SPRING 2008 Editor: How did you begin your career? Stewart: In high school, I knew that I wanted to go to the Harvard Business School. At Wellesley College, I majored in economics. Following graduation, I went to Goldman Sachs. I was unmarried and had no children. I loved the work. I loved the people. I loved the excitement. I worked all the time because it was fun. After two years as a financial analyst, I went to business school. After earning my MBA, I returned to Goldman Sachs in 1982. For several rea- sons, I joined the real estate department rather than the corporate side where I worked before going to business school. One reason was that I’ve always been interested in real estate because my father had been in the real estate business. Another was that the real estate department was new at Goldman Sachs and seemed to me to have more opportunities than the more traditional departments.. My husband (at the time my fiancé) was at Goldman Sachs on the corporate side. It was another reason to be in a different department although no one told us that we had to do that. While working at Goldman Sachs, I had a great deal of independence and flexibility in running my own deals. I enjoyed developing an expertise and growing into a senior position. In 1988, I had my first child. In 1990, I had my second and in 1992, I had my third. Finding it very difficult to balance my work and home life, I left Goldman Sachs. I had two more children. If I had stayed, that probably would not have happened. Editor: Being the mother of five children, how have you focused your career? Stewart: I would encourage women who have children (or want to have children) and a strong interest in business to think about what they can do that does not require a tall office building and a corporate environment with many subordinates and superiors. I’ve always liked real estate because it has myriad career opportunities that do not require institutional support. For example, you could be a real estate broker selling houses. You would have your own schedule albeit with the constraints of working many nights and weekends. I focus my career on real estate investments. I invest as a limited partner in real estate deals with general partners whom I know and trust. They make money by using my money, and I make money because they’re doing a good job. It’s a fair trade off. Excelling in the Business World While Raising Five Children The Editor interviews Beth Stewart, chairman and CEO of Storetrax.com, board member of three publicly traded companies, former adjunct professor at Columbia University Graduate School of Business and mother of five. STRIDES thanks Kristi Vaiden for her contributions to this article. SPRING 2008 Editor: How did your interest in business lead you to serve on boards of publicly traded companies? Stewart: Shortly after I left Goldman Sachs, I was invited to join the board of a shopping center owner called General Growth Properties. I’m still on its board and the boards of two other publicly traded companies. I was on the board of another until it was taken private. A public company director is something of an insurance policy. You have to be educated enough about the company so that when the crisis arrives, you can act intelligently and quickly. One example of a crisis is responding to someone offering to buy the company. Another is replacing the CEO or someone else in senior management. Editor: What happens in the ordinary course of directors’ meetings? Stewart: At a typical board meeting, management tells the directors about ongoing business operations and what is planned for the future. Unless you think they’re making a huge mistake, your role is to be informed and supportive. For example, I was in Richmond for the past three days at a bi-annual strategy session at which we directors reviewed the management team’s five-year plan. We discussed the business climate and challenges facing the company. Considering its strengths and management’s proposed direction for the company, we suggested focusing a little more on this and a little less on that.We didn’t say such things as “You’re in the wrong business.” The board of directors does not manage the company. It provides oversight of the company for the benefit of its shareholders. Editor: What is the most important personality trait of a successful director? Stewart: One of the most important personal traits for every director is being able to get along with people. As you get older, you realize in more and more situations that conflicts are a distraction. Unless it’s a big problem – whether it’s with your mother, your husband, your other directors or your management team – you just don’t want to cause a fuss. At the same time, you must be able to ask pertinent questions and express your opinions. Choose your spots for dissension and make sure that they matter. Maintaining a calm and pleasant environment is much more conducive for successful outcomes than any of its alternatives. Editor: Congratulations on being featured in More Than 85 Broads: Women Making Career Choices, Taking Risks and Defining Success on Their Own Terms by Janet Hanson. What career choices have been the toughest for you? Stewart: I haven’t really had too many difficult career choices. Goldman Sachs was the right place for me and after having 3 children, it was right to do something less structured and more flexible. I have some guilt or remorse about my attitude towards not-for-profit organizations. Although I dabbled for a while in not-for-profit activities, I found it did not work out well for me. I wasn’t able to make the transition from the professionalism of the business world to the way things operate in the not-for-profit world. The volunteers are not subject to review and accountability. They quite often move ahead to positions of authority due to longevity, the amount of money they contribute or the amount of effort they’re willing to put in and not necessarily due to their competency or expertise. However, one of the benefits of volunteering is that you’re meeting people, which can be difficult to do if you’re working from home. If you decide that you don’t want to volunteer, you lose that benefit. Editor: What are your current goals? What do you hope to accomplish personally and professionally? Stewart: I’m 51 years old and quite content with everything just the way it is. I feel good about the balance between my work and home life. For the most part, my work occurs while my children are in school. The work that I have focused on allows me that flexibility, and I’m very, very happy about that. To the extent that things get out of whack, it’s only because I have five children and not because it is not a good balance. My three older children are no longer living at home. I have to leave the two who are home to go see the three who aren’t home. So, the challenge for me is balancing all the home life issues as opposed to balancing work and home. In my professional life, I like being on the boards of three publicly traded companies. I would love to be on a fourth because serving on the boards of public companies is interesting work that involves intelligent people and challenging issues. I find it to be the best high-level, time-efficient way for me to stay involved in the business world. Editor: What advice do you have for women who would like to serve on the boards of public companies? Stewart: I stayed at Goldman Sachs long enough to gain a degree of expertise in my field and in the business world in general. If I had my children earlier or if I had left Goldman earlier, I would not have been in the position to do what I have done. I would not have been viewed as someone who had enough experience, and I would not have known the right people. If you have something that you’re really good at, people will rely on you so that you are the leader of the activity as opposed to the junior person. With seniority, you can have the flexibility to work at times and in places that best suit you and your family. In addition, with seniority comes contact with senior management or board level people. Many board positions are filled by people whose job it is to find board members. You have to make sure that your name is acceptable because you’re going to be evaluated without knowing that you’re being evaluated. However, it is a subtle game. You have to be “found.” Companies are only going to take senior women for these positions. To be considered, you need to develop an expertise, and it is critical that you are viewed as having current knowledge. Bottomline, I think you need to pay your dues in the corporate world. Editor: Do you have any recommendations for maintaining a satisfying balance between work and home life? Stewart: On the home front, the people who work for you can make a big difference. My husband and I are very fortunate to have wonder- ful people who work for us. Our nanny started working for us when my fourth son was born. He’s 13 now. She is now employed at the Montessori school where our children went to school. Married, she has two children of her own. When my husband and I are both out of town, she brings her two children and stays overnight to manage our household. Our housekeeper and the fellow who helps us with our small farm have also been with us for a number of years. Coincidentally, each has a son who is in my daughter’s fifth grade class. We’re flexible with the people who work for us, and they’re flexible with us. Everyone cares about each other. On the business side, I stay current with the best technology so that if I’m waiting 10 minutes for one of my children to finish soccer practice or some other activity, I can manage my email and be responsive. With a good phone, you can do a conference call from anywhere. More important than trying to fit as many tasks as possible into a small amount of time is not getting involved in too many things. You don’t want to be flattered into or obligated to do tasks that drain your energy. That’s what can really mess up the balance between work and home life. SPRING 2008