Anita Sands: Leaving The C-Suite & Remastering My Life For Marriage. Motherhood & The Boardroom

Anita Sands traces her journey from a small town on the east coast of Ireland all the way to Silicon Valley where she is a highly-respected global technology and business leader and advocate for the advancement of women. When it comes to career, Anita is a master of the pivot. She has gone from physics into public policy, from academia into financial services, and then from technology to the corporate boardroom. Today Anita serves on 3 public boards and she is a director on 2 private boards. In this episode Anita shares how she radically changed her life and found her "life sweet spot" just before her 40th birthday, quitting her unsatisfying job in finance, moving to Silicon Valley and crafting a "portfolio career" in technology that would allow her to cultivate a fulfilling personal life. She ultimately married a widower with five children and had a "honeymoon" baby. When it comes to her board work, Anita does not refrain from talking about motherhood in front of other board members. In the interest of creating gender parity on corporate boards, she makes a point of talking about her kids. She wants all the men she works with to know that women can be mothers AND be effective board members. Anita also shares some insightful advice for professional women who are interested in being on a corporate board—essentially key networking steps for snagging a seat.