In our Generation W Profiles series, we highlight influential women.
Melinda Wolfe is the Chief Human Resources Officer at education company Pearson. A Harvard University graduate, she has worked for elite companies including American Express and Bloomberg.
As an art history major, Wolfe says she didn’t expect her career to follow the path it did.
“In retrospect, I would say that I’m surprised by where I’ve landed and yet in some ways it is totally consistent with who I am and what I care about.”
Wolfe says she accredits her different career experiences to her success.
“One of the great opportunities I had, actually working in business for the first fourteen years of my career and particularly in investment banking is that it gave me the business acumen, it gave me a certain polish. It gave me exposure that I was able to leverage later in my career in really positive ways.”
She also says people looking to be successful in their career should be proactive.
“Learn what you need to learn, in terms of the basics of how business happens, basic accounting principles, basic good writing and presentation skills; all really important. Find the right mentors and look for opportunities, whether entrepreneurial or in a cooperation that really give you exposure to making things happen and showing outcome and results.”
Generation W Profiles are a collaboration between WJCT and the Generation W Women’s Leadership Conference.
