When you learn that someone has studied martial arts one often wonders
what would happen if you jumped that person from behind with a few friends.
Could you subdue them? Would you end up in a pile of twisted limbs wondering
what happened? Now consider that people leading complex projects get jumped
everyday by factors seeking to derail the process. Shannon Hetrick studied Gōjū-ryū – an
ancient Okinawan form of karate. Translated literally, Gōjū-ryū means "hard-soft
style" – and this perfectly describes her approach to leadership.
Shannon instinctually knows when to push, when to accelerate but also when
to bend, when to give – all to achieve a positive result.
Shannon has studied other things as well. – like business at UC San
Diego, and later an MBA at USC's Marshall School. She then took her
outward calm, inner focus and intensity into the business world with five
years of projects in the financial services sector working on numerous CRM
related projects in the US, UK and Canada. After finishing her MBA,Shannon
worked in the retail sector for 2 years. She helpied integrate the
Canadian and US labor management forces, creating a centralized service
unit. She also helped create, test and launch a new labor and service
model which ultimately was launched to over 1,000 stores.
Shannon went to Japan during her Gōjū-ryū studies -- she's also
traveled throughout Asia, Europe, and Central America. She's a foodie that
experiments in her own kitchen, has a list of restaurant recommendations
in the Bay Area as long as your arm, and volunteers for CUESA (Center
for Urban Education about Sustainable Agriculture) that helps educate people
about buying food from the local Farmer's Market.
Shannon has never laid anyone out in a meeting – but if you work with
her know that the look of concentration on her face is the intellectual
version of a Gōjū-ryū fighting stance.
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