Page 40 - San Diego Woman Magazine our POWER WOMEN

Power Women
Joanna Robinson

By Judith A. Habert
Photos courtesy of Joanna Robinson

To say that Joanna Robinson is a busy For Joanna this experience was just Associate’s and Bachelor’s degrees, as well
woman with heavy responsibility on her the beginning of her steady rise in the as an MBA from USC.
plate would be an extreme understate- business world. “A degree represents different things
ment. Joanna is Senior Vice President of to different people,” Joanna says. “For
Technology at Burwood Group, a leader An impromptu, career-changing some, it’s just a piece of paper. But for
in IT consulting and integration. Her life question me it represented my ability to overcome
today represents an incredible jour- something that was viewed as a weakness,
ney that brings her full-circle from her While at the firm, she met with the or a lack thereof. I wanted to be the best,
humble roots as a small-town girl, to an human resources director to discuss an so I set out to tackle the highest degree I
impressive business woman who empow- opportunity to apply for a Director’s could find.”
ers the next generation of women leaders. role.
The transformation artist

With her degrees complete, Joanna was
now in a position to take on more respon-
sibility and move ahead in her career.
Through various vice president roles, she
found a niche in business transformation.
“I absolutely loved being part of guid-
ing companies further in their growth.
I would move from role to role, taking
business units that were stagnating or had
market strategy issues and setting them
on course. I became a sort of transforma-
tion artist, if you will.”
At one firm, she was charged with
leading a service delivery organization
of 1200 people. After it was running
efficiently, she was asked to take over the
firm’s healthcare vertical, and then its
legal vertical.
“I loved the challenges I faced in
these roles and worked with some amaz-
ing people along the way.” says Joanna.

Staying true to her values
Joanna was raised in a small town in Joanna recalls, “I asked him, ‘if you
Eastern Washington State where her gradu- never knew me and received my resume, Unfortunately the dynamics within the
ating class was made up of just 50 students. would you have considered me for this firm changed and Joanna found herself
As a young girl, her summers were spent role?’” being asked to do things that went against
driving a wheat truck and raising farm ani- His answer was a resounding ‘no,’ her core values.
mals. After graduating high school, Joanna based on the fact that she did not have a “After I left that company, I knew
ventured to Boston where she held several college degree. I wanted to find an organization that
positions at various companies. From her Joanna vowed not to let her edu- reflects my own personal core values and
initial role as a temp, she soon landed a full- cation stand in the way of her future. beliefs; an organization that operates with
time job at a firm called Iron Mountain. “That single conversation made me say to the utmost integrity,” she recalls.
“I landed my role after completing a myself, ‘well, that’s never going to happen This led her to Burwood Group.
two-week assignment as a temp. Within to me again.’” “Burwood has been the best com-
seven years I was leading a $100 million Joanna immediately enrolled, and in pany I have ever worked for,” she says.
healthcare division.” says Joanna. the course of three years she obtained her “It has a unique culture that is extremely

40