Sheryl Sandberg
Date of Birth: August 28, 1969
Location of Birth: Washington, D.C., U.S.
Alma mater: Harvard College, Harvard Business School
Occupation: COO of Facebook
Sheryl Sandberg (b. Sheryl Kara Sandberg August 28, 1969) is an American business leader. Sheryl Sandberg has been Facebook’s chief operating officer since 2008. She was also installed on the board of directors in June 2012, making her the first female to serve in this role.
Sandberg was born in Washington, D.C., the oldest of three children to Joel and Adele Sandberg. Sandberg’s father was an ophthalmologist while her mother served as a teacher. Her family relocated to Miami Beach in 1971. Sheryl attended public school throughout her childhood and worked as an aerobics instructor in her teens.
In 1987, Sheryl Sandberg entered Harvard College where she would graduate summa cum laude with a degree in Economics. As the top graduating student in her discipline, she was honored with the John H. Williams Prize for academic achievement. In 1993, Sandberg enrolled in Harvard Business School. She earned her MBA two years later.
In 2011, Sandberg ranked fifth on “the world’s 100 most powerful women” list produced by Forbes. In 2012, Time Magazine named her to the Time 100, an annual list of the 100 most influential people.
Career
While studying at Harvard, Sheryl Sandberg met professor and project manager, Larry Summers. Summers became her thesis adviser and mentor. After Sandberg graduated, Summers asked her to work as his assistant at World Bank. In her one-year term with World Bank, Sandberg focused on projects related to health in India, including blindness, AIDS and leprosy.
In her role as chief of staff for the United States Secretary of the Treasury, Sheryl Sandberg helped lead their efforts on forgiving debt during the financial crisis in Asia. From 2001 to 2008, Sandberg joined Google as the Vice President of Global Online Sales & Operations. She was tasked with monitoring online sales for the corporation’s publishing and advertising products. She was particularly involved in launching the organization’s philanthropic arm, Google.org.
Sheryl Sandberg was named as a board member of The Walt Disney Company in 2009. Sandberg also plays an active role on the boards of the Center for Global Development, Women for Women International and V-Day. She had previously served on the boards of Ad Council and Brookings Institution.
Sandberg presented the Commencement Address in the May 2011 graduation ceremonies held at Barnard College. She also served as the keynote speaker during a special ceremony hosted by Harvard Business School in May 2012. Sandberg was also the keynote speaker during the second annual Entrepreneur Weekend at Colgate University in April 2013.
In 2011, Sheryl Sandberg was included on the Business Week feature of the “25 Most Influential People on the Web.”
In 2013, Sheryl Sandberg issued her first book, titled Lean In: Women, Work, and the Will to Lead. Sandberg’s co-writer was television writer and journalist, Nell Scovell. The book is about development and leadership in business, problems related to the lack of women in business and government leadership positions, and modern-day feminism.
Sandberg’s aim is to help professional women achieve all of their workplace goals while encouraging men to support a more equitable society. In the book, Sandberg examines the barriers that prevent women from stepping into leadership roles, including sexual harassment, subtle and blatant sexism and discrimination.