Her Story
About Laurie
Right out of college, I had the opportunity to go into business with my parents and we owned a restaurant. That experience taught me so much about responsibility and just doing everything on my own, hands-on, learning everything from payroll to hiring to cooking to cleaning to customer service. I did that for a while, sold the business and made a little profit, and then I went into banking, which just changed my life. I dove in and worked my way hard to the very top. I was a corporate bank trainer and a branch manager, and that was pretty much my life for maybe 20 years, and I loved it. I got into a little bit of the financial advising aspect of it. Then I ran into an old friend who is the creator of Disburse Cloud, and at that point in my life, I was ready for a change. Now I'm in the insurance business doing claims, processing inbound and outbound claims, and I love it because it's just new, it's exciting, Disburse Cloud is taking off, and it's so great to make sure that the person who needs that money gets it immediately in their hands by using my platform.
Her Interview
Ten minutes with Laurie
01What do you attribute your success to?
I attribute my success to hard work and dedication. Becoming a corporate bank trainer was the result of 6 years of hard work and dedication, learning every aspect of banking. Shortly after 9-11, when we really needed to dig into creating CIPs and redoing BSA and security, they needed somebody who was dedicated and strong in all aspects of banking, and they chose me. It was such an honor to guide my bank through all the audits and policy and procedures and just grow the bank stronger. I also believe in never giving up on your dreams and never giving up on yourself. You have to believe in yourself, and as a woman, you can be anything you put your mind to. We are no different. Go for the stars and don't ever give up. It's a whole wide world out there, and you can do anything.
02What advice would you give to young women entering your industry?
I would say never give up on your dreams and never give up on yourself. Believe in yourself. As a woman, you know, it used to be that only men were in banking, only men were in insurance, only men were doctors, and it's full circle now. A woman can be anything they put their mind to. We are no different. You know, we all put on our pants the same way. So just go for the stars and don't ever give up. It's a whole wide world out there, and you can do anything.
03What values are most important to you in your work and personal life?
Family time is very important to me. My husband and I work so hard, so I just love when it's the three of us and we can just be together, whether we play games, watch a movie, or just spend time together. We make sure that we vacation and get away, whether we go on a cruise, whether we fly somewhere, or whether we just go camping. It's so important that you just make that time regardless. I also value teaching my daughter responsibility and encouraging her to never give up. When I went back to school to get my degree, it was for me personally and to encourage her to never give up. I didn't want to be pushing college to her when I didn't have it, so I went back to school when she was younger, and it was a proud moment for me.
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