
I mean, it just feels so goodand I think that alone makes
this a great choice and I thinkthe choices I've made have been
great.
I don't think I would changeany of the choices I've made.
Speaker 3 (26:19):
Any advice for people looking to make some of these
pivots?
Speaker 1 (26:22):
Stay on top of your interests.
Don't stay where you're unhappy.
Really make connections tofolks.
I know networking is hard, butyou really have to put yourself
out there.
I think finding a mentor and asponsor is great.
It took me a long time tounderstand what I was looking
for and how to find a mentor andit just happened organically.
I just met people in theindustry and in the business.
(26:44):
There's an MDBE that her and Ibecome great friends and she
always says I'm her one boardmember because I'm always giving
her advice but she gives memore advice than I give her.
So it's just.
I think naturally you willgravitate to people who you're
meant to know and meant tosupport you and at the same time
give them whatever support theycan get.
One thing I haven't done it inthis current role, but in my
(27:07):
previous two roles I wasactively working with the city's
mentorship program.
The previous mayors actually hada mentorship program where they
sought other folks, otherprofessionals, to really talk to
younger folks coming intogovernment to learn, and I'm
happy that I've done a lot ofpeople of color over the past
decade, just giving theminformation not only about
(27:28):
career choices and seekingcertain education, the degrees
or certificates to support theirinterests, but also just basics
about understanding the civilservice process.
You know there are a lot offolks who work in government for
decades, don't never took acivil service exam, aren't like
permanent city employees andthey're the first ones to get
laid off, even with 20 years ofservice.
(27:50):
So I think understanding andnavigating that kind of civil
service process in citygovernment is hard and not all
agencies HR teach that that's apersonal choice.
So I help them with kind of thelogistics of being a government
employee and how to protectyourself and know your rights.
At the same time.
(28:11):
Look at these opportunities,look at this path of education
and I connect people to otheragencies.
I've helped some people getjobs better than mine and I
think that's what makes me happy.
If I can make a phone call orsend your resume to someone and
you land a job there, then Iknow I've done good.
Speaker 3 (28:29):
Can you speak a little bit about?
How do you find aside from likea formal program like that?
How does one find mentors andyou mentioned sponsors if you
can talk a little bit about whatyou mean by that as well?
Speaker 1 (28:40):
Sure, a mentor is someone to me who you share
ideas, you bounce off ideas,give you guidance, can sometimes
give you direction.
Where a sponsor is someone whowill say your name in a room
that you're not in.
They will champion you, theywill push for you, they will
help you find opportunitieswithout you even knowing about
(29:01):
it, because they really speakabout who you are, what you can
accomplish, and really put yourname out there.
So I've had the luck of havingboth without looking for them.
So it's a hard thing to reallyfind, but you really need to
fine tune and really follow yourinterests and connect with
people who are in that realm.
(29:22):
So for me, being in government,I was in MDBE I started talking
and networking people in MDBEoffices and other agencies and
just making friends.
I see them at events, I seethem in city hall meetings.
Start talking to them, makethose connections.
Later on you will see that it'san actual, a stepping ladder
for growth and a learningexperience.
(29:44):
Start going to their eventswhen their agency has events.
I do that all the time.
I invite folks to our events.
So it's just kind of buildingyour network of fellow
government employees and lettingthat grow into something else.
Speaker 3 (29:59):
Yeah, absolutely, and you know a lot of times it
doesn't have to be a formaltitle to it, right?
Speaker 1 (30:04):
No, not at all.
Speaker 3 (30:05):
Like you could just build a relationship with
someone.
And then you know you realizethat you communicate with them
all the time.
But then you find yourselfgoing to them when you need
advice or they come to you whenthey need advice, and like you
just form that organicrelationship.
And I say that right, becauseI've had conversations with
folks about, like go up tosomeone and say, hey, will you
be my mentor?
And I'm like that sounds like alot of responsibility.
I'd rather just like connectwith you and be friends and be
(30:28):
in your network and then, if itevolves to that, great.
But like putting a formal titleon it sometimes can be scary
for folks, right.
So so I appreciate you sharingyou know definitely the
difference between a sponsor anda mentor.
I think that was spot on.
And then, too, just how you canorganically build those over
time.
Speaker 1 (30:45):
Yeah, and I use LinkedIn a lot.
I didn't before, but I mean Idid just for posting general
stuff.
You know, connecting to people,I knew.
But I've actually startedreaching out to people I don't
know.
You know, for example, I wentto a conference last month, a
DEI conference in Chicago, and Imet some really cool people but
(31:06):
it was, you know, just lightchit chat, no, no deep
conversation.
We didn't exchange information.
But I found them on LinkedInand I sent them messages and I
said hey, I met you at such andsuch conference.
Do you want to connect?
I'm interested in such and suchprogram you mentioned and some
folks have responded back andwe're now connecting.
And that's how you build andlearn from others as well.
(31:27):
Because one thing with DEI,there's so much in the space.
My office is small.
My office is about 180 people,but I've connected with people
who have worked in 5,000 personoffices.
Their approach and strategicplanning is very different than
mine because of the scope ofwork and the amount of people.
So I want to learn, I want tosee, maybe when I retire in
(31:50):
three years, maybe I'll go to alarger corporation and work with
10,000 people.
So I want to learn, I want tosee.
Maybe when I retire in threeyears, maybe I'll go to a larger
corporation and work with10,000 people.
So I want to connect with folkswho are in the same space and
I've learned to try not to beafraid and just reach out.
The worst it can do is notrespond.
So why not take a chance,connect with folks, reach out to
folks.
Speaker 3 (32:08):
Growing up in New York City, you know there was
for a long time a perceptionthat city government moves so
slow, right.
And then I worked in citygovernment.
I'm like I don't know whatgovernment y'all talking about
Like, city government can bevery fast sometimes depending on
the role, depending on whatyou're doing and depending on
the lens that you're looking atit from.
But for me I definitely feltlike things one move really
(32:30):
quickly in city government andtwo, you can really own some
really interesting projects andspearhead some things and bring
them to life.
Has that really been yourexperience in city government as
well?
Speaker 1 (32:41):
It has.
But it depends where you areBecause, to be honest, things
move really slow when there arebudgetary constraints, Whenever
there's resource constraints,whether it's budget or staff.
So that's been our biggestchallenge really since COVID.
I think things really sloweddown with COVID A lot of loss of
staff, A lot of folks retired,Budgets got tighter.
(33:01):
We went from kind of gettingback on our feet after all of
the financial hardships of COVIDin government and then now we
have asylum seekers and reallyhelping support the migrant
community.
That's a new budget constraintthat we have.
So some of the larger agencieswith larger budgets can get
things moving faster.
(33:22):
Smaller ones are morechallenged if they have smaller
budgets.
At DYCD things moved reallyfast.
We were assigned new programsby the mayor.
All the time there was moneyput in.
The council have funding.
So again, because there wasmoney flowing and staff, things
were working faster.
So it's really based onbudgetary constraints how slow
(33:45):
or quickly things can move.
Speaker 3 (33:47):
I'm a big proponent that you don't have to sacrifice
doing good for doing well.
Can we give folks anunderstanding of how much money
they can make being a chiefdiversity officer at a city
agency, realizing that it'llvary by city right?
