Karen S. Carter
Dow
Midland, MI USA
"I just try to make the biggest difference possible with the time that I have on the planet."
Career Roadmap
Karen S.'s work combines: Business, Travel, and Working with Others
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Day In The Life
Skills &
Education
Advice for getting started
Build your own personal board of directors. A support network is so valuable and important for your success and happiness in your career and your life.
Here's the path I took:
High School
Bachelor's Degree
Marketing
Howard University
Graduate Degree
International Business
DePaul University
Life & Career Milestones
My path in life has been direct
1.
I grew up in Wichita, Kansas.
2.
I earned my bachelor’s degree in marketing from Howard University—it was important to me to attend an HBCU so that I could be around successful people who looked like me.
3.
After undergrad, I earned a master’s degree in international business from DePaul University.
4.
I built my career with The Dow Chemical Company and have been with the company for 28 years.
5.
Most of my experience with Dow has been on the business side, managing profit and loss.
6.
In 2017, our CEO asked me to become the company’s first chief inclusion officer to make sure we had a strategy focused on diversity, equity, and inclusion.
7.
I did that for about 18 months before expanding my responsibilities to chief human resources officer.
8.
I’ve been fortunate to travel around the world with Dow and am excited to ultimately return home to Wichita in the future.
Defining Moments
How I responded to discouragement
THE NOISE
Messages from Society in general:
Success looks one way.
How I responded:
While this isn't Noise I heard directly, there's a misconception that success looks a certain way. Success can only be defined by you and there are multiple paths to get there. Don't let someone else define that for you. College is one path but it's not the only. Two-year schools are one path but not the only. Trade schools are one path but not the only. Life is short. Find something that you love and be the best at it that you can be.
Experiences and challenges that shaped me
I moved to Shanghai, China, with Dow and was excited to do so. However, it did get overwhelming at times. It was a culture shock. When I felt too overwhelmed, I would just take some time to isolate in my flat and regroup before going back out there.