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In August 2008, Valerie Ballew (BSM/M, 2012; MBA, 2014) was ready to take the next step in her career in procurement. She would go back to school, and her company at the time �� a building supply firm �� would even help pay for it. But just one week after she enrolled, the recession caught up with her, and she was laid off for the second year in a row.

Ballew struggled with her decision but concluded, “I never wanted to wonder, ‘What if?’��

Her choice paid off. “It was probably the wisest decision I’ve made in life,�� says Ballew. Today, as the category sourcing director at Georgia-Pacific, she reflects on how betting on herself changed her life. 

By the time Ballew went back to school, she had already made some incredible strides. She had overcome childhood poverty in a household where family members struggled with addiction. She was a proud mom to her son who was in middle school at the time.

At the same time, Ballew �� who had earned college credits but not a degree �� felt like she had hit a ceiling at work to the point where she trained her own boss multiple times. Ballew saw how her lack of a college education was holding her back and felt inspired by her family to keep fighting for a better life.

“I was determined that I was going to set an example to my son, to my niece, to my nephews, and that I was no longer going to live paycheck to paycheck,�� says Ballew.

She knew this wouldn’t be easy. She was fortunate to find a new job after being laid off, but that meant she was in the office 50 to 60 hours a week while raising her son at home. “I was a single mom, and my son had to be a priority. I needed to figure out, how do I balance that and not miss things for my son and just my regular duties as a mom?��

With that balancing act in mind, Ballew researched schools and landed on �������� as the place that could provide the flexibility she needed. “When traditional classes were only offered during the day or in person, I would have to wait,�� says Ballew, “and it was causing delays in my progress. But �������� offered me the flexibility to be a full-time student and a full-time mom.��

With that flexibility, Ballew was able to earn her Bachelor of Science in Management. But she was playing the long game with the goal of making a jump from one side of procurement (supply chain) to another (sourcing).

This shift meant more time negotiating contracts and prices, so Ballew returned to �������� to earn her Master of Business Administration. It was here, Ballew says, that she gained the confidence and public speaking skills that have helped her come into her own as a leader.

“The biggest part of my job is influence: influencing my internal stakeholders, influencing my external stakeholders,�� she says. “And �������� work helped me to be able to collaborate cross functionally, to work well with others. So, I walked into my new role with that advantage.��

De Guia goes on to describe how Ballew has become a role model for her peers, providing guidance that goes above and beyond her position. “Even without an official mentoring program within the sourcing and procurement team, Valerie offered to mentor me in my goal of becoming a successful category leader,�� says De Guia, who emphasizes Ballew’s patience. “My lack of basic knowledge did not frustrate her. Instead, it motivated her to teach me more and extend our discussions beyond category management topics.��

Her success has inspired more than her colleagues. She recounts how crossing the stage at her graduation ceremony evoked an emotional reaction from her normally stoic brother. “He walked up to me and said, ‘I know how hard that was for you because I know where you came from,�� and that meant so much to me because he had been there for me through family strife and poverty and everything else,�� Ballew says.

Winning the bet on herself, Ballew learned a lot during her time at ��������, from public speaking to data analysis, but more than anything she learned resilience. “It was hard, and there were days that I felt like stopping. But I kept reminding myself of the reward and potential once I completed my degree.��

While her professional success means that Ballew now has more stability and opportunities than before (including chances to travel with her family and to make the switch from supply chain to sourcing), it’s resilience that Ballew is most eager to impart to her son. “He saw me working late nights,�� she remembers, “and saw me working at my new job. But most importantly, he saw that I didn’t quit.��

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