New York City is probably theexception to a lot of cities but
just want to make sure thatpeople can understand that you
can have deep impact and notnecessarily be starving.
(34:10):
Check to check.
Speaker 1 (34:11):
No sure.
For New York City a chiefdiversity officer can make
anything from about $100,000 upto $200,000 plus a year.
The state pays a little less.
I've seen the highest salaryfor chief diversity officer in
the state maybe in the 160s 170sbut it's a great living.
(34:32):
I wouldn't have been able tostay in this role if I wasn't
making a decent salary.
I grew up in public housing inHarlem, so once you leave you
don't want to ever have to goback.
So even though I've stayed ingovernment all these years, I
definitely looked foropportunities for growth and
continued increase, to reallyhave financial stability, and
(34:52):
you can get that with governmentdefinitely.
Speaker 3 (34:54):
Great See, and I think that's one of the reasons
why I really started thispodcast.
Right, because I was working ingovernment at the New York City
Economic Development Corporationit's a quasi-government agency,
but we'll claim it and Irealized that folks had really
interesting roles and some ofthem were urban planners, some
of them were transportationplanners, some of them were in
communications, and I'm likerealizing that you can have so
(35:16):
many different types of careersand make a decent living, and
that was one of the first thingsthat I wanted to highlight.
I'm like you know, folks areamazing and doing great work,
and these are careers that Iwish I would have known as a
youngster.
Right, because when I was youngyou know lawyer, doctor,
engineer and, like you're,thinking about accounting.
Right, like you're thinkingabout how to make money, and
it's like you could actuallyhave impact and do great work
(35:37):
and build your city up, makesure that your city is in a
better condition than when youwere born, and provide
opportunities for folks and makea good living.
So I appreciate you sharingthat.
Are there any resources orforms of media I like to call it
, whether that's a book, apodcast, anything that you have
read or consumed that has shapedyou personally or
professionally.
Speaker 1 (35:58):
One thing I've done in government is I stay on top
of the city state newsletterthat comes out every morning and
Cranes, new York, forprofessional Like.
I definitely want to stay ontop of what's happening.
There's changes in the mayor'soffice all the time that I don't
hear from about until like aweek later.
But these newsletters stay ontop of what's happening in city
(36:20):
government, state government.
When there's a change ofleadership, where there's
opportunity, you know when yousee one leader exit, you know,
know someone's coming in.
There'll be staffingopportunities.
So I want to know what'shappening within government but
also at the state level, becauseit has a large impact on what
we do here at the city level.
Same thing with Cranes, newYork.
Cranes, new York is really tiedinto talking about small
(36:43):
businesses.
They have a lot of work.
They've done a lot of work inreally highlighting what small
businesses do, what they'reexperiencing.
They've really done a lot ofwork on the MDBE space and
articles on that.
So I definitely want to knowwhat they're saying, what their
viewpoint is, because sometimestheir viewpoint is skewed.
It's not really what'shappening in government that
we're experiencing, but it'sgood to know what journalists
(37:05):
are putting out there, whatthey're saying about the work
that we do and also the impactto our small businesses.
So I definitely love staying ontop of that On politics, just
for my own interest, because Ilike to know what's happening in
the world.
Greater.
I'm a CNN junkie, can't avoid itCNN.
But also I love real time withBill Maher.
I'm a huge Bill Maher fan and Ilove the humor.
(37:28):
But he really is a smart man.
He's well-read and he has greatpanelists on from different
points of views.
His show is not skewed to theleft or the right.
He gets everyone a chance tospeak and to really air out and
prove what they're saying andwhat's your backup to what
you're saying.
So I love that show Big.
On LinkedIn I follow companiesthat are of interest, not only
(37:55):
for future but just what they'redoing.
Who's doing work in mycommunity?
I see a Gilbane constructiontruck.
What work are they doing?
I follow their page.
I want to know what they'redoing in our communities, what
they're building.
Are they looking at localhiring?
Is there an opportunity forfolks in our community?
So I do a lot on LinkedIn overthe past year, significantly
following companies, followingpeople, keeping track of what's
happening in government as well,because every government agency
(38:16):
is on LinkedIn.
Now I like to stay informedBecause I do so much government
reading, policy reading policywriting, report writing.
A lot of the stuff I read forfun is fiction.
I love my serial killer booksbecause I love the ones that
have science behind them.
(38:37):
So definitely read a lot of funstuff really, to take away all
the technical and governmentstuff that I read all day.
Speaker 3 (38:46):
Anyone that you would recommend for folks.
Speaker 1 (38:47):
I like the Kay Scarpetta series, which are from
Patricia Cornwall.
It's a whole series.
There's like over 20 books.
She's a medical examiner thatworks closely with police and
they actually get into thescience when they talk about
injuries, when they talk aboutpeople murdered, like she's
really in the lab telling youexactly what she's seeing,
(39:08):
what's happening.
So it's a little technical, butthey're really a fun series of
books.
I really enjoyed them.
Speaker 3 (39:16):
Okay, I think there are two things.
One, I really appreciate whatyou mentioned there around using
LinkedIn to consume information, because I think a lot of folks
sometimes are cautious abouttheir engagement with LinkedIn
because they feel like it'sself-promoting and it's branding
yourself, which I think isreally important.
Professional branding is reallyimportant, but I get that.
(39:37):
But I think what you said,which is also follow
organizations and followpublications and follow people
that you're interested in justin the field and that are
experts in their field, so thatyou can learn and stay up to
date on as to what's happening.
I think that's a great careercheat code, because it actually
lets people know that they canjust use the platform in so many
(39:59):
different ways and consumeinformation in a way that's
easier for them.
Speaker 1 (40:02):
Definitely, even for job seekers.
If you want to negotiate asalary or learn, look at what's
in the market.
You know you have government,nonprofit and corporate America
posting jobs left and right.
Look at the salary ranges,seeing.
Do you think you have anopportunity to compete in your
workplace and actually marketyourself for a higher salary and
(40:23):
saying, look, this is what'sout on the market, this is the
work that I do.
I think it's a great tool tosee what work is out there, what
the salaries are and what areyou earning.
What is your value?
What if you think it's anopportunity to say, hey, I'm
doing A, b and C and D?
Maybe we should talk about asalary negotiation.
Use it, utilize it.
Speaker 3 (40:41):
One thing I want to provide a space for you to share
Any times when things were aslike you look like such a
complete package of like.
You are chief diversity officer.
You have this storied career.
Any times that were not assimple, um, personally or
professionally, um, that you hadto overcome something that you
(41:02):
felt like kind of you know, aspart of your story, as part of
the things that we, that wecarry and that most people just
wouldn't know.
Speaker 1 (41:08):
Oh, definitely.
I think it's more familial andpersonal stuff.
My father and I were superclose when I was a kid my
parents came here with collegedegrees from DR but they
couldn't get a job.
So in the early 60s my parentsone of my aunts, former uncles
they all went to City College.
They got another degree, theyall got second bachelors.
(41:32):
My father stayed and got hismaster's, came an architect
Great, he was doing fantastic.
But he loved women, women anddrink.
So when I was 13, he left.
He left with one of the womenhe was involved with and took
the money.
So my mother struggled withthree girls raising us.
She had left college to worktwo jobs to help him while he
(41:54):
was working and going to gradschool.
