Document View

Copyright American City Business Journals Oct 27, 2000

It's not uncommon for people to draw distinctions between their working lives and their personal lives. For Rea Waldon, vice president for small-business development at Downtown Cincinnati Inc., serving as a mentor unifies the professional and the personal.

"Rea is such an all-around person," said Kathy Schwab, a DCI colleague. "She's a consummate professional and has the ability to establish a friendship with everyone she meets. She's good at thinking out of the boy, too."

Perhaps that's one result of Waldon's upbringing in a difficult section of St. Louis. "I grew up in an environment where opportunities weren't always available," she said. "There weren't always people around to help you move forward."

That early environment inculcated in Waldon a desire to share. And that simple virtue forms the basis of her effectiveness as a teacher, adviser and confidante to area businesswomen. The desire to share is so fundamental in Waldon that she resists being called a mentor.

"I don't know about putting a label on something that should be happening anyway. I should be open, anyway, to helping someone who's open to taking advice or knowledge," she said.

A graduate of the University of Virginia Graduate School of Retail Bank Management Waldon is currently pursuing a public policy doctorate through The Union Institute, from which she obtained a bachelor's degree in accounting in 1988. just as she does with personal experience and professional expertise, Waldon puts a premium on sharing the fruits of her education.

"If Rea doesn't have the information, shell go out of her way to get it - and follow up," Schwab said of Waldon's emphasis on knowledge.

Along with her degrees, Waldon has accrued a rich work history. Starting in the health care industry, with time spent at AT&T, her early background includes stints as a finance coordinator, office manager, bookkeeper and records clerk.

After serving as a business development officer for the Cincinnati Minority Business Center, Waldon entered the banking industry as a senior credit analyst at the Huntington Bank. Subsequent positions at Fifth Third (commercial banking officer/business development) and Bank One (relationship manager/assistant vice president) led to her current vice presidency at DCI.

Such a full resume enables Waldon to speak insightfully on finance, entrepreneurship, smalbusiness issues, issues involving minority and women professionals - just about anything.

Regina Livers, head of Regina livers Consulting, is a beneficiary of Waldon's eclectic experiences. "Not only is Rea trustworthy, she's skilled at responding to different situations. She can handle tough and difficult situations very well, too," livers said.

Livers credits Waldon for helping her get her consulting business up and running. "Rea is a financial wizard. She's very observant very analytical. She's very skilled at being neutral, taking a step back and then laying out options," she said.

Livers has found that Waldon's ability to knit the personal with the professional in her approach to mentoring can produce out-of-the-box benefits. "I'm a workaholic. But Rea has helped me become more introspective, to achieve more balance in my life."

While altruism underpins her contributions, and while she's capable of considerable sensitivity, Waldon is not saccharine about mentoring.

In fact, she thinks established professionals have a duty to foster growth in those new to business environments. "If we're not willing to set the stage for the future, I think we kind of condemn that future," she said.

But representatives of that future who are not ready to act on the advice or insights they receive won't get much of Waldon's time. Though open to sharing, few things may frustrate Waldon as much as the person mired in denial, the one who keeps com ing back, perhaps hoping for some magic words.

"The responsibility a small-business owner takes on is different than you find in a corporate setting. The relationships are closer. And the families of a small-business owner's employees really depend on the decisions the owner makes," Waldon said.

The reward comes when Waldon learns a once-struggling business to which she contributed has become strong, or when someone who sought her input finds the courage to make an entrepreneurial move.

"One woman I worked with wasn't successful in her first attempts at getting started. But she continued on her path. It was rewarding to see her make the permanent transition from one place to a better place," Waldon said. It's probably been eight or nine years, but she still calls for advice. That feels good, when they still come back and ask questions."

Rea Waldon

Age: 44

Residence: Bond Hill

Personal: Married to Ronald; one son, Roderic

Education: Bachelor's degree in accounting, Union Institute; master's degree, retail bank management, University of Virginia; pursuing doctorate in public policy at the Union Institute.

Background: Worked as a finance coordinator, office manager, bookkeeper and records clerk before joining the Cincinnati Minority Business Center as business development officer. Held management-level positions at the Huntington Bank, Bank One and Fifth Third Bank.