By Briana Waris

We are honored to announce that Hughes Marino’s COO and Owner Shay Hughes was recently named a Women of Influence by L.A. Biz! Shay made the list along with 26 other inspirational women who have made a significant impact across Southern California. We are humbled to have Shay recognized among so many accomplished women. Each of the honorees were asked a series of questions ranging from their careers, to their mentors, to tips they’ve learned along the way that might help others.

Read Shay’s profile below:

Name: Shay Hughes

Company: Hughes Marino

Title: COO and Owner

Born in: San Diego, CA

Education: Pepperdine University (B.A.)

In my job I’m responsible for: All aspects of the company, including long-term strategic planning, operations, marketing, company culture, and delivering the best possible outcome for our clients.

The most challenging part of my job is: Prioritizing what takes precedence, because everything is interdependent and all of it is so incredibly important to taking great care of our team and clients.

I know I’ve done my job well when: Our team is happy!

2017 will be a good year if: We continue to put our teammate’s happiness and success first. You can get everything you want in life if you help enough other people get what they want.

A tip I’ve learned that’s helped me with networking: Be interesting by being interested in others.

The best advice I’ve received for career development is: 1) If you exceed your team’s expectations, they will exceed your client’s expectations. 2) Company culture is key to unlocking potential. 3) Success is not an entitlement. We have to earn it every day.

Knowing what I know now, the advice I’d give myself 10 years ago is that: Being a great person committed to always doing the right thing and a core set of values will serve you far greater than any amount of work experience or training.

Do I serve as a mentor for someone? I do, to the amazing women we’ve brought on to our team at Hughes Marino. When I started, we had two women and now our team consists of more than 50 percent women.

Do I have a mentor? My husband Jason Hughes is an incredible mentor. He especially provides me clarity, conviction and strength, in addition to being an incredible resource for truly everything else one could need. He provides our company with vision and belief that we can achieve more than imaginable, and leads with a conviction to our core values.

If I could change jobs with anyone for a day, it would be with: Sheryl Sandberg. I’d love to see how she balances an incredibly diverse and demanding leadership role, while having time for her family, health, and happiness. I’m sure there are many lessons I can learn from her!

Groups I regularly support: We support over 100 charities that our team is involved with in our local communities, in addition to the many non-profit organizations that we are honored to call our clients.

Favorite vacation spot: Traveling anywhere in the world with our family is my favorite thing to do, regardless of where we are!

Hashtags for my life: #familyiseverything #bestteamever #grateful

Something about me that would surprise my fellow Women of Influence honorees: I used to be on the local Malibu news when I was a student at Pepperdine University!

We want to extend a warm congratulations to Shay, who couldn’t be more deserving of this award. She has made it her personal mission to ensure that every team member at Hughes Marino feels empowered, trusted and fulfilled in each of their roles, and is truly a mentor and inspiration to her team on a daily basis. Her mark on the culture at Hughes Marino is like no other, and for that we are extremely grateful!

Click here to view all of the inspirational women that made the L.A. Biz list.