Wanda Jeffress, Class of 2008
Vice President
S.L. Jeffress Company, Inc.
South Boston
What is new and exciting with you now or since your LEAD VIRGINIA class year?
Among the many exciting occurrences in my life since becoming a Class of 2008 LEAD VIRGINIA graduate, the most rewarding experience is that of obtaining licensure as a Virginia real estate agent. My LEAD VIRGINIA experience introduced me to exceptional leaders from the corporate arena, however, I was equally influenced by classmates, alumni, and presenters who are entrepreneurs and small business owners. In addition to sharing responsibilities of operating a family-owned funeral home, I truly enjoy the responsibilities associated with being self-employed as a Virginia realtor. Home ownership in the southern region of Virginia has been my concern for many years, and now providing solutions to that problem is my passion. When I obtained my license in May 2011, it was during a period when both the housing market and the overall economy, were within what was defined as recession. Against many odds and amongst many questions of why I would even consider entering the real estate market at its lowest point, not only have I been successful in serving the sale and purchase needs of clients at all homeownership levels, but I absolutely enjoy what I do. My efforts have been successful. In 2012 I was involved in $1.9 million in sales, and thus far for 2013, I have surpassed the $2 million mark. I have been told that I have encouraged and inspired others within my community to persevere, and to recognize how important it is to re-create ourselves and enhance our marketability without regard to age, race, or gender, and especially locality, even when times are tough. My desire in life is that neither I, nor others in southern Virginia become a statistic. Hopefully, others within my region will share my belief that continuing education in any stage in life is the key to economic stability.
How did your LEAD VIRGINIA experience help to shape you as a leader?
Identifying willing and capable leaders within a small community is both an art and a science. There is the art of negotiating wherein those leaders who are already over loaded with responsibilities are cajoled into taking on yet another volunteer assignment. Generally speaking, the same individuals are frequently called upon to serve because they are well known and have contributed to successful outcomes in the past. Then there is the scientific and more preferred method of filling leadership positions, which entails recruiting and grooming “new talent” who will be prepared to lead the region into the future. Prior to my LEAD VIRGINIA experience, I accepted too many requests to serve because I thought, “someone has to do it”. With that mindset, I found myself engaged in leadership positions which “new” leaders could easily manage. To answer the question of how my LEAD VIRGINIA experience helped to shape me as a leader, my response is that I recognized how crucial it is that I and others engage in leadership succession planning. Each citizen has a role to play in helping our communities and regions tell the story and shape our educational, economic, and social future. I am required to promote diversity, empower others, and simultaneously help create regional and statewide leadership. Now, my acceptance of leadership responsibilities is based upon my belief that I can truly contribute and make a difference to a board or a cause, rather than simply fill a position.
Since LEAD VIRGINIA, how have you put social capital to work?
Leadership engagement in social capital promotes an approach that the collective efforts of a few can help many. As with both rural and urban localities throughout the United States and abroad, the economic downturn has placed a number Virginians into situations where they are unemployed, underemployed, uninsured, homeless, and even hungry. However, a unique characteristic of the people in southern Virginia is a required resiliency that was created years before the rest of the country felt the economic sting. I, along with other regional leaders, observe daily what was once a thriving textile and agricultural region, now struggling to provide a decent quality of life for its families and citizens. Regional success, like personal success is defined through the willingness and the ability of those of us in leadership, to share values and resources so that others might experience what we enjoy.
On a professional note, I have put social capital to work via volunteering and serving on boards which promote educational, economic, and physical growth. I recognize that the best way to promote my region is through collaboration of resources which stimulate education and thereby prepare our workforce for an economy fueled by advanced manufacturing and technology. I know that my participation in an elementary school career fair is just as important as contributing to higher education. Currently, I serve as a member of the board of directors for the Halifax County Industrial Development Authority, the Mid-Atlantic Broadband Communities Corporation, the Halifax Educational Foundation, as Averett University (’81, ’92) board of trustees Academic Affairs Committee chairperson, and the American National Bank advisory board for Virginia.
On a personal note, I know that I would not be where I am today, nor would I have been given past and current opportunities if others before me had not invested social capital. In an effort to give back, I put social capital to work by enhancing my skills and reinventing myself so that I can reciprocate similar values and resources to my extended family and community. My success is defined through my ability to offer assistance in the form of social capital to others. Sharing these gifts is done, not so that I can be successful, but because I am a concerned leader. I know that personal sacrifices are requirements of leadership.
What is something that LEAD VIRGINIA inspired you to do that you were not doing before your class year?
Our visits to other regions inspired me to take a greater notice of processes. In particular, my LEAD VIRGINIA experience sharpened my interest in the flow of goods and services, which fuels every aspect of our daily lives. On more than one occasion, I had been asked to be a part of the Industrial Development Authority for Halifax County and prior to LEAD VIRGINIA, I refused. The exposure to the champions and challenges within each region caused me to observe in more detail, how and why we are all parts of the whole. Despite the physical distance between rural unpaved roads and the traffic jams of Interstate 95 and beyond, as leaders we adjust and adapt to ensure that the quality of life is preserved in some ways and enhanced in others. The goods and services that are transported from the coal mines of southwest Virginia, and the products that are securely shipped to the Shenandoah Valley from the Port of Virginia, all have something in common. They all depend on people at all employment levels to keep the processes flowing. Whether processes are associated with products or services, quality leadership is required to keep everything flowing. I am inspired to ensure that our workforce is educated, compensated, and rewarded to attract employers. It is my responsibility as a leader to continuously improve recruitment efforts of moving Virginia to the forefront and showcasing it as the place to do business. In the final analysis, all roads lead to the success of our communities, our regions, our Virginia.