Melissa Hortman, Account Technology Strategist for Research at Microsoft, fulfills her role as a Higher Education Leader for Research and Education Transformation at the company, aiming to facilitate the transformation of higher education for present and future students. Her objective revolves around fostering faculty innovation and student resiliency to enhance the agility and strength of higher education institutions amidst disruptions, both presently and in the future. In the current era, disruptions have become increasingly prevalent in higher education, surpassing previous levels. Melissa collaborates with colleagues in academia to address these immediate challenges and anticipate forthcoming requirements.
On a daily basis, Melissa endeavors to dedicate time to one of three activities: acquiring new knowledge for personal growth, acknowledging and commending others, or engaging in quality interactions with colleagues that extend beyond work-related matters. The exceptional aspect of working at Microsoft lies in the ability to integrate these pursuits into her daily routine. Striving to be an outstanding contributor in her professional domain, Melissa’s incorporation of these activities enriches her daily life and establishes a strong connection to the broader organizational culture.
Below are highlights of the interview conducted between World’s Leaders and Melissa Hortman:
Describe who you are as a person, inside and outside of the workplace.
When I think about how I want to be remembered, whether at work or outside of work, I want to leave a legacy of positive impact wherever I go. When I was younger, my definition of success looked very different to what it does now. I was striving for the role, the salary, the education degree. What I found was that it isn’t about the titles or the accolades, it is about the positive impact you have on others. You can leave this type of legacy in any role, with any salary, and not limited to your education degree. While those things can help your influence, it shouldn’t stop you from leaving your legacy.
Describe your background and what did you do before you started/joined the company?
Prior to joining Microsoft in January of 2022, I enjoyed a long career in higher education. I had the privilege of working for some of the most amazing colleges and universities in the United States, from community colleges to academic medical centers. My professional journey went across various student success roles as well as teaching various populations in different domains. Throughout this time, I learned a lot of the stresses and strains that higher education was grappling with across academic affairs to information technology. I led pursuits of innovative technologies, taught in an emerging research field, and supported the change management of multiple transitions. I had unique opportunities to understand how to innovatively solve challenges and create plans for a sustainable and resilient environment for the future of that institution. As anyone who works in higher education, you wear multiple “hats” and get a lot of experience in areas that you never thought you might touch in a traditional role.
This journey has afforded me so many opportunities to learn and that is why I joined Microsoft, so I could scale these learnings to support higher education colleges and universities across the United States. I am a partner in pursuits of innovation ultimately to positively impact the next generation of students. While I work in corporate now, I feel like I never left higher education because I am so entrenched in individual colleges and university’s success now more than ever.
What has made you successful? What do you value?
Since a young age, I have had a very strong work ethic instilled in me from my parents. When I was in high school, I ran a lawn mowing and landscaping business and absolutely loved growing my business while providing a great experience for my customers. It was always my goal to go above and beyond to give my customers more than they asked for and never asked for a penny more from them. I have taken this work ethic into every role in my professional journey and infused it into the smallest or largest responsibilities. A strong work ethic was what pushed me through my doctoral dissertation, what got me across the finish line in multiple marathons, what drove my career in higher education to being on tenure track, and what led me to a role with a global technology leader.
I believe in setting ambitious goals and pushing myself to achieve them, and I also encourage those in my circle to strive for excellence and unleash their full potential. By fostering a culture of growth and support for those around me, I aim to create an environment where everyone feels empowered to exceed their own expectations. While I focus on personal growth and success, I firmly believe that true fulfillment comes from lifting others up alongside me. As I achieve my goals, I am committed to sharing my knowledge, offering mentorship, and providing opportunities for those around me to thrive. I see their success as a reflection of our collective strength and am dedicated to fostering a community of support and collaboration where everyone has the chance to flourish.
What is the significance of innovative ideas in the company?
Microsoft has a supportive culture of bringing innovative ideas to life by encourage failing fast or programmatically scaling success. This culture is engrained from leadership down, and everyone who works for Microsoft really lives out this culture. Managers encourage their teams to innovate, peers support other peers in innovative ideas. It is a very inviting culture to bring forward innovative ideas and space to work on innovative work. This keeps the company agile, and our approach always changes to meet the needs of our customers. It is such an exciting environment to work in when innovative ideas are constantly developed and deployed by anyone and everyone within the company.
What advice would you give someone going into a leadership position for the first time?
Being a leader is a privilege earned and needs to be considered every day in your work. You are only a leader because of the people whom you lead – always remember that. The impact you have on their lives as a leader and the responsibility you bear in that position should never be taken lightly. Treat your role with respect, inspire and empower your team, and lead with integrity. When I was a leader of my first team, it was important to me to remove blockers and empower them to do their best work. Sometimes that meant taking on the not-so-fun parts of the jobs so that they could flourish every day. I knew that my team was the biggest asset that I had in my role, so I made sure they felt that importance from me.
Every leader is different and should be. Bring your authentic self to the role and your team will value your genuineness. Plus, who you are is a major factor on why you became a leader so don’t lose that when you are in this new leadership position. I saw leaders during my professional journey who lost their authentic self, forgetting and changing their core values and characteristics once in the leadership role. For me, always going back to my core values and characteristics was a good reminder of who I am and why I wanted to be a leader.
