Sandra Shuda is a native San Diegan who currently serves as Vice President of People Services and Culture at Watkins Wellness and will be celebrating her retirement in February 2021. She has been a great asset to the Workforce Development Board and we are thankful for her service!
Sandra spent several years in the finance/banking industry where she held positions as a compensation manager, sales and management trainer and a computer-based training analyst. She joined the Watkins family in 1992 as the human resources manager. She was promoted a few years later to director and became vice president of human resources in 1999.
Currently, as the vice president of the people strategy and services group, she oversees everything from recruitment and employee training to benefit administration, compensation and payroll and employee safety and wellness. One of her team’s main objectives is to create programs that make a difference in the lives of their employees and those they support. Here she tells us a little bit about her.
If you had $1M to donate to a workforce development program, what would you want done with it?
I’ve been in agreement with how the Workforce Partnership has spent all its monies thus far. If I could suggest one area that seems to still need help, it’s allocating funds to help and serve the homeless. Solutions for Change is a great example of a company who has ended homelessness for so many with its 1,000 day university model. Partnering with someone like Solutions would be a place where $1M would most definitely help.
What do you like best about being on the Workforce Development Board?
I love participating in a cause that makes a difference in people’s lives. It’s been a passion of mine since I was a young child. When I was 16, one of my first jobs was as a child social worker. I helped children cope with parents who were drug addicts and I knew then that my passion was helping others.
What do you enjoy doing when you’re not working?
I love being with my family and friends. Although since March it’s been limited, it’s what brings me the most joy. My grandchildren spend a lot of time with us so that has been the shining light through this pandemic. As a family we love to fish in the Sierras and go on beach vacations, even though we live 5 miles from Carlsbad beach.