When Virginia Albanese graduated from Kent State University in 1985 with a degree in elementary education, she wasn’t sure she wanted to be a teacher.
During her summers in college, she had worked in the accounting and employee benefits departments at the Timken Co. in Canton. The business world had piqued her interest.
Still, she felt she should be a substitute teacher for one year, just to make sure education was not in her future. It wasn’t, so she started scouring newspapers for jobs. She applied for a part-time customer service job at Roberts Express, a Roadway Services company in Akron.
She got the position.
During her 23-year career, she has seen FedEx purchase Roberts Express and advanced to become CEO of FedEx Custom Critical, based in Green, Ohio.
It’s a position that has allowed Albanese to mentor others within the organization and to help develop leaders not only within her company but in the community as well.
“I’ve had a number of good mentors,” she says. “That is so important, to make sure you have other people you can sound off on.”
As a result, Albanese has fostered an open-door culture at FedEx Custom Critical. Any employee can go to any executive, including the CEO, and express thoughts on strategy or concerns or anything.
Lots of companies have those types of policies, says Ryan Henary, manager of marketing and communications. At FedEx, it actually happens. “People take advantage of that at all levels of the organization,” he says.
That includes regular “Visits with Virg,” which Henary says brings employees from all areas of the organization to an agendaless meeting with Albanese.
“You come in with what you want answered,” Henary says, “and anything that she is legally allowed to answer, she answers.”
Henary credits Albanese with his rise at FedEx Custom Critical. He graduated from Kent State and joined the company as a communications intern. He’s on his sixth title now in 11 years, including his most recent move to management.
“To be able to make that move at 31 was a big vote of confidence to me,” he says. “Virginia was instrumental in doing that.”
Albanese says she goes out of her way to help develop a diverse leadership group.
“We are all about diversity,” she says. “Men. Women. Color. Religion. I am working hard with our HR team so that, as we have openings, we are really planning on how to diversify our leadership.”
Of course, cultivating female leaders is important to Albanese, who is the first female chairperson of the Greater Akron Chamber’s board of directors in the organization’s more than 100-year history.
Albanese has managed to be CEO of a major company while having two children, 12 and 10, and a husband who received a heart transplant on his 45th birthday in January 2009.
“I do get out and talk to quite a few women’s groups,” she says. “I talk about my journey and things women need to look out for.”
One woman who credits Albanese with her own development is Ramona Hood, senior manager of FedEx Custom Critical’s Truckload Brokerage division. Hood has been with the company for 18 years and has at times reported directly to Albanese.
“One of the things that makes Virginia such a great leader is the fact that she not only takes on business responsibilities but also community responsibility,” Hood says. “She incorporates that into her vision of what a good leader is.”
As a result, just about everyone at FedEx is expected to volunteer in the community. And many days, managers at FedEx will send out employees to help organizations such as the Boys and Girls Club (where Albanese is a board member) or food pantries in need.
When Hood reported to Albanese, her group was required to do some form of volunteer work four times a year. One day they went to an assisted-living facility to call bingo and play cards.
“She sets a culture where there is a level of expectation to give more of yourself,” Hood says. “But anything she expects of you is something she does herself.”