Bianca McCann, MHRIR 05, has an amazing and unique story. She faced many hardships early in life yet was determined to not let these define her. Her mother immigrated into the country through Ellis Island and moved to a town outside of Detroit, where Bianca was born. After the passing of her parents, struggling with a learning disability, and working long hours since the age of 12, Bianca became the first person in her family to attend college.
When asked what kept her motivated through her journey, she credits her uncle for his unwavering emotional support. He inspired her to attend Ithaca College where she graduated Magna Cum Laude with a Bachelor of Arts in Sociology, and a focus on criminal justice and family relationships. After a chance encounter with professors from Cornell, she investigated a human resources career, that would allow her to use her strong interpersonal skills to influence business at all levels. This was intriguing because she knew she enjoyed interacting with and influencing people from all backgrounds.
“All my life it felt like I didn’t have a chance, and then suddenly somehow I did. It felt overwhelmingly validating to achieve something that I thought was impossible, after being told I wouldn’t ever achieve anything for so long.”
Bianca McCann, MHRIR 05, Global Vice President of Customer Enrichment, SAP SuccessFactors
This led Bianca to the School, where she was awarded the R. Wayne Anderson Fellowship, a prestigious full-tuition fellowship awarded to students who worked to put themselves through their undergraduate education. She still remembers the moment she got the call informing her of her award from Becky Barker, the Assistant Dean for Student Services. Bianca credits Becky and her steadfast support for changing her life and motivating her to give back to others in any way possible. During her time at LER, Bianca remained very involved, serving as the President of Social Affairs for the Labor and Industrial Relations Association and as a Certified Managerial Development Facilitator.
Bianca has had a successful HR career, beginning her career at Shell Oil Company and Chevron. She has since worked in high profile roles at various Top Fortune 50 organizations like Charles Schwab and SAP. Additionally, she has served as Chief Human Resources Officer at BetterWorks and Chief People Officer at Trifacta, before returning to her current Global Vice President role at SAP SuccessFactors. Bianca is an official member and contributor to Forbes Human Resource Council, former Board Member of Silicon Valley HR Network, and co-founder and co-host of ‘This HR Life’ podcast. She resides in Oakland, California and loves to spend her free time running, volunteering at local dog rescues, and indulging in the Bay area food and wine scene.
Reflecting on her fond memories of LER, Bianca was determined to support students the way the School had supported her. As a result, she was able to utilize LER’s donor-friendly process to set up a $25,000 endowed scholarship and has agreed to make pledge payments to fulfill the balance. Once the balance is fulfilled, she will continue to grow the endowment level with annual gifts to increase the amount awarded. Her scholarship will be earmarked for a student recipient who is in need of financial aid. Her wish is to allow students to “focus on just being a student and enjoying your short time at LER before it’s gone. Practice listening, absorbing different perspectives, and getting to know your peers.”
Throughout her career she has received many well-deserved accolades. These include: 2018 HR Executive of the Year Stevie Award, RecruitingDaily’s 300+ Women in HR Technology Worth Watching, Brandon Hall’s Best Unique or Innovative Leadership Program, and Leadership 500 Excellence Awards. Additionally, she has used her knowledge to mentor and develop other female leaders through the LEAP program, an award-winning female leadership development program which has graduated thousands of women around the world.
The School is proud of Bianca and her accomplishments, and we thank her for her generosity to our current and former students.
To learn more about supporting student scholarship opportunities, please contact Cory Hatfield at coryhat@illinois.edu or 217-300-2056.