ALUMNI AWARD WINNE R
A Teacher in the
Tech World
Sandi Piatz, ’06, Harold Schafer Alumni Leadership Award winner, leads her team with empathy and passion in an unexpected career.
W
hen Sandi Piatz graduated with a degree in education, she figured she would become a teacher. But there were no teaching jobs available in Gackle, ND, where she grew up and lived with her husband, Perry, after graduating from college, so she got a job at the bank she had been working at while going to college. When her husband got a job in Kindred, ND, just outside of Fargo, Piatz thought it was her chance to get into teaching. When a colleague at the bank heard that she was moving, she reconnected Piatz with a mutual friend working at a start-up tech company in Fargo, who asked Piatz to interview with them. “I explained to them that I wanted to get into teaching, but they convinced me to check them out. They offered me a great opportunity, and that's how I started working in the tech world,” Piatz said. She led the customer satisfaction department and later transitioned to managing the company’s strategic partnerships.
In 2002, Piatz joined Microsoft to manage their independent software vendors and later served as global program manager in services. “While I was at Microsoft, I realized they were hiring a lot of really smart, brilliant people with amazing degrees, but I just had my undergraduate degree. That was when I decided I should continue my education. I looked at my different options and chose the University of Mary,” Piatz said. “I loved the Christian values of the University of Mary, and they offered a master's of business night program in Fargo, which was a great fit for me. I was working full-time, traveling with Microsoft, and we had two young kids.” A few years later, Piatz left Microsoft to find a position that required less travel. In 2007, she joined Eide Bailly, LLP, a top 25 national CPA and consulting firm, where she served in various leadership roles, eventually achieving partner. She returned to Microsoft in 2016, where she now serves as site leader for the Microsoft campus in Fargo and senior director for community program management. Although it was not the career she expected when she graduated with a degree in education, Piatz says she loves what she does. “There are two things that I absolutely love about my job. One is the people that I get to work with every day, both across Microsoft and in the community,” she said. “The second thing is the constant challenge of learning something new all of the time. Our world and the tech industry are changing so fast; there's always a new challenge and something new to figure out.”
One program that Piatz is particularly proud of is the Professionals of Color Networking Group within the Chamber of Commerce in Fargo. Microsoft has a Blacks at Microsoft employee resource group which was just getting up and running in Fargo when she returned to Microsoft. “The employees told me they have great programming and support on campus, but they don't see that type of support out in the community,” she said. She worked with them on a proposal for the Professionals of Color Networking Group, which they have since launched. Piatz’s advice to leaders is to be a good listener. “I always think of Sister Thomas, who was a great listener. You need to ask good questions and get to the core of the challenge and don't shy away from it. There will always be a challenge, and it would be easier to walk away, but great leaders lean in and work with others to find the best solution.”
“
Great leaders lean into the challenge and work with others to figure out the best solution. Outside of work, Piatz enjoys spending time with family, especially her husband of 25 years and two children, Alexis and Peyton. She also enjoys reading and staying active with golf, running, hiking, and CrossFit. She’s run two full marathons and 14 half marathons. She loves incorporating her passions into her work and using her education degree to teach Sunday school at her parish. Piatz says she still might be a teacher someday. “I always tell my husband I might do it yet. There's a lot of life left.” umary.edu 15
