Her Story
About Mary
I've been working in the digital marketing agency world for about 3 years now, specifically in finance and accounting on the back-end side of the company. I started as an executive assistant and have grown into my current role as Executive Manager, where I'm the only person in the company directly managed by the CEO. My main area of expertise is financial strategy and overall business strategy, focusing on how we can build both the finance side and the HR side of a business to work alongside each other. I handle everything from normal HR operational tasks like payroll to strategic finance, business architecture, overall HR strategy, and organizational design - basically managing both the people and the revenue. I oversee budgets per department and the overall financial health of the company. Right now, I'm building out the HR part of our company to align with our financial goals, and I'm the only one on the HR side, so I'm really trying to grow there. I'm currently signed up to get my HR certification on June 1st. On a weekly basis, I lead and help build strategy for multi-year financial modeling and people strategy, elevating both departments from a reactive position to more of a proactive, forward-looking position. Some of my biggest achievements include building out our salary band compensation structure for 2026 and completing our financial annual budget with quarterly forecasts. I've also helped our company qualify for the Quantum Workplace Best Workplaces list, where we're nationally ranked, and we're on track to qualify for the Inc. 5000 Fastest Growing Companies list again this year.
Her Interview
Ten minutes with Mary
01What do you attribute your success to?
I attribute my success to drive. That's one word I could literally use through my entire life - I've always had the drive, I've always had passion within that drive. I'm never really settled in one place. I'm always constantly driven to do that above and beyond, to do that next step, and I don't think I would be successful if I didn't have that drive. I think I would feel complacent, so I owe a lot of my success to my overall drive. Obviously, my mentors, my family, and my friends play a huge role too. You can't have the drive and the focus if you don't have the support around you to fuel that.
02What’s the best career advice you’ve ever received?
The best career advice I've ever received is 'the squeaky wheel gets the grease.' My boss, the CEO of the company, has been very impactful to me and pushed me beyond belief. I'm the only one in the company that he directly manages, so I've gotten very good advice and mentorship from him. That phrase - the squeaky wheel gets the grease - means that the person who brings up issues, the one that calls out when we need to be proactive, the one that speaks up and asks for help, that person is going to get the desired results. They're going to make bigger moves and bigger steps and strides. That's what's fired my growth mindset in my position and what's gotten me so far in my role - just speaking up, being proactive, and finding that I am valued and respected to speak up. I have a voice that's respected by my boss and by the CEO of a company. And with that being a male as well, I've always felt my voice is heard, my voice is respected, and my opinions and feelings matter.
03What advice would you give to young women entering your industry?
I would say be bold, be creative, and speak out. Overall, have confidence in who you are. Have confidence in your opinions, your thoughts, and your dreams. A lot of times, especially with women in the workplace - I've been lucky with my workplace that I feel so supported and so heard, but it's not always that way. I think for a young woman in the world, it's just use your voice. Be confident in your opinions and ideas and dreams, because they're real, and they're warranted, and you have just as much space in any industry to express those things. Never shy away from using your voice and being confident, and believing that you can convey your dreams and your opinions and your thoughts, because they are important, and they need to be spoken.
04What values are most important to you in your work and personal life?
The values most important to me in both my work and personal life are positivity, integrity, and humility. I think honesty and humility kind of go hand in hand - being humble, being trustworthy. Those are the things that drive my personal and my work life, and they're at the top of my list.
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