Tracy White, VP of Marketing at Bankrate.com, Smith Alumna, and Ohio Native  

Tracy White, a VP of Marketing at Bankrate.com, is an alumna of Smith College, a women-only institution ranked in 2015 by U.S. News and World Report as being in the top 20 of all liberal arts colleges in the nation. White, while originally from Ohio, acknowledges her college’s influence by borrowing the vernacular of its New England setting, saying that she feels a need to “to help the next generation of ‘wicked smart’ women.” Such a straightforward yet gently witty comment seems right coming from a person who describes herself as “I’m just myself; no pretense or BS.”

While she may be unassuming in her persona, she works every day at the high-powered Bankrate, which was acquired in 2009 by Apex Partners at a value of $571 million, and in 2011 raised $300 million in its initial IPO. White’s marketing duties for this behemoth company include creating sales materials, interaction with vendors, and, of course lots of budgeting.  She also previously worked for almost ten years at American Express Publishing, which was acquired by Time Inc. in 2013.

She gets through her swamped work days with the help of green juice or smoothies, and much-needed relaxation on the weekends “sitting on my deck with a glass of wine and listening to my son laugh.”  She also notes that she has built a successful career by “being nice” and that she feels a debt to the “feminists and strong moms who came before me.”  Read more below about her great, pithy job-hunting tip, and her interesting slant on interview questions.

Can you tell the readers a little bit about yourself? 
I’m an Ohio girl who moved to the big city. I manage to build a successful life and career in marketing, media, and advertising by being nice.

What does a day in your shoes typically look like? 
Every day starts with family breakfast and a long commute (i.e. time to read the trades, news, and emails). In the office, it varies between writing sales materials, talking to vendors, budgeting, brainstorming, planning events, and managing my team. No matter what it is it seems to involve a whole lot of meetings.

What are the first 3 things you do when you wake up in the morning and the last 3 things you do before you go to bed? 
Brush my teeth, hug my son, and make a cup of tea. Then reverse the order at night.

What is your breakfast of choice?
Green juice or a smoothie. I swear WHEN I can stay on the juice my skin glows. I don’t do it nearly enough.

What keeps you energized and motivated at work? 
Right now is such an exciting time in marketing. Consumers are changing by the minute, and ad tech is at lightening speed. I get a charge being part of that action to figure out what’s next.

What is your favorite part about your job?
Finding new ways to be creative.

What and who inspires your work? 
The kick-arse feminists, career women, and strong moms who came before me and paved the way.

How does your culture/background influence your work? 
So many Smith women past, present, and future do ah-mazing things. Being a Smithie inspires me to push my limits and to help the next generation of wicked smart women.

What was your very first job? 
A waitress at a steakhouse — everyone should have to work food service and/or retail!

Favorite job you’ve ever had? 
I was at Amex Publishing for almost ten years. I loved my bosses, my teams, my colleagues and my job. It was never a boring day and we did interesting, fun, and challenging work.

How many times have you changed your career direction? 
Surprisingly little. I figured out early I’m good a helping to sell stuff. The “stuff” has mostly been media, but the core competency will always be the same.

What has been your biggest obstacle in your career and how did you overcome it? 
Getting laid off the day before my 30th birthday was pretty miserable. I got through it by creating what I now consider a full-proof plan for job hunting: the 5, 3, 1 rule: 5 emails a day, 3 phone calls a week, and 1 in-person meeting a week. It worked for me in five weeks during a recession.

Three questions you like to ask during an interview to know if the candidate (or job) is the right fit? 
What do you do for fun? What was your biggest challenge in life and how did you overcome it? I need to make sure the person is an interesting, curious person outside work and how they deal with adversity. You learn a lot about a person with those simple questions.

What are the most important qualities of a good leader? 
Honesty, sincerity, and fairness.

What advantages do you see as a woman in the workplace? 
Women inherently are more empathetic, which allows us to see multiple viewpoints and get consensus easier.

What advice would you give women starting their career? 
Talk to anyone and everyone you can about how they got where they are and what they would do differently. Be relentlessly curious.

What book would you recommend for women just starting their career? 
Nice Girls Don’t Get the Corner Office: Unconscious Mistakes Women Make that Sabotage their Careers, by Lois Frankel.

What is your favorite leisure activity after a stressful work week? 
Sitting on my deck with a glass of wine and listening to my son laugh.