So she sacrificed her own forhim.
So we went from a two-parenthousehold to a single mom and
she worked two jobs.
She gave us everything weneeded and it was hard and I saw
her struggle.
So now the idea that we can payto take her on vacation, we
give her money for her to do herchurch retreats and enjoy her
(42:16):
senior center activities All thehard work I do is to go back
and help her and everything shestruggled for to take care of
our family.
Speaker 3 (42:24):
That's great.
You're really the embodiment ofthe American dream.
This is what our parents andgrandparents and folks saw when
they came to this country, right?
So, similarly, I came here.
I'm an immigrant, so I camehere with my mom when I was
young and she came with acollege degree and she had a
nice office white collar jobthere and then came over here
(42:46):
and how to handle threedifferent jobs as much as she
could to to make ends meet,because that degree did not
quite translate here.
So you know it's it'sdefinitely a story that I think
resonates with a lot of folks,definitely something that I
appreciate you sharing.
And you know it's somethingthat is part of our stories and
it makes us kind of bring theperspective of who we are, how,
(43:06):
as you said, you're appreciativeof, like now you're able to
like provide things for your momand like take her on trips and
like.
That's amazing.
Speaker 1 (43:12):
The only, the only sad part is that she's fighting
cancer, and I wish I could getrid of that too.
But pray, she's a tough woman.
Uh, she looks better than I do,though you will not believe
that she's actually ill, but um,she's just turned 87.
She's strong.
I mean, most of my family liveinto their nineties, so you know
, I'm like she's going to getthere too.
Speaker 3 (43:32):
I like it, I love it, and we're sending her all the
positive vibes from the podcastbecause we're rooting for her
and we're rooting for you, thankyou.
Is there anything else we havenot discussed that the world
should know about Maria?
Speaker 1 (43:46):
No, I think you got it all.
I think, you got it all.
Speaker 3 (43:51):
I love it.
Thank you, I really appreciateyou joining us today.
Speaker 1 (43:54):
Thank you for having me.
Speaker 2 (43:55):
I hope you enjoyed this episode.
If you did and believe on themission we're on, please like,
rate and subscribe to thispodcast on whatever platform
you're using, and share thispodcast with your friends and
your networks.
Make sure you follow us onInstagram and LinkedIn at Career
Cheat Code and tell us peopleor careers you would like to see
highlighted.
See you next week with somemore cheat codes.
Peace.
I don't know.
I think she'd be like what iswrong with you?
You've been a science geeksince you were a child and I
still love.
I still love the sciences.
I still stay on top of my fieldof water quality science, but I
think I've I've done okay.
I think the I think everythinghappens for a reason and the
experiences that I had and thepivots that I've made brought me
(00:21):
here because this is where I'msupposed to be and what I'm
supposed to be doing, and againbeing able to see successes
within our community is sorewarding.
I mean, it just feels so goodand I think that alone makes
this a great choice and I thinkthe choices I've made have been
great.
I don't think I've changed anyof the choices I've made.
Speaker 2 (00:40):
Welcome to Career Cheat Code.
In this podcast, you'll hearhow everyday people impact the
world through their careers.
Learn about their journey,career hacks and obstacles along
the way, whether you're alreadyhaving the impact you want or
are searching for it.
This is the podcast for you All, right, Maria.
Speaker 3 (00:56):
welcome to the show.
Speaker 1 (00:57):
Thank you.
Thank you for having me.
Good seeing you.
It's been such a long time.
Speaker 3 (01:01):
Definitely Our paths crossed back when I was working
at Columbia University a longtime ago.
I was at SPS.
We were at the Small BusinessServices of New York City and we
were both working together tosupport entrepreneurs throughout
the city, so love that we'vebeen able to reconnect, stay
connected, all of the things andnow showcase you and your
(01:23):
career here.
Speaker 1 (01:24):
Awesome, excited, yeah.
So let's dive right in.
Let's tell the world what nowshowcase you and your career
here Awesome, excited.
Speaker 3 (01:26):
Yeah.
So let's dive right in.
Let's tell the world what it isyou do for a living.
Speaker 1 (01:29):
Sure, I'm Maria Tresa Osorio.
I'm a chief diversity officerfor the mayor's office of
contract services.
I've been with them coming intotwo years, but I actually have
25 years with the city of NewYork.
Speaker 3 (01:43):
Wow, what does that mean?
Your title sounds fancy.
What do you even do for aliving?
What does that mean on a Mondaywhen you walk in?
Speaker 1 (01:49):
For the city of New York chief diversity officer
really focuses on supplierdiversity.
So I'm the point of contact formy office for all things with
the minority and women-ownedbusiness program.
So it was actually under theprevious administration that it
was advised that every agencyhave a chief diversity officer
and be the point of contact forall procurement that are part of
(02:10):
the MDBE program.
So I do that for my office.
But we are also one of thethree oversights of the program.
So under the rules the mayor'soffice of contracts has
authority over the procurementsection of the rules small
business services or stilloverseas certification and
vendor services.
And then the mayor's office ofMDBE is our lead.
(02:30):
They are our legislative arm,our policy writing arm.
They're the ones that really goout to Albany and petition the
governor and other electedofficials when we need changes
to the state procurement ruleswhich really lead what changes
can happen in city government.
Speaker 3 (02:45):
Wow, which makes sense, right, because I know
you've built a career onsupporting MWBEs and supporting
not only entrepreneurs but justpeople within our communities,
right?
So I think this is in some ways, a natural kind of progression
to your career, althoughsometimes the way that we look
at DEI is really lookinginternally, so we don't always
(03:06):
see it kind of manifest in thisway, but in your case, I think
it actually really makes a lotof sense.
Speaker 1 (03:11):
Yeah, definitely.
It's something that's importantto look at both internally and
externally.
You really need to support yourinternal network, your
employees, your system, makesure you have an office culture
that's positive and supportiveof your people who are doing all
the work, but also make surethat you're giving something
back to the community and doingsomething to help those small
businesses.
It's no secret that smallbusinesses are the ones who
(03:33):
really hire local and they'rethe ones that bring money into
our neighborhoods, so we reallyneed to support them and get
them to learn what are thechallenges of procurement, how
to find available access tocapital and finance and so that
they can compete for contracts,because we spend $40 billion a
year in procurement and it'smostly the big boys who get them
(03:54):
.
We need to be able to sharethat wealth.
There's enough opportunity forgrowth and enough businesses who
can actually win and be part ofthe city's procurement system.
Speaker 3 (04:03):
That's great.
So how are you going about that?
How do you actually teach someof these get the word out work
with these minority women inbusiness enterprises, MWBEs I
realize we speak in acronymsbecause we've been in the world
for a while.
How do you actually go aboutdoing this, or create new
programs that support theseMWBEs, and how do you do your
job that way?
Speaker 1 (04:23):
Sure, it's a combination of both outreach, so
us hosting events, both as anagency.
We have what's called Mocs inyour Neighborhood where we have
a learning and development teamthey're part of our strategic
arm of the office who reallyschedule and network with
organizations to host events totrain vendors on understanding
(04:45):
the procurement process,understanding enrollment to our
citywide digital procurementsystem passport, and to actually
learn how to find and competefor contracts.
So it's everything from workingwith the different chambers
chambers of commerce.
