Issue link: https://www.e-digitaleditions.com/i/56529
• Multiple skill sets. Everyone has a line on his resume The Jazz Singer Jazz musician Kathy Wade is not just a per- former. She's also a busi- nesswoman who runs a 17-year-old nonprofit organization in Cin- cinnati, Ohio, called Learning Through Art. Through its "Books Alive for Kids" program, the organization brings music, crafts, and story- telling to schoolchildren between pre-K and third grade. Learning Through Art also sponsors events such as a diversity festival that last year brought 30,000 people to the local zoo. Wade currently sits on three boards for the Williams College of Business at Xavier University in Cincinnati, including those for academic affairs, marketing, and diversity and inclusion. She has spent the past five years acting as an executive mentor at Xavier to a series of female African American business students— showing them by example what it takes to run a small business today. I earned my master's degree in arts administration, because music is a business. It's not enough to perform a concert and take home a paycheck. Artists have to manage their careers, too. And anybody running a nonprofit definitely needs busi- ness management skills. I try to show my mentees that, whether they're hired by a for-profit or a nonprofit, there are certain attributes and skills they will need: • Passion. New graduates must care deeply about every- thing they do, even if their current job isn't their dream job. They don't drop success in a bowl, put some water on it, stick it in a microwave, and have it ready in 15 seconds. They have to apply themselves. If they're digging ditches, be passionate about it. Because something they learn while digging ditches will point them to the next opportunity. If they're digging ditches, be passionate about it. Because something they learn while digging ditches will point them to the next opportunity. 30 BizEd SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2009 saying, "Proficient at Word," but that's not enough today. For instance, I just hired an operations manager. What caught my eye about her resume was that she's also a graphic designer and a Webmaster. She has an expansive set of skills. • Initiative. Let's say you work for me, and I'm on deadline. I have to be somewhere in an hour, but I can't leave until a certain report is done. You should say to me, "How can I help?" And that's true for any job at any level. Whether you're a CEO, a CFO, a manager, a director, a banker, or a baker, you have to take initiative. I told my new operations manager that I wanted a spinoff on my Books Alive for Kids program, and she designed a prototype that could be tested at an event the very next day. That's what I'm looking for. That's what any executive would be looking for. • Flexibility. One summer, Learning Through Art held an outdoor concert. We were selling beer tickets by the food booth, which was across the street from the beer booth. As soon as someone pointed out that I would sell more beer if the ticket stand moved closer to the beer stand, I immediate- ly made the switch and announced the change—and we sold a lot more beer. I tell this story to all my mentees. I let them know, "Sometimes you move the tickets, and sometimes the tickets move on you. You always have to be evaluating." • Networking skills. Because my organization is a non- profit and I need to raise money, it's all about relationships. And relationships are vitally important in this current market. Students need to understand how to build them, take care of them—and walk away when they're no longer good. • Attitude. I carry a keyring that holds five keys and a silver charm shaped like a shoe that's covered in rhinestones. The shoe reminds me to "dress for success"—for the job I want, not the job I have. The five keys stand for the doors to success: reading, writing, math, thinking, listening. Stu- dents might say, "I'm in college, I know how to read and write." But I tell them education is ongoing. As long as they're inhaling, they need to inhale some knowledge. • Potential to grow. Businesses don't like turnover— they want to keep their employees for a long time. But like other employers, I look for people who are willing and able to change as the business changes. If they can't change, they'll hold the business back. In my world, that means they have to go. • Ethical clarity. Leaders have to have a sense of hon- esty and pride in what they're doing. The quick way is not always the best way.