Mina Martinez

I attribute my success to the meaningful workplace experiences and mentorship I received throughout my 34-year career in aerospace. Working at Hughes Aircraft Company gave me incredible opportunities to learn, master skills, and work with influential people in a global environment. I was fortunate to have mentors who believed in me and supported my professional development, including my manager Mr. Rosales who fought for three years to get me the budget approval for my Corporate International Protocol Consultant certification training, which cost nearly $6,000 in 2009. He told me it had to come from the company budget for professional development, and he went to his finance manager under a different program to make it happen. That certification became the foundation for everything I do now. I also credit my background in customer service, starting at McDonald's in high school where I learned about respect and values, which led to me being selected to appear in the movie 'All the President's Men.' My work as a training coordinator exposed me to so many aspects of business operations, from scheduling programs to supporting engineers on a global scale. Being bilingual opened doors for me to do cross-cultural awareness training and work with diverse communities. My volunteerism, especially leading career fairs and STEM outreach for 10 years with Hispanic engineering students, taught me how to connect with people and create meaningful impacts. The mentorship I received, and the mentorship I've given to students who still call me Mrs. Martinez years later, has been invaluable. I've always focused on culture, connection, and engagement, treating people with respect, and that approach has allowed me to build a business based on those same values I learned throughout my career.

I would definitely open my truest honesty and let them know they have professional development ahead of them. I'd be more than happy to give them that excellence and that breakthrough, and they could learn from the new audiences that I deal with. They could do what I do, whether it's nationwide or not. When someone approaches me wanting to do this work, I explain from the get-go that it's not going to be easy, but there's amazing things that come out of it, and opportunities that just thrive to make you even better, because you're the trainer. I let them know there's a lot to do and a lot of work involved. If they want to get certified like I did, I explain what it takes. I went through my certification back in 2009 through the Protocol School of Washington, and when people ask me about it, they say 'oh my, that's a lot,' and I tell them, sure it is, but if you have the willing and the nature of your persona wanting to do this, then I can do that preparation for you. I'd be more than happy to do that. The person really has to let me know that there is a need for them, that there is an experience they wish to obtain, and if they really mean business, then they're going to get my vote of confidence. This becomes a mission that we're both going to work on. If you want to serve families and communities, then you're the person I'm looking for. You have to understand that culture and engagement are involved in the way I train. Culture matters. Manners matter. The person matters. I worked in a heavy male-influenced arena in aerospace, and as a woman, you have to navigate that, but I gravitated to what I liked in the STEM field and found my path through meaningful connections and respect.

The biggest challenge in my field right now is that there's a real lack of the art of etiquette, and while that hurts deeply, it also reminds us why this work matters so much. The need around us is real, and the families and communities we serve are counting on us. The pandemic really hurt my industry and what I do because etiquette training is one-on-one, first person-to-person, face-to-face work. I had to pivot to doing virtual training and started training on Zoom, which was a significant adjustment. However, I see this as an opportunity because I now have more of a global outreach through virtual platforms. I can reach students and clients who aren't able to be in person, and we can make online training happen for them in any way we can. The opportunity continues to be available for people interested in doing off-sites or retreats and meaningful connections, whether with young professionals or already established groups. I'm finding that companies are recognizing the value of etiquette programs for their onboarding processes, for new hires and interns, and that raises the bar for how we continue to do our work. There's also a growing need for respect and proper communication in the workplace, and when businesses understand that we can help with their hiring structure and teamwork through etiquette training, it creates significant opportunities for engagement and culture-building.

The values most important to me in my work and personal life are people, culture, connection, and engagement. What I care about most is people. I focus on companies that define the same goals that I do, and I look for a good amount of respect for what we do. I'm deeply grateful for opportunities to help improve operations and teamwork, whether with hiring structures or employee development. Respect is very important to me, and I do a lot of my work showing respect in the workplace. I come from an Indigenous background, and we don't shout about our achievements. We're very proud of them, but we keep things humble. My volunteerism goes beyond what I do as a regular employee, and community outreach has been one of my most notable achievements. I'm very proud to be a supplier among the community, working with organizations that are near and dear to my communities. Value creation is what I believe in. When I work with clients, it's not about the followers or the numbers, it's about the meaningful connections and the impact we make. I want to make etiquette accessible and create powerful experiences for people. Mentorship is also a core value for me. Having mentors who believed in me and supported my development, and being able to mentor students who still thank me years later and call me Mrs. Martinez, that's what I call value. Culture matters. Manners matter. The person matters. These are the principles that guide everything I do, both professionally and personally.