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Hitachi Data Systems

How to EnterCompany: Hitachi Data Systems, Santa Clara, CA
Company Description: Hitachi Data Systems is a data storage company located in Santa Clara, CA. The company was founded in 1988, and currently employs close to 4,000 employees.
Nomination Category: Individual Categories
Nomination Sub Category: Mentor of the Year

Nomination Title: Nancy Long, Chief HR Officer and SVP Human Resources

Describe for the judges the nominated individual's activities and accomplishments that supported women in business during the eligibility period (up to 500 words):

It has always been important for Nancy to help other women develop and grow
their careers. She currently mentors women at all levels of Hitachi Data Systems
(HDS) and was a founding member of the company’s Women’s Leadership
Network, in which she actively participates. She has been a panelist speaker for a
number of events, including FountainBlue’s When She Speaks, Leading with
Power, Influence and Integrity event in April 2009 and What’s Right for You in July
2009. Nancy was a Professional Business Women of California (PBWC) panelist
on the topic of Leading a Personal Reinvention in Complex Times in  May 2009.
Nancy inspires others by sharing her knowledge and past experiences to express
that women can be highly innovative and successful leaders.

Nancy is an active mentor for many young women. Three young women in
particular, all from outside HDS and all of whom are minorities, sought Nancy to
be their mentor this year. One was a young attorney, struggling to decide whether
to change industries and how to balance the competing demands of her work and
personal life. Nancy regularly spoke with her and invited her to spend time with
her at HDS, to shadow her day and introduced her to several key executives within
Legal and HR departments for practice and informational interviews. Nancy’s active
mentoring resulted in the young attorney’s decision to make a key change in her
work/life. They remain in touch and the young woman credits Nancy with
expanding her career network and developing her skills.  Another young woman
who met Nancy at a conference asked Nancy to coach her on her work
environment. And the third, a former student, asked Nancy to be her mentor for
career decisions, a mentoring experience that resulted in several interview
introductions and consideration for roles with increased responsibility. These
three mentor relationships are typical of Nancy’s desire to help young women forge a
path into industries and roles that have been traditionally held by men.

Nancy is a strong supporter of the intern program at HDS and helps sustain the
paid internship program for women and other minorities. More than being a Senior
Vice president, Nancy is seen as an approachable role model. She takes the time
to talk personally to the interns because she cares about their development,
inviting them to one-on-one meetings to discuss their experiences, and offering
advice to each.

 In addition to playing an active role with the intern program at HDS, Nancy
realizes the talent and potential college students have, and has participated in
many San Jose State University events. She was a speaker at the SJSU Society
for Human Resource Management, Preparing for a career in HR event in November
2008. Nancy is also a faculty member of the San Jose State University College of
Business. Because of her passion for developing others, Nancy is a great
motivator and has had a deep and lasting influence on many college students,
many of whom she mentors.

In a fast-paced business environment where it’s very tempting to focus only on the
immediate business objectives, Nancy’s commitment to building future leaders
isn’t empty talk: Nancy commits many hours to building future leaders through
sharing her experiences and through one-on-one mentoring. For this reason,
Nancy is an excellent candidate for the Stevie Best Mentor Award.

List the URLs (web addresses) of any online news stories, press releases, or other documents that you would like the judges to see that support your entry. IMPORTANT: List each URL on a separate line, begin each URL with http://, and enclose each URL in square brackets. For example, [http://www.yourcompany.com/pressrelease.html]:

http://www.hds.com/corporate/about-hds/executive-team/nancy-long.html

http://www.bpmllp.com/bptw

http://www.hrsymposium.com/awards_pastwinners.php

Provide a brief biography of the nominated individual (up to 100 words):

Nancy Long has global responsibility for Hitachi Data Systems Human Resources
functions and programs, including benefits and compensation, leadership
development and organization effectiveness, staffing and human resources
processes and information management. Prior to joining Hitachi Data Systems in
2006, Long was senior vice president at O'Connor Hospital in San Jose, California,
where she led the Human Resources function. Long previously spent 24 years at
Hewlett Packard. Her most recent role there was vice president of Human
Resources for Global Marketing. She held numerous executive level roles at HP,
with responsibilities at a global level, overseeing multiple functions and large
teams dispersed across multiple countries. Long also worked for seven years with
United Airlines as a Systems Analyst. Her unique background brings a business
acumen that is unusual among Human Resources professionals. Nancy Long
holds a Master's degree in Human Resources and Organization Development from
the University of San Francisco. She is also on the faculty of San Jose State
University, teaching in the Organization and Management department in the
College of Business.