We work with localorganizations that actually have
vendor membership, likeRegional Alliance, small
(05:05):
membership of small contractors.
We work with other agencies.
We know an agency has a largeprocurement coming up.
They need multiple vendorsthey're going to award to.
We partner with them and withCity Hall and we help organize
actual events, networking events, bring the vendors in, talk to
them.
Let them learn who the bigprime contractors are and where
(05:26):
there's sometimes opportunityfor subcontracting if they can't
be a prime themselves.
Speaker 3 (05:31):
That's great and I really appreciate this part of
the conversation right, becausebeen in the city in city
government for a long time, soyou know how complex it can be
to navigate that.
But then we have people likeyourself that are working to
make it easier for entrepreneursand make it easier for
entrepreneurs and make it easierfor people to come in and
actually secure some of thesecontracts that sometimes
entrepreneurs don't know thatthey can work directly with the
(05:53):
city of New York or withdifferent agencies, and I think
you've just been spearheadingthis work for a while to make
sure that those opportunitiesare created.
So I just appreciate you alsosharing that, because there are
a lot of entrepreneurs andbusiness owners in the city of
also sharing that because youknow there are a lot of
entrepreneurs and businessowners in the city of New York
that may not even know this.
And then there's another levelof then you work with the state,
then you work with federalright but, like just in the city
(06:14):
of New York itself, that's awhole ecosystem that if you, if
you're able to contract withthem, you can do some really
good work.
Speaker 1 (06:25):
Yeah, and I think part of the issue is also we're
also kind of working silos.
In addition to like, we havethe mayor's office and we have
over 40 agencies that fall underthe mayor, but there are a lot
of big dollar, highly budgetedagencies that are not under the
mayor, that have their own MDBprogram, their own rules and
procurement systems, so I try toteach those also.
Health and Hospital Corporation, new York, new Jersey Port
(06:46):
Authority, mta these are stateauthorities.
They're not state agencies norcity agencies, so they live in
their own bubble and they have alot of opportunities for
vendors and we want to make surethat they have that message and
they learn that you need tolook and seek and connect with
those authorities as well,because there's a lot more money
(07:06):
and more opportunities in thoseindividual agencies than some
of the groups of agencies withinthe mayoral system.
Speaker 3 (07:13):
You seem very passionate about your work.
What's your favorite part ofyour?
Speaker 1 (07:16):
job, who I worked with to get certified when I was
at SPS.
I see them at events now andthey're like I remember you.
You helped me with this.
You connected me to that person, bridging gaps like I've met,
like recently, with the asylumseekers.
One thing my office has done iswe've connected a couple of
(07:38):
vendors who we knew were havingdifficulty finding opportunities
to those agencies that we knewwere gonna have opportunities
upcoming Nothing definite yetbut we knew that it was in the
pipeline.
We got their capabilitystatements out there, got them
connected, introduced them toindividuals, told them you have
to come to this event becausethere's going to be certain
agencies there.
(07:58):
Let them know who you are, whatyour interests are and then
seeing that connection actuallygrow to an actual contract award
and someone actually being ableto profit and make money.
I mean winning a contract.
Yeah, it's providing a good ofservice to New York City but to
that business owner that'sincome to their family, that's
(08:19):
them being able to pay theiremployees and seeing that just
knows that the work that I'mdoing matters and that there's
actual impact long-term.
Speaker 3 (08:30):
That's great.
What are some of the challengesof your type of role?
Speaker 1 (08:33):
Politics I mean city, state and federal government
are the same.
Whenever there's a change inleadership, the surrounding
teams around that leader alsochange.
So there's also differentfocuses on what's priority, what
isn't priority, with certainprograms, certain legal activity
changes.
(08:53):
It's hard for have goodconsistency with different
mayors when you have a change ofpeople at the top.
So that makes that's part ofthe challenge.
And also even before mayor'schange, like we've noticed,
since late last year into thisyear, there's already been
senior level people in theadministration leaving.
(09:14):
Now, within this administration, certain agencies have changed
leaders.
There's going to be a change infocus because everyone wants to
put their mark on the work thatthey've done.
It's hard to be consistent indoing work that we know is going
well when you have changesbeing made on top and then
wanting to refocus what we'realready doing that is successful
.
Speaker 3 (09:34):
That makes a lot of sense and I'd imagine if you
hire a new leader, they're goingto come with their own ideas,
their own ways to do things.
That just may disrupt the waythat things are going and
sometimes that goes great.
Sometimes it lands in themiddle, Sometimes it's not the
best success, but you know it's,it's, it's part of the process.
So that makes a lot of sense.
Is this role what you alwayswanted to do for a living?
Speaker 1 (09:56):
Oh no, no, it fell on my lap.
I actually started as adrinking water scientist.
My my bachelor's and my firstmaster's are in environmental
science.
And after grad school I movedto the state of Massachusetts.
I worked for the MassachusettsDEP Great learning experience.
(10:17):
The work was amazing.
Getting a different perspectiveon the environmental field in a
different state and what theirchallenges are and also what
their successes are, wasfantastic.
But it was a verydiscriminatory and sexist work
environment.
I had difficult.
I mean, I did great work-wisebut socially was very isolating
and people treated me as if Iwas different.
I didn't have.
(10:37):
I wasn't treated like the restof the scientists and wasn't
really part of the crew.
So I made it to three years butI couldn't stay that much
longer.
So I came back to New York Citybecause I got a job with the New
York City DEP Department ofEnvironmental Protection.
So I was excited.
I was back in Harlem.
I was like great, I'm going tobe working with city government
here where there's morediversity.
(10:59):
And my division was the samesituation.
I was the only person of color,I was given very simple work,
wasn't treated at the same levelas all the other scientists,
but I had the bachelor's andmaster's that matched it.
So it was a challenge.
I will have to say that myfirst director was fantastic.
He retired after my first yearthere and then there was another
(11:23):
scientist who was a wonderfulwoman who I'm still friends with
, but I never worked directlyfor her, so I was dealing with
other supervisors, otherdynamics, and it made it hard to
stay.
But I love the field so much Istayed for five years, five very
difficult years, but it's anarea that I just love and I
still keep on top of the fieldand I know what's going on in
(11:46):
drinking water science.
But it was really my first love.
Speaker 3 (11:50):
That's such an interesting pivot, right From
drinking water science tosupporting MWBEs, which you've
done for quite some time now.
So can you talk about whatskills were transferable there
and what you were able to bringover, like what you were able to
bring over and how you wereable to like make that first
pivot into this type of work?
Speaker 1 (12:09):
Sure.
So skill-wise, it's acombination of research being
analytical, communication skills, writing skills.
I mean everything that I did inthe sciences.
But I was also able we also hadto have the capacity to talk
about science in layman's term,because not everyone in
leadership understood thetechnical area when we gave
(12:31):
presentations.
So I already had experiencespeaking to people in the
community and speaking atcommunity boards.
So that was kind of what helpedme transition to other areas.
(12:53):
Where I went to after DEP wasthe Office of Environmental
Coordination, which was part ofthe Mayor's Office of Operations
.
So I still worked onenvironmental issues, just not
specifically drinking water, andat that time the city council
was putting out a numerous locallaws that were specific to
sustainability and environmentalprotection and some of them
(13:15):
were procurement related had toimplement a series of
environmental policies.
