2010 Automotive News 100 Leading Women

Why did you want to work in the auto industry? It wasn’t really that I wanted to. It was my backyard; I grew up here. I remember when I was interviewed for my first job it was an agency doing automotive advertising, called the Competitive Edge. The people doing the interview were not from this area; they were from New Mexico. They asked, “What kind of car experience do you have?” I was right out of college, and I didn’t have any work experience.My answer was “I live in Detroit; I grew up with car experience; we all do.” We’re all affected by the industry. Even though my father was a builder, when the car business was down, his business was down. Cars were a part of my world. It was a natural for me.