Karen Mangia, senior manager at Partner Experience, is no stranger to the power of networking. In fact, it’s how she got started in the technology field.
Originally a business student, Mangia shifted the focus of her studies, based on the recommendation of a friend and mentor who thought she’d be up to the challenge.
At the time, Mangia says she was “full of energy and enthusiasm, but I had no direction.” And a career in information technology (IT) seemed like a long-shot, “because I didn’t know anyone in IT, and we tend to make choices in our lives based on what we know and what we’ve been exposed to.”
On her friend’s recommendation, Mangia applied for and won a full scholarship to Ball State University’s Center for Information and Communication Sciences, where she earned her master’s degree—and fell in love with the field.
“I loved the challenge, the thought processes, and the people involved in high tech,” she explains. “I ended up doing something I really love because someone reached out to me and believed it was possible.”
The experience also inspired her to help others—a responsibility Mangia takes very seriously. In 2007, she founded INPursuit, a mentoring program that connects high school girls with mentors in the high tech industry in the hopes of encouraging them to pursue their educations, and eventually, a career in technology.
Through the program, Mangia has pulled together a pool of some 275 women, both inside and outside Cisco, who have volunteered to engage in an e-relationship with girls at two high schools in and around Indianapolis, Indiana, Mangia’s home state.
Many of the mentors are executives at Cisco Partner companies, she explains, which is both beneficial to the program and to the relationship between Cisco and the partner company.
“It lends a richness to our relationship, I believe, and takes it to the next level,” she says. “Together, we’re doing something meaningful beyond the typical business activities of making a profit.”
Volunteering is something that comes as naturally to Mangia as networking. She began as a high school student, when a friend’s mother encouraged her to get involved in the Junior Mental Health Association. “She really modeled the impact you can have on someone’s life simply by giving some of your time. When you go into a place like a child abuse center, just to play with the kids who are there and distract them a little from the seriousness of some of the events they’re facing, and you see that impact, you just can’t stop.”
Recently, Mangia also helped to create the “Hats Off to You” initiative, a partnership with the Indiana chapter of the Y-Me National Breast Cancer organization that collects and distributes hats to women undergoing treatment for breast cancer.
Helping to ensure that the people around her have access to what they need is a critical component of her professional life as well. In her role as senior manager at Partner Experience, one of Mangia’s responsibilities is to ensure that partner companies’ online interactions with Cisco meet both the partner’s needs and expectations. And with as much as 80 percent of Cisco revenue being generated by partner companies, making each interaction count is critical to the company’s success.
Says her boss, Vice President Patty Hatter: “Karen brings a great combination of both a partner and field perspective to this initiative as well as a broad understanding of how we can better leverage the various organizations that are engaged with our partners to ensure that we are moving this initiative in a direction that is most impactful for our partners.”
“If we’re communicating with a partner in China, for example, we want to make sure that the online interface is offered in Mandarin,” she says. “We also want to make sure that we’re really serving as a role model to our partners, by using the collaborative tools at our disposal to improve our communications with them, which ultimately improves our relationships.”
Karen Mangia Awarded “Mentor of the Year” at Network of Women in Business Annual Gala 2009
Karen Mangia Recognized as Mentor of the Year at Defining Moments Event held at the Omni Severin Hotel in Indianapolis
Indianapolis, IN – Network of Women in Business Annual Gala (09/17/09) — Cisco Systems Inc. announced today that its Senior Manager of Partner Experience has received the award for Mentor of the Year at the Network of Women in Business’ Annual Gala, Defining Moments in Indianapolis.
In her role as Senior Manager of Partner Experience, Mangia leads strategy, planning and portfolio management for a team targeted at streamlining the process between Cisco and dealers. One of her responsibilities is to ensure that partner companies’ online interactions with Cisco meet both the partner’s needs and expectations.
Mangia is also involved extensively in both networking and volunteering. In 2007, she founded INPursuit, a mentoring program that connects high school girls with mentors in the high tech industry in the hopes of encouraging them to pursue their educations, and eventually, a career in technology. Through the program, Mangia has pulled together a pool of some 275 women, both inside and outside Cisco, who have volunteered to engage in an e-relationship with girls at two high schools in and around Indianapolis. More recently, she also helped to create the “Hats Off to You” initiative, a partnership with the Indiana chapter of the Y-Me National Breast Cancer organization that collects and distributes hats to women undergoing treatment for breast cancer.
“Our judging panel felt as though this year’s field was the deepest we’ve ever seen for the Businesswoman of the Year, Mentor of the Year and Woman to Watch Awards, and we congratulate the winners for standing out in their respective categories,” said Jill Wesley, President of Network of Women in Business. “Defining Moments was well attended with representation from women business leaders from throughout Indiana, who joined us in celebration of our 30th Year, and had the opportunity to meet and be inspired by these women, such as Karen Mangia.”
The Annual Network Awards recognize exceptional women who have achieved prominence in the business community, are dedicated to business growth, have served as an advocate for women in business, and have served as a guiding light for other professionals. They are viewed as visionaries who chart new territory and have positively influenced and inspired other businesswomen, while demonstrating the ability to continue to do so into the future. A full list of the winners is posted on The Network of Women in Business’ web site at www.nowib.com.
About Cisco: At Cisco, customers come first and an integral part of our DNA is creating long-lasting customer partnerships and working with them to identify their needs and provide solutions that support their success. The concept of solutions being driven to address specific customer challenges has been with Cisco since its inception. Since then Cisco has shaped the future of the Internet by creating unprecedented value and opportunity for our customers, employees, investors and ecosystem partners and has become the worldwide leader in networking--transforming how people connect, communicate and collaborate.
About NOWIB: The Network of Women in Business is an organization of diverse, dynamic individuals dedicated to the development and advancement of women as leaders and valued resources in the business community. Since 1979, The Network of Women in Business, a 501 (c) 6 non-profit organization, has increased the visibility, influence, community involvement and interaction of professional women in central Indiana.