All of a sudden I got a call.
I said hey, because I was inthe same building Environmental
Coordination for Operations, thesame building as Mayor's Office
of Contracts.
I got stopped.
I got a call.
I said hey, let's talk, becausewe're looking for someone who
(13:36):
can do A, b, c and D and we knowthat you have a technical
background in environmentalscience.
Would you be interested?
And I ended up working for mycurrent office back under the
Bloomberg era for five years.
Speaker 3 (13:47):
Wow, I love that.
And during that time you alsoended up going back to school
right For a second master's.
Speaker 1 (13:54):
I did.
I started to get staff to manage, Started working with and it
started low level managinginterns, managing temp staff,
and then I started managingother staff and I was like, wait
a minute, and when you study aphysical science you don't learn
anything about budgets, HRmanagement, organizational
(14:15):
behavior.
I mean there were skills that Ifelt that I was lacking and I
couldn't really be successful asa manager.
So I went to Baruch and I didan executive MPA on Saturdays so
I wouldn't interfere with work.
Because I needed to work, Ineeded to make money, you know,
be able to pay my rent with work.
Because I needed to work, Ineeded to make money, be able to
pay my rent.
But at the same time I wantedto make sure that I had the
skillset to succeed, because Isaw how some of the managers I
(14:37):
work with didn't have thoseskills and how it was really
hurting their staff and I didn'twant to do that.
I saw good examples but I sawnegative examples and I wanted
to make sure I went the rightpath.
So I earned a second master'sto learn those skills that I
felt I needed and it helped metransition also into other areas
in government.
Speaker 3 (14:55):
Do you feel like that master's in public
administrations actually paidoff for you, do you?
Speaker 1 (15:01):
feel like you got what you were seeking out of it.
Oh, definitely, definitely.
I learned so much aboutactually understanding and
writing policy, researchingpolicy, really having a
different focus on the work andbeing able to address the work
in a different way, because whenyou're in the sciences, you're
still technical and in the weedsI had to really learn how to
look at things big picture,which I never had a skillset in
(15:22):
doing that.
So it really helped me look atwork differently, interact with
individuals differently,understand our budget what was
feasible for us to do as agovernment office and what
wasn't our budget, what wasfeasible for us to do as a
government office and whatwasn't.
So it definitely helped.
I have to say the HR managementpart was fantastic because I
actually interacted with staffreally well.
Then I have staff from back inthe day asking me if I have any
(15:42):
opportunities because they'dlove to come work with me.
So it's always like a goodfeeling.
Speaker 3 (15:46):
So now you've been at that point, you've been in the
city for about 15 years or so,right, and you continue to do
some great work over theDepartment of Small Business
Services.
And then you ultimately wentover to the Department of Youth
and Community Development.
Can you tell me about, kind of,your roles there and what you
(16:06):
were responsible for doing andhow you continue to grow in your
career during that time,because you've held multiple
positions at each of theseagencies agencies, right, it was
clear that you were doing goodwork and folks were recognizing
that.
Speaker 1 (16:16):
Yeah, one of the senior management employees of
DYCD.
We were seeing how MDBE was ahuge impact and DYCD had good
numbers, but he wanted to reallyincrease their utilization of
MDBEs.
I was doing numerouspresentations at all of our
quarterly meetings, citywidemeetings, so people knew who I
(16:37):
was.
You know they were used tohearing me speak and talk about
data and talk about initiativesthat we were doing at SBS and
they actually created a positionfor me to be their special
advisor for MDBE.
So I actually went to DYCD,initially just focused on MDBE,
working with their smallpurchase team which is where the
bulk of the money is that theyhave available for minority
(16:59):
women-owned businesses andreally transformed the program,
got the purchasing staff to lookat MDBEs more so for
opportunities, train them on therule, train them on how to find
opportunities, and it just blewup and started to do really
well.
Then within the organizationthere was some reorganization of
the agency and I was asked if Iwould be interested in becoming
(17:22):
their deputy COO.
Speaker 2 (17:24):
The.
Speaker 1 (17:25):
COO at the time oversaw purchasing and the work
that I was doing, so it wasreally a position where I was
now reporting directly to him,not only doing the MDBE work but
now actually helping himsupport the organization,
overseeing HR and facilitiesmanagement.
Speaker 3 (17:42):
Wow.
So you see, I love hearing thesestories because you
incrementally kind of continueto get more responsibilities,
continue to learn more things,right, like you had not
necessarily managed an HR teambut now you were comfortable in
doing that in different pointsin your career.
And you, I think, are a shiningexample of place, of how you can
(18:03):
have so many different careers.
Just in city government.
Right, like within citygovernment, you can spend your
entire career and literally havelike entirely different paths.
Like you can start off as ascientist and now be the expert
in DEI and working withbusinesses and contracting and
and all these other areas inways that I don't know, that you
(18:23):
know a lot of folks give itcredit for in in working in the
city because you can, you knowyour, your, your scope can
change so much and leadershipschange and bring different
opportunities for folks.
And as long as you're willingto own your career and not
necessarily stay like, if youlike your role, great you stay
there.
But if you want to seekdifferent things, you can go to
different agencies and trydifferent things out and have a
(18:46):
youth lens now on the work thatyou're doing and have an
entrepreneurship side on thework you're doing so.
I just think it's fascinatinghow you've been able to navigate
your career through the city.
Speaker 1 (18:54):
And it wasn't easy, but I cause I've always, even to
date.
Networking is tough for me, butnetworking is how you get jobs.
It really is like one of thebiggest ways to get
opportunities.
Most jobs are not posted, youknow.
So government gives you theopportunity to meet folks in
different agencies, participatein events.
One thing I always participatedin events, attended seminars,
(19:16):
lecture series that otheragencies were having that were
topics of interest.
So it gives you a chance toreally network and meet folks in
other industries, otheragencies.
You know we have agencies thatare small, only 40 people, up to
NYPD, that's 40,000.
So,000.
So there's a lot of opportunityacross the board and we hire
everyone, everyone from peoplewho do legal services,
(19:40):
accountants, scientists, everytype of scientist you can
imagine.
Also you name it.
The city hires them physicians,doctors.
There's so much opportunity.
I think government is a greatplace to not only do well in
serving the public, but alsowhere you can grow and learn a
lot of different skills and youhave opportunity to move around.
It's easier to move around onceyou're in government than
(20:03):
coming in from the outside.
Speaker 3 (20:04):
That makes sense.
So let's backtrack a little.
Tell me a little bit about yourupbringing.
Where were you born, raised?
Where are your parents from?
All of that?
Speaker 1 (20:11):
Born and raised in Harlem.
My parents are from theDominican Republic.
My family came in the late 50sto escape Trujillo, the last
dictator.
So Harlem was a hub for a lot ofDominicans who came in the 50s.
Harlem and Hamilton Heights, soa lot of the original
Dominicans are in that region.
And on 135th Street, betweenBroadway and Amsterdam, my
(20:34):
grandparents, two of my unclesand one of my aunts all had
apartments on that one block.
So when I was growing up thatwas a party place.
Every Saturday we got together,you know, we used to have the
little Miller beers we wereallowed to drink under
supervision, learn how to dancemusic and then Sundays would be
Sunday dinner at mygrandmother's.
