Sherri Nadeau has discovered she would much rather deal with people than numbers, even when it means traveling all over the globe.
Nadeau oversees Tech Data's employees worldwide, more than 8,000 people in 26 countries.
"I actually did start out in finance," Nadeau said. "I'm a CPA and accountant by training. After 10 years or so of doing that, I realized I was much happier dealing with people as opposed to spreadsheets."
Nadeau joined Tech Data in February as vice president in charge of human resources for the Americas. The promotion to senior vice president has meant ramping up her orientation with the company and its human resources needs.
"I'm getting no sleep and working a lot," Nadeau noted, in part because the company has "a couple of very big initiatives under way."
A native of Atlanta, Nadeau earned a bachelor's degree in accounting from Liberty University in Lynchburg, Va., in 1982, and a year later, a master's degree in accounting from the University of Virginia in Charlottesville.
The human resources roles at Tech Data have required Nadeau to do some traveling, as well, "getting to know people who are working for me," she said, including a recent trip to Barcelona, Spain.
But Nadeau is used to world travel. A lot of it.
She joined Holiday Inn Worldwide in Atlanta in 1990, focusing on tax and employee-benefit issues. For eight years, she often traveled to destinations around the world. At that time, there were Holiday Inns in 85 countries, Nadeau said.
"It was a great experience. I wouldn't trade it for the world," she said. "At times, that kind of travel can get kind of old."
From 1998 to 2001, Nadeau took a position with Universal Studios in Los Angeles as director of human resources. She was charged with helping to staff - and move - nearly 350 employees as a new Universal Studios theme park was being constructed in Osaka, Japan.
Simultaneously, she was responsible for human resources issues for Universal Studios theme park projects in locales from Orlando to Barcelona.
"It was quite an undertaking," she said. For 2½ years, Nadeau spent two weeks of each month in Osaka and two weeks in Los Angeles.
In 2001, Nadeau took a position with Equant (formerly Global One) in Reston, Va., as vice president, first in charge of compensation and benefits, then human resources. After what amounted to more than 10 years of nearly nonstop international travel, Nadeau said, she needed a break. She took off from May 2002 to October 2003.
After returning to work, still in human resources, she moved to St. Petersburg in 2005 to become senior vice president of human resources with Certegy
"I love the weather (in St. Petersburg), even in the summer," she said. "I'm just now getting all the final boxes unpacked (and) getting my dog settled."
Nadeau, 44, is single. She said she likes to do yoga as a way of destressing. "I try to take at least one weekend a month and do nothing."
2005-2006: Senior vice president, Certegy, St. Petersburg.
2001-2002: Equant, Reston, Va., as vice president of compensation and benefits, then vice president of human resources.
1998-2001: Universal Studios, Los Angeles, and Osaka, Japan, as director of human resources.
1990-1998: Holiday Inn Worldwide, Atlanta, in various positions.
1983-1989: KPMG Peat Marwick, Atlanta and Washington, D.C., in various positions.
PREVIOUS POSITION: Senior vice president, human resources, Certegy, St. Petersburg
