In 1975, Bettie Steiger donned her suit after 17 years of community and international volunteer work and raising children, and headed out on a career adventure that serves as an inspiration to other women re-entering the work force. Her first venture as co-owner of a money-losing travel agency proved her business instincts were on-target. She returned the firm to profitability in 18 months.
She went on to hold a number of positions in the fledgling high-technology industry, moving from manager to director to vice president as she made lasting contributions in the areas of electronic publishing and information management.
Her reputation as a futurist was built through her contribution of cutting-edge business models and marketing savvy to the success of companies such as Xerox, where she served as a top-level executive for several years. Now she is CEO of her own company, Steiger Associates, which specializes in management consulting and strategic marketing services.
In recognition of her career accomplishments, commitment to volunteer service, and untiring mentoring of other up-and-coming women, Bettie Steiger is WSU’s Woman of the Year.
March – Women’s History Month – is a fitting time to honor Steiger, says Marsha Yim, award committee chair. The national women’s history project theme is “Women Pioneering the Future.”
“She epitomizes this year’s theme as a trailblazer in business and women’s leadership. She is really focused on the empowerment of women,” adds Yim.
Steiger, who lives in Menlo Park, Calif., will return a week early from her Hawaiian vacation to receive the award. “I feel incredibly lucky, but my husband says I made my own luck!” she says with a laugh.
Steiger and her husband, Don, both graduated from WSU in 1956. Bettie followed her B.S. in Political Science with an M.E. in secondary education in 1957. She earned her executive MBA from Harvard Business School in 1987, making Harvard history as the first mother-son team to graduate from the business school in the same year.
Steiger’s impact on others is remarkable. Spokane business leaders and longtime friends Carole and Barry Jones note, “She regularly consults with women business leaders to advise them in the leadership challenges they face.” In fact, a recent meeting with a group of women small business owners in Spokane led to an invitation to be the keynote speaker at their September convention.
Her passion for mentoring is expressed in her involvement with the International Women’s Forum. Steiger joins the ranks of U.S. Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg and civil rights activist Coretta Scott King as one of a select number of members of the International Women’s Forum. “This organization is important because top women don’t have a network in their own company. It enables women to find people at their same level of leadership to share interests and discuss challenges in a safe environment,” says Steiger.
Her energy extends to women’s causes across the spectrum. As a founding member of the International Museum of Women and head of the marketing and communications committee, she is leading the launch of a campaign to raise $100 million dollars by 2006. The museum, slated to open in San Francisco in 2008, will be the only international museum exclusively dedicated to chronicling and honoring the lives of women worldwide.
In what she calls “phase three” of her life, she is slowing down her corporate work, paying more attention to relaxing and spending time with her husband and family. She feels now is the time for her to give back to the industry and community where she has been able to accomplish so much.
Steiger contributes her success to careful planning and to the people in her life. “Ultimately, the most important thing in life is people,” she notes.
Steiger has many messages for women about life and success. “Strategize your life like a business plan. Don’t just let it happen, plan it. Be an expert where there are none, and don’t be afraid to take the pathway that has never been traveled,” she urges. “The important thing is this — to be able to give up what you are for what you could become.”