(20:55):
So that one block.
I really spent a lot of mychildhood and then, once folks
got older, started gettingmarried, moving around, people
started spreading around, but Iwas raised to know my culture.
I was one of those stubbornkids who didn't learn Spanish
well, but my father never spoketo us in.
Stubborn kids who didn't learnSpanish well, but my father
never spoke to us in Spanishbecause he didn't want us to
(21:15):
have accents in school.
So my mother would do all theSpanish speaking my father in
English.
Speaker 3 (21:28):
Wow, first of all, I love that because that's a real
New Yorker story, right.
That's like just one of thosestories that's just so relatable
when you have your parents comeover here and a lot of them
settle very close to each otherand you have that dynamic and
all that and then you know thelanguage for sure is part of
this part of the culture.
All right, tell me about someof the things that you do
outside of your job.
So, are you on any advisoryboards or boards that you
support other organizations andlend some of your, your
(21:49):
expertise to?
Speaker 1 (21:50):
I'm on the board of the Dominican Day Parade.
I have been since 2016.
I'm the secretary.
We are the national DominicanDay Parade, so we're the one
that runs down Sixth Avenue andit's coming up in a couple of
weeks.
So you know there's a lot goingon, but we're very excited.
I'm on the board.
I recently joined the board ofthe Dyckman Farmhouse Museum,
(22:10):
which is it's a little houseright on the corner of 204th
Street and Broadway.
It's actually the lastremaining piece of the Dyckman
family farm, which covered asignificant portion of Inwood,
the largest farm that everexisted in Manhattan.
And that little sliver of land.
It's an organization thatreally focuses on anti-racism.
(22:31):
That little sliver of land,it's an organization that really
focuses on anti-racism.
So it's a really amazingorganization.
They partner with communitygroups, educational programs,
they have a lecture, a series,so it's just a great place to
learn about the history ofManhattan, to learn about the
impacts we had on the NativeAmericans who inhabited the area
that the Zachman family tookland from, but also trying to
(22:55):
merge the community with what wedo and what we have to offer,
because we know it's a majorityLatino community.
It used to be more Irish, NowLatino Dominicans are taking
over, but we want to give themservices and do stuff with
programs with children.
There's a lot of educationalprograms there.
The museum is open for tours,we're having renovations done in
(23:17):
the main house and actuallyfound slave quarters and
information on who the slaveswere and what their names were.
So it's just a great, greatplace to go visit and they have
a slew of events that we do yearround.
So I love, I really love theDyckman Museum.
Then I'm also I just joined theDominican American Chamber of
Commerce, so I'm hoping to getmore involved with them.
(23:38):
They are bridging business notonly with New York but also with
the island, and the twoprincipals actually have been
icons in the MDBE, certified.
They've done a lot of work inthe community.
Manuel Lebron is the principaland Maria Curi, who's the chief
counsel to the organization.
She's also been a longtimeBronx resident, Riverdale.
(24:01):
Her family has had businessesthroughout here and in the
Dominican Republic.
So there are two people whoreally look to support all
Latinos not just Dominican allLatinos in understanding
business and really growingtheir business.
So it's a nice combination ofconnecting my MDBE world with
stuff that's happening real timein the community.
Speaker 3 (24:20):
That's great.
Yeah, it sounds like you're veryintentional about, kind of
where you join some of theseboards on right Because you know
, like the Dominican Day Parade,dykeman House, like all of
these things that are likerooted in culture, rooted in
community, and it's just a goodway for you to then bring in all
of the things that you'velearned through your career
Right and lend that perspectiveto support those organizations
and help them grow and help themexecute on their missions, but
(24:42):
still for you, tied to thethings that you love.
So I think it's just remarkableand I think one of those things
that I like to encourage folkslike try to get on boards of
things that you actually careabout Right, try to like be
connected to things that you'regoing to be passionate on,
because being on a board is alot of work.
So like it can be a lot of workdepending on the organization,
and like you want to make surethat it's worth your time, worth
(25:04):
your investment and it'ssomething that makes sense for
you and that you're not dreadingdoing the work for.
Speaker 1 (25:10):
Yeah, and I wonder if subconsciously I gravitated to
these organizations because ofmy experience in the start of my
career.
So I think maybe I was meant todo DEI work and really support
that space and my experienceswould let me here.
Speaker 3 (25:27):
How do you think younger Maria would feel about
the person and professionalyou've become today?
That may be a little far awayfrom her aspirations to be in
the medical field, but stilldoing remarkable work.
Speaker 1 (25:39):
I don't know.
I think she'd be like what iswrong with you?
You've been a science geeksince you were a child and I
still love.
I still love the sciences.
I still stay on top of my fieldof water quality science, but I
think I've done okay.
I think everything happens fora reason and the experiences
that I had and the pivots thatI've made brought me here
(26:01):
because this is where I'msupposed to be and what I'm
supposed to be doing, and againbeing able to see successes
within our community is sorewarding.
I mean, it just feels so goodand I think that alone makes
this a great choice and I thinkthe choices I've made have been
great.
I don't think I would changeany of the choices I've made.
Speaker 3 (26:19):
Any advice for people looking to make some of these
pivots?
Speaker 1 (26:22):
Stay on top of your interests.
Don't stay where you're unhappy.
Really make connections tofolks.
I know networking is hard, butyou really have to put yourself
out there.
I think finding a mentor and asponsor is great.
It took me a long time tounderstand what I was looking
for and how to find a mentor andit just happened organically.
I just met people in theindustry and in the business.
(26:44):
There's an MDBE that her and Ibecome great friends and she
always says I'm her one boardmember because I'm always giving
her advice but she gives memore advice than I give her.
So it's just.
I think naturally you willgravitate to people who you're
meant to know and meant tosupport you and at the same time
give them whatever support theycan get.
One thing I haven't done it inthis current role, but in my
(27:07):
previous two roles I wasactively working with the city's
mentorship program.
The previous mayors actually hada mentorship program where they
sought other folks, otherprofessionals, to really talk to
younger folks coming intogovernment to learn, and I'm
happy that I've done a lot ofpeople of color over the past
decade, just giving theminformation not only about
(27:28):
career choices and seekingcertain education, the degrees
or certificates to support theirinterests, but also just basics
about understanding the civilservice process.
You know there are a lot offolks who work in government for
decades, don't never took acivil service exam, aren't like
permanent city employees andthey're the first ones to get
laid off, even with 20 years ofservice.
(27:50):
So I think understanding andnavigating that kind of civil
service process in citygovernment is hard and not all
agencies HR teach that that's apersonal choice.
So I help them with kind of thelogistics of being a government
employee and how to protectyourself and know your rights.
At the same time.
(28:11):
Look at these opportunities,look at this path of education
and I connect people to otheragencies.
I've helped some people getjobs better than mine and I
think that's what makes me happy.
If I can make a phone call orsend your resume to someone and
you land a job there, then Iknow I've done good.
Speaker 3 (28:29):
Can you speak a little bit about?
How do you find aside from likea formal program like that?
How does one find mentors andyou mentioned sponsors if you
can talk a little bit about whatyou mean by that as well?
Speaker 1 (28:40):
Sure, a mentor is someone to me who you share
ideas, you bounce off ideas,give you guidance, can sometimes
give you direction.
