Dr. Valeria Edmonds On Finding Her Way Home
Never underestimate the impact of an internship. Dr. Valeria Edmonds’ entire career trajectory was changed by an internship with Exxon in 1990.
“It opened my mind to the world and really did expand my worldview,” says Edmonds, who eventually spent over 33 years at Exxon [which became ExxonMobil upon merging with Mobil in 1999], retiring in December 2023 as global human resource leader, and has run her own business, Masterful You LLC, as a leadership coach and consultant, since 2012.
In the two years between her undergraduate degree in personnel management from the University of Memphis and her MBA from Howard University, Edmonds accepted an internship at one of Exxon’s international headquarters, where she had the opportunity to work with people from different countries and exchange ideas on global issues.
“It opened my eyes to the fact that not only is the U.S. economy energy based, but the world economy is energy based,” which led Edmonds to the realization that the work the company was doing was going to have an impact on the world at large. And that aligned with her personal philosophy: “I have always been motivated by having a bigger purpose in life.”
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