Her Story
About Tiffany
My career journey has been quite an interesting one. I started right out of college as a business analyst and was really good at it, but I had a passion for teaching. I was actually planning to leave corporate America altogether to get a teaching certificate when a mentor said to me, 'Tiffany, teaching in corporate is just training. Have you ever considered moving to the training side of the house?' I heard bells ringing and music played, and I thought, wow, this is a great move for me. I went back to graduate school and got my master's degree in organizational management with an emphasis in training and development, which allowed me to jump right into a training leadership role for Nestle Purina. I really got to feed that bug of training and teaching while also feeding my passion for helping people and doing it in a way that broke down complicated ideas to topics and concepts that people could easily digest. I worked for Nestle Purina for 21 years, spending the majority of that time as either a trainer in a variety of departments across the organization or as a manager. I ended my career there as the Organizational Effectiveness Manager in HR. After that, I went on to become Senior Director of Learning and Development for Schnucks Markets, a grocery store here in St. Louis, Missouri. I also did a stint as a director in healthcare, and then I moved to a director role for my alma mater, University of Missouri Columbia. My role now has changed after a medical interruption that took me off work for about 9 months. I'm now an adjunct teaching professor for the University of Missouri in the Marketing Department, teaching online business courses. I'm responsible for ensuring that our marketing curriculum matches the current needs of the marketplace and that our students feel confident and have the skills to be successful post-graduation. I also work part-time at JPMorgan Chase as an associate banker, where my role is really helping to educate clients on the JPMorgan Chase tools and solutions that will help them reach their financial goals. I'm really teaching in that role as well, doing it in a new industry in the banking industry.
Her Interview
Ten minutes with Tiffany
01What’s the best career advice you’ve ever received?
The best career advice I ever received came from a mentor early in my career. I was planning to leave corporate America altogether to go to school and get a teaching certificate because I had a passion for teaching, even though I was really good at being a business analyst. My mentor said to me, 'Tiffany, teaching in corporate is just training. Have you ever considered moving to the training side of the house?' That advice completely changed my career trajectory. I heard bells ringing and music played, and I thought, wow, this is a great move for me. It led me to go back to graduate school, get my master's degree in organizational management with an emphasis in training and development, and jump right into a training leadership role. That one piece of advice allowed me to combine my passion for teaching with my corporate career, and it set me on a path that I've been on for over 20 years now.
02What advice would you give to young women entering your industry?
I would say you're not there yet, so having a growth mindset is going to be key to your journey. Never stop learning and ensure that even if you feel like you are in your dream job or your dream career path, you continue to look, search, and devour as much information, skill set, and knowledge that you can in your field. I'm not just a teacher, I am a student, and I'm constantly looking for ways to not only increase my skill set but to remain strategic and valuable in this market. I embrace whatever the latest trends are in the marketplace and use downtime to look for certifications like AI certifications. I spend a lot of time looking at updated job postings because for me, that gives me the greatest insight into what the current market is looking for and what skills are needed, not only to share with my students but to stay up to speed on how to stay relevant in the market myself.
03What values are most important to you in your work and personal life?
First and foremost, it's a passion for lifelong learning. I am not just a teacher, I am a student, and I am constantly looking for ways to not only increase my skill set but to remain strategic and valuable in this market, from embracing whatever the latest trends are in the marketplace to using downtime to look for AI certifications. I spend a lot of time looking at updated job postings because that gives me the greatest insight into what the current market is looking for and what skills are needed, not only for me to share with my students but for me to stay up to speed on how to stay relevant in the market. The second value is self-awareness, knowing absolutely and being honest and very transparent with yourself about your own growth opportunities. Understanding that growth is just a stepping stone to your own individual excellence. Growth is not designed to break you, but it's designed to make you better. And lastly, connection and community. We are not put here to operate in silos, and our job is to be a light for other people but also use our community and our connections to help us absorb light. So putting people around us and growing your community and your connection base in a way that it's not just about you receiving value, but it's also about you giving value.
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