Fun is on equal footing with helping others and making a profit for Elizabeth Huber, co-owner of Huber & Associates.
Before she and her husband, Jim, fulfilled their dream of owning their own business in 1986, she already knew fun would be a priority. In recent years, managers from their company of 85-plus decided to write down core values, and she said she was glad to see fun still made the list.
"Life's too short, and we're at work for so many hours; we need to have fun with technology because we're a bunch of nerds," she said.
Huber also has made careful growth and giving back to the community hallmarks of her 30-year-old company.
An electrical engineer, Huber graduated from the University of Missouri and worked 11 years for IBM in Arizona and St. Louis before coming to Jefferson City in 1986 - also the year they married and bought a house, she noted.
In 1993, IBM was downsizing. The Huber business not only doubled employee size, but she was able to focus her attention full time on the family business - as well as their first child.
Huber admits working with her spouse presents some extra challenges, but she and Jim realized while engineering students at Mizzou they have different talents, she said.
"We rely on each other; we don't do everything together," she said.
For example, while Jim is "getting his hands dirty" in operating systems and on-site with clients, Huber applies her self-named "nerdiness" to management, accounting and exploring possibilities - while working at her treadmill desk.
But when she needs to delve back into the world of code and cords, she said she seeks out a special project.
Learning to delegate responsibility and acknowledging she could not do everything were key growth areas for Huber, which she said she hopes younger working women will realize.
"I think sometimes there's a self-imposed glass ceiling; we make decisions that are best for our children, not necessarily best for our careers," Huber said. "I would not fault someone for that. Those are good decisions for the right reasons."
Q. Who has invested in you and your career?
A. "Every mentor in my life has invested in my career. My parents were my first teachers and mentors, and they invested tremendous amounts of time, energy and love in helping me to grow up believing that I could do and be anything I wanted. They sent me to the University of Missouri and expected me to succeed. In college, I met my future husband, Jim Huber, and we helped each other get through difficult engineering courses and prepare for our future together. After school, I went to work for IBM, where I had several advisers and mentors who gave me opportunities to excel and take on new responsibilities.
"Later, at Huber & Associates, every single employee has invested in the success of the company, and they continue to do so every day. Our company has grown in size, success and reputation because of these wonderful, hardworking, caring people."
Q. What choices have you made to invest in yourself and your own success?
A. "One of the biggest choices I made in investing in my own success was the decision to become an electrical engineer. That degree has opened many doors for me and helped me to establish credibility in a technical field - initially with employers and coworkers, and later with customers and employees. Nowadays, I invest in myself every day by investing back into our company and in our employees."
Q. What do you think are the biggest issues still facing women in the workplace?
A. "My experiences in business and life have convinced me that there are major differences in the way men and women approach their lives and careers, and we need to be aware of those differences and, sometimes, make adjustments in order to help ourselves succeed. For example, I know many women who feel the same way about raises in the workplace as they feel about compliments from their spouse or significant other - 'I shouldn't have to ask!' Men, on the other hand, seem to be more comfortable with asking for what they want. I believe that this difference in men and women accounts for much of the pay disparity we see in the workforce today. Ladies, learn to ask!"
Q. What drives you most in life and in your career?
A. "As an engineer, I am a problem-solver; as a woman, a wife and a mother, I am a caregiver. What drives me is the desire to help people by solving problems."
Q. What advice would you give to a woman entering the workforce?
A. "Attitude is so important. Put a smile on even when you don't feel it - it might just stick. Volunteer for as many things as you can handle - being busy and accomplishing more makes the day fly by and increases your value to your employer. Never burn a bridge. Learn how to gracefully ask for what you want."
See the full October 2016 edition of #jcmo Inside Business here.