Page 41 - Digital Version For Web SDW Bridal 2015 (2)

NAWBO Welcomes its New President:

Mindy Bortness

by Judith A. Habert
I had the pleasure of spending some time with the newly elected president of
the National Association of Women Business Owners, better known to most of When you look at the statistics for members of NAWBO, the numbers are
us as NAWBO. For those not familiar with NAWBO it an organization of which impressive with 33.33% having salaries up to 100k, 25% with salaries between
all women entrepreneurs should be aware. NAWBO represents the interests of $101-$250k and 41.67% with salaries over 501k.
more than 10.4 million women-owned firms in the United States, accounting for
28.2% of all business in the United States.
The NAWBO Association propels women entrepreneurs locally, regionally and
nationally into economic, social and political spheres of power worldwide by:
• Strengthening the wealth creating capacity of their members and promoting
economic development within the entrepreneurial community
• Creating innovative and effective change in the business culture
• Building strategic alliances, coalitions and affiliations
• Transforming public policy and influencing opinion makers
So as you can imagine, being at the forefront of an organization such as this in
San Diego is a position that holds with it much responsibility. During the first
few moments of speaking to Mindy, it is quite obvious that she is definitely up to
the challenge.
Mindy is the owner of Communication Works, Inc. I asked her a little about
her company and what it is that she does. “I save companies a lot of money by
meaningfully lowering employee turnover and increasing engagement, culture, and
leadership. If you are having issues with employee engagement, turnover or a
less-than-ideal culture, I can help!”
Owning a business is tough, but as any business owner can tell you, the true key
to a successful business is having a great staff behind you. So Mindy helps to
guarantee this for her clients.
“Most know the pain of a poor hire. The tangible and intangible costs are tre-
mendous — as much as 3 x salary or higher! Clients call me “eHarmony for Jobs”
in that I profile the job, then match the right candidates to the job!”
Some examples that Mindy provided proved just how valuable having the right
employee can be to the ultimate success or failure of your business. She shared,
“In one national retailer we lowered store manager turnover from 65% to 25%
within a year. In a large law firm, our business development program helped San Diego
them exceed their new client acquisition goals. In a manufacturing company, we Woman
are coaching all the managers who report directly to the CEO to increase their
leadership skills.”
When I asked Mindy what it was that drew her to this type of business she
shared the fact that she could never understand people who were miserable in 41
their jobs. “Life is too short to not play to your natural talents. When we are in
alignment with our jobs, we feel great about the work we do, we feel good as we
put our head on the pillow at night. With this thinking, I have always loved help-
ing people find their right roles. And I do so using pragmatic, proven and powerful
assessments. My motto is “assess, don’t guess” because the data gets right to
the point!
Mindy and husband Brian, who is also self-employed and the owner of San Diego
Appraisal Works for the past 11 years, just celebrated their 14th anniversary.
From the look in her eyes when she talks about him you can tell it is a true ‘Hap-
pily every after story’. “He is the love of my life, and when he married me he
lovingly and happily became the step-dad to three terrific kids, and two dogs!
We still have our three kids of course…and now…three dogs!” Their three grown
Children Bryce, Hayley, and Mattie, are all living out of state, but their house is
still bustling with their three dogs, Jeff (10-year-old Chocolate Labrador), Curtis
(7-year-old Wire-haired Pointing Griffon) and David (1-year-old newly adopted
Pyrenean Shepard Mix).
Born in Chicago, and a graduate of the University of Illinois with a BS in Com-
munication, Mindy started her career in corporate America. “I started working
for ad agencies in Chicago and San Diego, then I went on to run the marketing
and research department of The San Diego Union-Tribune, I then became VP of
Marketing for Hang Ten and a bunch of old school surf brands, I had a stint as
VP of Merchandising for an Internet start-up and in 2002 when I took the leap
and started my own business, I’m grateful for the freedom and challenge of run-
ning my own business.”
In 2010 Mindy joined NAWBO and didn’t waste any time jumping onto the board, - With husband, Brian Bortness, San Diego Appraisal Works
where she held a few different positions, and has now risen to the top spot of
president and corporate liaison.
With close to 100 different women’s groups in San Diego I asked Mindy what it
was that attracted her to NAWBO? “I experienced a number of different pro-
fessional women’s groups in San Diego and NAWBO was my right fit for a number
of reasons: Having been in corporate America, I respected the caliber of woman
attracted to NAWBO”