I spent years waiting for permission to lead before realizing I already was. This is the story of how influence, not authority, became my definition of leadership.
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I stopped needing to prove my value. The strongest evidence comes from results, trust, and impact and letting my work speak for itself.
Ann Rantz · In Her Own Words
Her Story
About Ann
Ann Rantz is a strategic Executive Business Partner and organizational effectiveness leader with more than 15 years of experience supporting C-suite executives and driving business impact through executive operations, cross-functional collaboration, and strategic execution. She currently serves as Executive Business Partner to the Chief Insurance Officer at VSP Vision Care, where she partners with senior leadership to align priorities, optimize operations, and advance organizational goals.
Throughout her career, Ann has earned a reputation for transforming administrative support into strategic partnership. Prior to joining VSP Vision Care, she spent nearly 13 years at H&R Block, where she developed a succession planning framework adopted across the organization, standardized onboarding practices, mentored administrative professionals, and led operational improvement initiatives. She also served as Executive Assistant to the CEO at Minim, supporting executive communications, board governance, employee development, and strategic initiatives.
Passionate about elevating the administrative profession, Ann advocates for recognizing executive assistants and business partners as strategic leaders who drive alignment, influence decision-making, and strengthen organizational effectiveness. Through mentorship, advocacy, and executive partnership, she continues to champion greater visibility, growth, and opportunities for administrative professionals across the business community.
Her Interview
Ten minutes with Ann
01What do you attribute your success to?
I attribute my success to the support of my family and to a mindset of continuous improvement. Throughout my career, I have remained committed to learning, building strong relationships, and finding ways to create value for others. I believe success comes from showing up with integrity, serving others well, and never stopping the pursuit of growth and excellence.
02What’s the best career advice you’ve ever received?
The best career advice I've received is that leadership is not defined by a title but by the influence you have on others and the impact you make every day. As an executive business partner, this perspective has guided me to lead through collaboration, initiative, and service while helping others succeed and organizations thrive.
03What advice would you give to young women entering your industry?
My advice to young women entering the industry is to continuously learn, develop your expertise, and stay confident in your abilities. Be willing to step outside your comfort zone, seek opportunities to grow, and remember that leadership is built through initiative, influence, and the impact you make, not just through a title.
04What are the biggest challenges or opportunities in your field right now?
One of the biggest challenges in our field is overcoming outdated perceptions of administrative roles and demonstrating the strategic value administrative professionals bring to organizations. There is often a misconception that leadership requires direct reports or that AI will replace the profession. I believe the greatest opportunity is to showcase the expertise, business acumen, and organizational impact administrative professionals provide while ensuring they are included in key conversations and decision-making processes.
05What values are most important to you in your work and personal life?
The values most important to me are honesty, transparency, and integrity. I believe in communicating openly, building trust, and staying authentic in both my professional and personal life. These values guide how I lead, collaborate with others, and approach every opportunity and challenge.
Her Content Hub
Articles by Ann
Why I Stopped Waiting for a Title to Lead
How I learned that leadership is measured by influence, not authority.
Why I Stopped Waiting for a Title to Lead
For a long time, I believed leadership was something that came with a promotion, a title, or direct reports.
Like many administrative professionals, I spent years focused on supporting others. I measured success by how effectively I helped executives, teams, and organizations achieve their goals. While I loved the work, I sometimes overlooked the fact that I was developing leadership skills along the way.
Over the course of more than fifteen years supporting executives, I have planned meetings, managed priorities, coordinated projects, onboarded leaders, assisted with succession planning, and partnered across organizations to solve problems. What I didn't recognize early on was that many of those responsibilities required influence, strategic thinking, and leadership long before anyone formally called it that.
One of the best pieces of career advice I have ever received is that leadership does not require a title. Leadership is demonstrated through initiative, influence, and the ability to make a positive impact. Looking back, I realize how much that advice changed my perspective. Instead of waiting to be given authority, I started focusing on how I could create value, build relationships, and help move work forward.
As I gained experience, I also became increasingly aware of the misconceptions surrounding administrative professionals. There is often an assumption that administrators only provide support or that leadership requires managing people directly. I have seen firsthand how inaccurate that perception can be. Some of the most effective professionals I know lead through trust, collaboration, and expertise rather than organizational hierarchy.
Another challenge facing our profession today is the belief that technology and artificial intelligence will eventually replace administrative work. I see it differently. Technology can automate tasks, but it cannot replace judgment, relationship-building, organizational awareness, or the ability to anticipate needs and bring people together around a common goal. Those are uniquely human strengths. The opportunity for administrative professionals is not to compete with technology but to leverage it so they can contribute at an even more strategic level.
What motivates me most is helping people recognize their own potential. Throughout my career, I have mentored administrative professionals and advocated for their inclusion in important conversations. I want others to see what I eventually learned myself: our value is not defined by our job titles. It is defined by the impact we make, the trust we earn, and the relationships we build.
If I could give one piece of advice to women entering this profession, it would be this: Keep learning, and do not underestimate your voice. Build your expertise. Stay curious. Raise your hand for opportunities that feel challenging. Some of the most rewarding experiences in my career came from stepping outside my comfort zone and embracing responsibilities I wasn't completely sure I was ready for. Growth often begins there.
Today, I still believe leadership is about service. It is about helping others succeed, creating clarity when things are uncertain, and leaving people better than you found them. I have learned that leadership is not something we achieve someday when we receive a certain title. It is something we choose to practice every day.
And that realization changed everything.
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