Where a sponsor is someone whowill say your name in a room
that you're not in.
They will champion you, theywill push for you, they will
help you find opportunitieswithout you even knowing about
(29:01):
it, because they really speakabout who you are, what you can
accomplish, and really put yourname out there.
So I've had the luck of havingboth without looking for them.
So it's a hard thing to reallyfind, but you really need to
fine tune and really follow yourinterests and connect with
people who are in that realm.
(29:22):
So for me, being in government,I was in MDBE I started talking
and networking people in MDBEoffices and other agencies and
just making friends.
I see them at events, I seethem in city hall meetings.
Start talking to them, makethose connections.
Later on you will see that it'san actual, a stepping ladder
for growth and a learningexperience.
(29:44):
Start going to their eventswhen their agency has events.
I do that all the time.
I invite folks to our events.
So it's just kind of buildingyour network of fellow
government employees and lettingthat grow into something else.
Speaker 3 (29:59):
Yeah, absolutely, and you know a lot of times it
doesn't have to be a formaltitle to it, right?
Speaker 1 (30:04):
No, not at all.
Speaker 3 (30:05):
Like you could just build a relationship with
someone.
And then you know you realizethat you communicate with them
all the time.
But then you find yourselfgoing to them when you need
advice or they come to you whenthey need advice, and like you
just form that organicrelationship.
And I say that right, becauseI've had conversations with
folks about, like go up tosomeone and say, hey, will you
be my mentor?
And I'm like that sounds like alot of responsibility.
I'd rather just like connectwith you and be friends and be
(30:28):
in your network and then, if itevolves to that, great.
But like putting a formal titleon it sometimes can be scary
for folks, right.
So so I appreciate you sharingyou know definitely the
difference between a sponsor anda mentor.
I think that was spot on.
And then, too, just how you canorganically build those over
time.
Speaker 1 (30:45):
Yeah, and I use LinkedIn a lot.
I didn't before, but I mean Idid just for posting general
stuff.
You know, connecting to people,I knew.
But I've actually startedreaching out to people I don't
know.
You know, for example, I wentto a conference last month, a
DEI conference in Chicago, and Imet some really cool people but
(31:06):
it was, you know, just lightchit chat, no, no deep
conversation.
We didn't exchange information.
But I found them on LinkedInand I sent them messages and I
said hey, I met you at such andsuch conference.
Do you want to connect?
I'm interested in such and suchprogram you mentioned and some
folks have responded back andwe're now connecting.
And that's how you build andlearn from others as well.
(31:27):
Because one thing with DEI,there's so much in the space.
My office is small.
My office is about 180 people,but I've connected with people
who have worked in 5,000 personoffices.
Their approach and strategicplanning is very different than
mine because of the scope ofwork and the amount of people.
So I want to learn, I want tosee, maybe when I retire in
(31:50):
three years, maybe I'll go to alarger corporation and work with
10,000 people.
So I want to learn, I want tosee.
Maybe when I retire in threeyears, maybe I'll go to a larger
corporation and work with10,000 people.
So I want to connect with folkswho are in the same space and
I've learned to try not to beafraid and just reach out.
The worst it can do is notrespond.
So why not take a chance,connect with folks, reach out to
folks.
Speaker 3 (32:08):
Growing up in New York City, you know there was
for a long time a perceptionthat city government moves so
slow, right.
And then I worked in citygovernment.
I'm like I don't know whatgovernment y'all talking about
Like, city government can bevery fast sometimes depending on
the role, depending on whatyou're doing and depending on
the lens that you're looking atit from.
But for me I definitely feltlike things one move really
(32:30):
quickly in city government andtwo, you can really own some
really interesting projects andspearhead some things and bring
them to life.
Has that really been yourexperience in city government as
well?
Speaker 1 (32:41):
It has.
But it depends where you areBecause, to be honest, things
move really slow when there arebudgetary constraints, Whenever
there's resource constraints,whether it's budget or staff.
So that's been our biggestchallenge really since COVID.
I think things really sloweddown with COVID A lot of loss of
staff, A lot of folks retired,Budgets got tighter.
(33:01):
We went from kind of gettingback on our feet after all of
the financial hardships of COVIDin government and then now we
have asylum seekers and reallyhelping support the migrant
community.
That's a new budget constraintthat we have.
So some of the larger agencieswith larger budgets can get
things moving faster.
(33:22):
Smaller ones are morechallenged if they have smaller
budgets.
At DYCD things moved reallyfast.
We were assigned new programsby the mayor.
All the time there was moneyput in.
The council have funding.
So again, because there wasmoney flowing and staff, things
were working faster.
So it's really based onbudgetary constraints how slow
(33:45):
or quickly things can move.
Speaker 3 (33:47):
I'm a big proponent that you don't have to sacrifice
doing good for doing well.
Can we give folks anunderstanding of how much money
they can make being a chiefdiversity officer at a city
agency, realizing that it'llvary by city right?
New York City is probably theexception to a lot of cities but
just want to make sure thatpeople can understand that you
can have deep impact and notnecessarily be starving.
(34:10):
Check to check.
Speaker 1 (34:11):
No sure.
For New York City a chiefdiversity officer can make
anything from about $100,000 upto $200,000 plus a year.
The state pays a little less.
I've seen the highest salaryfor chief diversity officer in
the state maybe in the 160s 170sbut it's a great living.
(34:32):
I wouldn't have been able tostay in this role if I wasn't
making a decent salary.
I grew up in public housing inHarlem, so once you leave you
don't want to ever have to goback.
So even though I've stayed ingovernment all these years, I
definitely looked foropportunities for growth and
continued increase, to reallyhave financial stability, and
(34:52):
you can get that with governmentdefinitely.
Speaker 3 (34:54):
Great See, and I think that's one of the reasons
why I really started thispodcast.
Right, because I was working ingovernment at the New York City
Economic Development Corporationit's a quasi-government agency,
but we'll claim it and Irealized that folks had really
interesting roles and some ofthem were urban planners, some
of them were transportationplanners, some of them were in
communications, and I'm likerealizing that you can have so
(35:16):
many different types of careersand make a decent living, and
that was one of the first thingsthat I wanted to highlight.
I'm like you know, folks areamazing and doing great work,
and these are careers that Iwish I would have known as a
youngster.
Right, because when I was youngyou know lawyer, doctor,
engineer and, like you're,thinking about accounting.
Right, like you're thinkingabout how to make money, and
it's like you could actuallyhave impact and do great work
(35:37):
and build your city up, makesure that your city is in a
better condition than when youwere born, and provide
opportunities for folks and makea good living.
So I appreciate you sharingthat.
Are there any resources orforms of media I like to call it
, whether that's a book, apodcast, anything that you have
read or consumed that has shapedyou personally or
professionally.
Speaker 1 (35:58):
One thing I've done in government is I stay on top
of the city state newsletterthat comes out every morning and
Cranes, new York, forprofessional Like.
I definitely want to stay ontop of what's happening.
There's changes in the mayor'soffice all the time that I don't
hear from about until like aweek later.
But these newsletters stay ontop of what's happening in city
(36:20):
government, state government.
When there's a change ofleadership, where there's
opportunity, you know when yousee one leader exit, you know,
know someone's coming in.
There'll be staffingopportunities.
