Have you ever had your heart strings pulled and been inspired in the same moment. If not, let me tell you a story of adversity, resilience, success, and a powerful Latina…
Juanita Velez, October’s Wkendher, ,a Colombian native born to well accomplished parents was forced to flee her country during the cartel era in her most formative years. Her parents sacrificed their careers to get
her to safety, although they were qualified to practice and continue their professions their credentials were not transferable; which is a testament to one of the many issues that we have from a policy perspective.
She has observed and continues to witness her parents hard work and dedication which created her foundation of hustle. Fast forward a decade, she earned her bachelor’s degree from Armstrong Atlantic State University in Savannah, Georgia. She began her business career as a Latina entrepreneur, founding a distribution and exporting company in Florida for medical and dental refurbished products and equipment for the rural Latin American market. She left Miami to advance her studies where she pursued and became a part of the first Master’s in International Business cohort at Georgia State University in 2013.
As she became more involved in the Atlanta community by interning at the Atlanta Convention and Visitors’ Bureau, she gained a passion for the commercial internationalization of Atlanta. Human connectivity, communication, and globalization became Juanita’s main passion points, eventually landing her a career with UPS, the global logistics monster. Juanita joined UPS in 2013 as Global Brand and Sponsorships Specialist and was responsible for customer hospitality activation programs for Ferrari Formula 1, The Masters and other international and domestic sponsorships.
She was promoted to International Digital Integrated Communications Supervisor where she effectively managed the coordination, development and execution of integrated communication programs that support UPS’s international marketing and business plans across all regions: APAC, Europe, Americas, Canada and ISMEA.
After a great career with UPS, Juanita took a growing opportunity with Delta as International Social Media Strategist where she is developing the company’s first global social media strategy and presence in priority markets across all regions. Her teams continue to be all over the world, both internal and external from Delta.
Her journey has not been one handed to, Juanita went through many years of confusion, barriers and struggles that limited her next step. Her immigrant experience combined with her upbringing in Colombia’s hardest time made her heart one of selfless serving. She serves on numerous boards both internally and external from Delta.
She has been heavily involved with the Latin American Association both as board member of the LAA Fundraising Committee and also as mentor of Hispanic students at local title 1 high schools. The value of mentorship is near to her heart, she dedicates a lot of her time to the mentoring community in Atlanta participating as a mentor in the Women Lead Program through Georgia State’s Robinson College of Business.
Juanita also serves on the board of CIBER, Center for International Business Education & Research at Georgia State University where she provides insight and engages in conversations to advance academic programs within the international business segment of both undergraduate and graduate programs. She is also a Founding Member of the Business School Mentoring Program for Georgia State University and serves on the Goizueta Foundation Gift Advisory Board for the Emory Goizueta Business School. She has been highlighted as 2016 Latino Leader of Atlanta by the Latino Leaders Magazine, 2015 UPS Latino Millennial of the Year and 2016 Young Professional of the Year and 2018 50 Most Influential Latino of Georgia by the Georgia Hispanic Chamber of Commerce.
She is astounding and should serve as an inspiration to us all, oh and she’s got style!
Her Look:
The Emma & Michele form fitting shirt dress in olive green with the built in waist belt is perfect for a casual look in moderate temperatures. What’s cold is that she paired it the the snake skin heels. This look says i’m here and i’m in charge – perfect for the boardroom. If you’re looking for a way to dress it up, you could easily pair it with a black blazer. Her jewelry is muted, to promote the upscale casual feel. I know I constantly say this, but seriously this look is a WIN!
My Look:
Its tartan! (better getchu one before the holidays)
To a Life Worth Living,
The Wkender!