Laura Padousis believes the something extra every leader needs is curiosity. How beautiful it is to learn about the people and world around us by asking questions. When you allow your curiosity to lead conversations, you not only inspire an environment of collaboration, but you will get better solutions.
Bio: I started working in the family business when I was 12 years old, filling water tubes for flower bouquets in our floral departments. I did pretty much anything the manager could think of to keep a 12-year-old busy. Every summer in high school I would work in the stores, from Produce to the Video Centers to Cashiering.
After College, I interned at Fleishman Hillard in Public Relations for a year before joining Dierbergs full time. Upon rejoining the company, I completed an intensive training program for over a year working in every department throughout the store, working closely with department managers in various locations. I eventually took a position as a Store Operations Supervisor which is similar to a district manager position.
Today, I serve as Executive Vice President, spending much of my time in the areas of Real Estate, Technology, Marketing, and general Operations. I am fortunate to work every day with my Dad, Bob who still works full time after over 60 years in the business and my brother Greg who is our CEO. My husband and I have 3 kids (ages 13-18) and I enjoy encouraging them to be the best version of themselves, no matter what career they choose to pursue one day. At Dierbergs, I feel very fortunate to be amongst such a great group of human beings and our amazing and dedicated people make up the best part of who we are as an organization. I love my job because I truly grow every day and each of those days is an adventure.
Laura’s Something Extra: Courageous curiosity. To the point of “where are we going to be in ten years?” — there is so much to learn, grow, and change about ourselves over time. It’s always great to ask questions. Regardless of who you are asking, you will always learn something. These are invaluable opportunities we would miss if we were not curious.
Links and Mentions:
Dierbergs
Credits:
– Lisa Nichols, Host
– Scott Crosby, Executive Producer
– Daniel Williams, Recording Engineer
