Erika Donalds was a COO and CFO for financial services firms before shifting gears to education, first as a mom and later as an elected Collier County School Board Member. She’s since led and supported several innovative educational models, including one of the world’s first virtual reality schools, Optima Academy Online. On this episode Erika and Business Observer Managing Editor Mark Gordon talked about the why behind her career change and why she has remained a leader in education transformation. They also talked about her mentors and the characteristics of top-flight leaders.

3 Takeaways:

1. (09:55) Have high expectations for your employees and team
2. (14:30) Decide what success is going to look like alongside your employees
3. (17:30) Look at the big picture when thinking about setbacks

Timestamps:

(00:00) Introducing Erika Donalds, founder and chairman, Optima; education entrepreneur

(05:00) What is Optima Ed?

(06:45) Center for Education Opportunity

(08:00) Starting in Finance and leading to education

(09:30) What Erika learned about being a good leader working in finance

(12:00) How do you lead?

(14:05) What do you look for in leaders?

(16:10) How do you overcome setbacks?

(18:45) What is next for your organizations?

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