Focusing on growth

From selling copiers and typewriters for Xerox in the early 1980s to multiple global leadership roles to acting as interim CEO for Vancouver’s Science World (after retirement!), energetic would be an understatement when it comes to describing Janet Wood, BCom ‘82. 

We reached out to Wood to chat with her about her notable career, the words she lives by and her experiences giving back to her alma mater over the past decade.

You have a BCom with distinction from the Alberta School of Business. Can you tell us about your time studying and how your degree has set you up for success?

I started out studying physical education but decided very quickly that I could pursue my love of sports in my personal time and that I wanted to do something else professionally. Although I had no background in business, I liked the fact that there were several options I could pursue depending on what I liked and what I did well. Studying commerce gave me a taste of many different aspects of business which helped me as my career progressed. I had a good understanding of accounting, statistics, finance and marketing. The only thing I knew nothing about when I graduated was sales – and that's where I spent the majority of my career!

You have had quite the career! Can you give us a snapshot of your professional experiences?

In 1982, my first job was with Xerox selling copiers and typewriters. It was challenging at first as I was quite shy, but it really helped me come out of my shell. Surprisingly, I found that I was quite good at sales and it influenced the rest of my career!

I left Xerox to join IBM, where I had a number of different sales roles, was transferred to Vancouver and had a progression of western region and Canada-wide roles. I remember when I became a first-line manager I thought “this is it,” I thought I'd reached the pinnacle of my career. I spent 16 years at IBM. In 2001, I left IBM to join an internet start-up, and, like many start-ups at the time, it didn't make it but it was a valuable learning experience. 

In 2002, I joined the software firm Crystal Decisions, which changed ownership over the years, and was later owned by French analytics company Business Objects and, currently, by German company SAP. Over a 17-year span, I held various global leadership positions that allowed me to travel the world and also live in Germany for a time. I remember one time when I was calling on a business partner in Budapest, Hungary, I looked out over the Danube River and thought to myself, “wow, I can’t believe my good fortune traveling the world for work!” I retired from SAP in the spring of 2019.  

Have you had any post-retirement endeavours?

Oh yes! From 2019 - 2020, I was interim CEO of Science World in Vancouver. While there, COVID hit, which caused a lot of challenges. In normal times Science World greets over 800k visitors a year and reaches a further 160k kids throughout BC. They also get over 85% of their funds from ticket sales, so having to shut the doors during COVID was incredibly stressful on the organization and the staff. It was a challenging role but also one of the most rewarding of my career.

Since 2020, I have sat on both for-profit and not-for-profit boards. I'm on the board of Junior Achievement BC and am the co-chair of the BC Laureates Hall of Fame Gala (BC's premier event recognizing business leaders who have made an impact on our province) which in 2022 raised over $1M for Junior Achievement of BC. I'm also the Canadian region chair for YPO (Young Presidents Organization) Gold, which is for members over 50 years old. 

You give back to the Alberta School of Business both as a donor and by serving on the Business Advisory Council. Can you tell us about these experiences?

Well after graduating, I lost touch with the Alberta School of Business for several years. I moved to BC, got busy with my career and wasn't engaged. About 10 yrs ago, I reconnected to the Alberta School of Business, donating annually, and joined the Business Advisory Council (BAC). Over time I increased my donation and have been involved in various activities of the BAC. I'm currently on the fundraising committee and we're hoping to host an event for alumni living in Vancouver this spring!

I don’t have anything connecting me back to Edmonton besides family who still live there, so I like 'giving back' to my hometown in these ways.  

Do you have a motto you live by?

“Growth and comfort cannot co-exist” (a quote from Ginni Rometty, former CEO and Executive Chairman of IBM). As I changed companies and roles, moved up in organizations and moved to Germany, this 'motto' was always in my thoughts. It's so true that being 'comfortable' means you aren’t changing, growing or taking on new challenges. While growth can be uncomfortable it's always amazing to look back after a few months or a year and see how far you've come and how much you've progressed. It’s a great feeling!

Lastly, if someone asks you to suggest a must-read book, what do you tell them?

One that really helped me from a work perspective was Make Change Work by Randy Pennington. It's about change management and how to ensure your employees and teams understand what you're doing, why you're doing it and – most importantly – how it impacts them. Those are all critical to success. It has a great analogy of coyotes and dodo birds – why one thrived while the other went extinct. There is so much non-stop change these days and sometimes companies forget how important it is to manage the change effectively. I used the principles in the book many times in the last years of my career and in my board work.