An explorer at heart, I’ve been lucky to combine my love of travel with my commitment to helping people and nature thrive. I was the Chief Operating Officer at the World Wildlife Fund and now work part-time on selected projects with the Chief Conservation Officer. Prior to that, I worked for nine years at Rare, an international conservation organization that empowers community members to participate in local decision-making and natural resource management. Imagine riding in a small boat filled with Indonesian fishers proudly showing you their locally-managed fishing area where fish stocks have rebounded significantly. That’s a good day.
I’ve combined my strong sense of social mission with my corporate experience. I spent nearly 20 years at companies including Ernst & Young and The Corporate Executive Board and a social venture capital organization called New Profit. These experiences taught me how to grow and scale both for-profit and nonprofit organizations.
My advice to students...
- Lead with yes. Opportunities will come your way. You may hesitate or wonder if you’re qualified. My advice is to say yes to all of them. Leading with yes opens you to new possibilities, and takes you places you never expected.
- Be a “solutionologist”. Anyone can name a problem. A solutionologist takes what’s working, builds on it and helps create a path forward.
- Focus on skills not titles. Think of your career as building a portfolio of competencies. Look at where you want to go and think about the skills needed and take opportunities that allow you to develop those skills. This may mean a lateral move or a step back; that’s ok—especially early in your career. As yourself annually: what have I learned that I didn’t know at the beginning of the year? That’s the real measure of progress, and success will follow.