Leading the Team

Donna Miller has always been ambitious. As a girl, she dreamed of being an American football coach – this at a time when even female sports commentators were unheard of. Donna may not have been able to coach quite the team she hoped to as a girl, but she’s now responsible for a far bigger and more diverse team in her role as European Director of HR for Enterprise Rent-A-Car.

Smart Opportunities had a chance to speak to Donna about her unplanned but successful career in human resources (HR).

Donna grew up in California, where she completed a degree in Fashion Merchandising and Marketing. HR was not something that had entered her mind as a career choice. And nor had working in car rental.

But Donna’s positive attitude shines down the phone line as she describes the good fortune she believes she’s had in finding a company that fits her personal values. And it is obviously an excellent fit: Donna has been with Enterprise since 1990 when she joined their management training scheme.

Winging it

Donna admits that she never had a career strategy as such, especially when she first signed on with Enterprise. But she believes it was her willingness to be open and flexible that has allowed her the career that she’s had.

Her first role in HR wasn’t even her idea: a senior manager put her forward for it. But rather than turn down the conversation that he’d arranged for her with the regional vice president, she decided to go for it. “You should never turn down an opportunity to have a conversation with somebody, because a lot of those conversations can be really pivotal. Maybe not then, but perhaps down the line.”

This appears to have been one such pivotal conversation – not only did it introduce her to her mentor and friend Pam Nicholson (current President and COO of Enterprise), but it gave her career a new direction.

Donna worked her way up from HR Manager in Southern California, to Group HR Manager in New York, to Canadian Corporate HR Manager to European HR Manager, and finally, in 2002, to her current position.

And she has loved it: “HR has been one hundred times more than what I thought it would be. A lot of that is as a result of the role, but a lot of it is about the opportunities that I’ve taken to build the role and make it what I think it could be or should be.”

Her personal approach

Undoubtedly her work ethic has had a great deal to do with her progression. “When my alarm goes off I’m pretty excited to get going,” Donna explains.  From her enthusiastic demeanour it is easy to believe.

“I’m also really organised.” She laughs as she recounts what challenges women often face in the workplace that men don’t. I hear my male colleagues ringing their wives to beg a favour to pick up dry cleaning and for other errands. “Being single, I have to be really organised at work and at home.” 

Donna rates her loyalty and her ethical approach as two very important character traits that have helped in her success. She believes in the value of loyalty to the people she works with and those she works for.

And ethically:  “I can be counted on to do the right thing, which can be challenging in HR.” She admits that it can be difficult walking the fine line between being an advocate for the company and for the employee, but that you have to stand by your convictions. The company always wins out.

You need to know business

Donna also believes that HR, when you get it right, can have a big impact on the bottom-line for any company.  And she feels fortunate to be working in a company where HR is seen as an important strategic part of the business.

However to be good at HR you need to understand the business in which you’re operating, she explains. “More and more today, to be a good executive, you can’t just know about your own area… you have to understand the business you operate in. You have to understand how your area affects the business, and how other departments affect you. “

But you don’t need to know it all

But although Donna believes that the good HR exec needs to know a lot about business, she doesn’t believe they have to know it all.
“You don’t have to know everything. Sometimes women are much harder on themselves and on other women than they need to be, because they think ‘oh, I don’t know that.’ Probably one of the best lessons I’ve learned is to admit I don’t know something. It’s perfectly fine to say ‘I don’t know. I’ll find out. Let me get back to you.’ “

She sees the network of fellow professionals that she has built up, both inside and outside of Enterprise, as very important when she needs to ‘find out’ something. Discovering how other companies are dealing with HR dilemmas and sharing successful approaches is incredibly useful to her.

People motivation

But what makes it possible for Donna to get excited at the sound of the alarm clock? “The thing that I love best is seeing people succeed.” Whether it’s the people she’s worked with or recruited, their success gives her a huge amount of personal satisfaction. And HR, through its training and development schemes, gives her the opportunity to support people in succeeding.

Advice on a career in HR

Donna’s first piece of advice to those wanting a career in the widely varied field of HR is not quite what you might expect: learn to sell. “Every job has an element of sales in it. Most roles encompass sales, but from an HR perspective you’re always selling something – you’re selling jobs, you’re selling benefits, you’re selling opportunities, and you’re selling why people should come in the next morning.”

Besides the sales, you must be up for the variety of the role. It’s not about old-style administration, there’s recruiting, training, law, retention, engagement and more.  You need to be flexible and enjoy variety.

A passion for people is absolutely crucial if you’re going to enjoy HR. Donna believes that the people around her and her team are the most important part of her day  - they are what make her job both doable and enjoyable.

And as important is a passion for business. Donna recommends a graduate program as a great place to start your career as it will give you the general insight into the business that she believes is invaluable.

She also recommends avoiding the tunnel-vision approach to a career strategy. “Be open and flexible. Look for companies that match your values, but don’t get tunnel-vision about which company you want to work for. There are alternative routes to where you want to get.”

Last word

Her final bits of advice reassert Donna’s positive attitude and friendliness that has been evident throughout our conversation.

• Be a ‘yes person’ – that’s yes to staying late, yes to new opportunities, and yes to everything else. Yes people get ahead faster than ‘no people’ and they’re much more fun to be around.
• Choose to be positive. It takes so much more effort to be negative.
• And finally, be kind, and treat people as you would like to be treated.

These are not just abstract nuggets of advice, they are core beliefs that Donna Miller lives by and that she believes have contributed to her own success. 

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Enterprise Rent-A-Car will be one of the exhibitors at the Smart Opportunities for Women event in Dartford on the 4 May 2010. Book now to attend the Exclusive Mid-day Boost session. 

Here at Smart Opportunities for Women we are confident that the UK has an extensive pool of talented women who are keen to get connected to forward-thinking employers. In 2010, we will be hosting a series of events focused on advancing the professional development of women and supporting employers to effectively recruit, develop and retain female talent. 

So, if you would like to attend or sponsor any of our events, we would love to hear from you. Contact us today.

Are you keen to invest in yourself, and develop personally and professionally? Then why not book to attend our 'SMART workshops'.

29 April 2010

Interview by Helen Keevy