So I want to know what'shappening within government but
also at the state level, becauseit has a large impact on what
we do here at the city level.
Same thing with Cranes, newYork.
Cranes, new York is really tiedinto talking about small
(36:43):
businesses.
They have a lot of work.
They've done a lot of work inreally highlighting what small
businesses do, what they'reexperiencing.
They've really done a lot ofwork on the MDBE space and
articles on that.
So I definitely want to knowwhat they're saying, what their
viewpoint is, because sometimestheir viewpoint is skewed.
It's not really what'shappening in government that
we're experiencing, but it'sgood to know what journalists
(37:05):
are putting out there, whatthey're saying about the work
that we do and also the impactto our small businesses.
So I definitely love staying ontop of that On politics, just
for my own interest, because Ilike to know what's happening in
the world.
Greater.
I'm a CNN junkie, can't avoid itCNN.
But also I love real time withBill Maher.
I'm a huge Bill Maher fan and Ilove the humor.
(37:28):
But he really is a smart man.
He's well-read and he has greatpanelists on from different
points of views.
His show is not skewed to theleft or the right.
He gets everyone a chance tospeak and to really air out and
prove what they're saying andwhat's your backup to what
you're saying.
So I love that show Big.
On LinkedIn I follow companiesthat are of interest, not only
(37:55):
for future but just what they'redoing.
Who's doing work in mycommunity?
I see a Gilbane constructiontruck.
What work are they doing?
I follow their page.
I want to know what they'redoing in our communities, what
they're building.
Are they looking at localhiring?
Is there an opportunity forfolks in our community?
So I do a lot on LinkedIn overthe past year, significantly
following companies, followingpeople, keeping track of what's
happening in government as well,because every government agency
(38:16):
is on LinkedIn.
Now I like to stay informedBecause I do so much government
reading, policy reading policywriting, report writing.
A lot of the stuff I read forfun is fiction.
I love my serial killer booksbecause I love the ones that
have science behind them.
(38:37):
So definitely read a lot of funstuff really, to take away all
the technical and governmentstuff that I read all day.
Speaker 3 (38:46):
Anyone that you would recommend for folks.
Speaker 1 (38:47):
I like the Kay Scarpetta series, which are from
Patricia Cornwall.
It's a whole series.
There's like over 20 books.
She's a medical examiner thatworks closely with police and
they actually get into thescience when they talk about
injuries, when they talk aboutpeople murdered, like she's
really in the lab telling youexactly what she's seeing,
(39:08):
what's happening.
So it's a little technical, butthey're really a fun series of
books.
I really enjoyed them.
Speaker 3 (39:16):
Okay, I think there are two things.
One, I really appreciate whatyou mentioned there around using
LinkedIn to consume information, because I think a lot of folks
sometimes are cautious abouttheir engagement with LinkedIn
because they feel like it'sself-promoting and it's branding
yourself, which I think isreally important.
Professional branding is reallyimportant, but I get that.
(39:37):
But I think what you said,which is also follow
organizations and followpublications and follow people
that you're interested in justin the field and that are
experts in their field, so thatyou can learn and stay up to
date on as to what's happening.
I think that's a great careercheat code, because it actually
lets people know that they canjust use the platform in so many
(39:59):
different ways and consumeinformation in a way that's
easier for them.
Speaker 1 (40:02):
Definitely, even for job seekers.
If you want to negotiate asalary or learn, look at what's
in the market.
You know you have government,nonprofit and corporate America
posting jobs left and right.
Look at the salary ranges,seeing.
Do you think you have anopportunity to compete in your
workplace and actually marketyourself for a higher salary and
(40:23):
saying, look, this is what'sout on the market, this is the
work that I do.
I think it's a great tool tosee what work is out there, what
the salaries are and what areyou earning.
What is your value?
What if you think it's anopportunity to say, hey, I'm
doing A, b and C and D?
Maybe we should talk about asalary negotiation.
Use it, utilize it.
Speaker 3 (40:41):
One thing I want to provide a space for you to share
Any times when things were aslike you look like such a
complete package of like.
You are chief diversity officer.
You have this storied career.
Any times that were not assimple, um, personally or
professionally, um, that you hadto overcome something that you
(41:02):
felt like kind of you know, aspart of your story, as part of
the things that we, that wecarry and that most people just
wouldn't know.
Speaker 1 (41:08):
Oh, definitely.
I think it's more familial andpersonal stuff.
My father and I were superclose when I was a kid my
parents came here with collegedegrees from DR but they
couldn't get a job.
So in the early 60s my parentsone of my aunts, former uncles
they all went to City College.
They got another degree, theyall got second bachelors.
(41:32):
My father stayed and got hismaster's, came an architect
Great, he was doing fantastic.
But he loved women, women anddrink.
So when I was 13, he left.
He left with one of the womenhe was involved with and took
the money.
So my mother struggled withthree girls raising us.
She had left college to worktwo jobs to help him while he
(41:54):
was working and going to gradschool.
So she sacrificed her own forhim.
So we went from a two-parenthousehold to a single mom and
she worked two jobs.
She gave us everything weneeded and it was hard and I saw
her struggle.
So now the idea that we can payto take her on vacation, we
give her money for her to do herchurch retreats and enjoy her
(42:16):
senior center activities All thehard work I do is to go back
and help her and everything shestruggled for to take care of
our family.
Speaker 3 (42:24):
That's great.
You're really the embodiment ofthe American dream.
This is what our parents andgrandparents and folks saw when
they came to this country, right?
So, similarly, I came here.
I'm an immigrant, so I camehere with my mom when I was
young and she came with acollege degree and she had a
nice office white collar jobthere and then came over here
(42:46):
and how to handle threedifferent jobs as much as she
could to to make ends meet,because that degree did not
quite translate here.
So you know it's it'sdefinitely a story that I think
resonates with a lot of folks,definitely something that I
appreciate you sharing.
And you know it's somethingthat is part of our stories and
it makes us kind of bring theperspective of who we are, how,
(43:06):
as you said, you're appreciativeof, like now you're able to
like provide things for your momand like take her on trips and
like.
That's amazing.
Speaker 1 (43:12):
The only, the only sad part is that she's fighting
cancer, and I wish I could getrid of that too.
But pray, she's a tough woman.
Uh, she looks better than I do,though you will not believe
that she's actually ill, but um,she's just turned 87.
She's strong.
I mean, most of my family liveinto their nineties, so you know
, I'm like she's going to getthere too.
Speaker 3 (43:32):
I like it, I love it, and we're sending her all the
positive vibes from the podcastbecause we're rooting for her
and we're rooting for you, thankyou.
Is there anything else we havenot discussed that the world
should know about Maria?
Speaker 1 (43:46):
No, I think you got it all.
I think, you got it all.
Speaker 3 (43:51):
I love it.
Thank you, I really appreciateyou joining us today.
Speaker 1 (43:54):
Thank you for having me.
Speaker 2 (43:55):
I hope you enjoyed this episode.
If you did and believe on themission we're on, please like,
rate and subscribe to thispodcast on whatever platform
you're using, and share thispodcast with your friends and
your networks.
Make sure you follow us onInstagram and LinkedIn at Career
Cheat Code and tell us peopleor careers you would like to see
highlighted.
See you next week with somemore cheat codes.
Peace.
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