Over the past 44 years, few industries have changed more than retail. Since the Leavey School of Business’ Retail Management Institute (RMI) at Santa Clara University was founded in 1980, a bricks-and-mortar scene has expanded to include ecommerce in all its forms.

At a glance, Jennifer Maguire’s career bio shares a lot in common with her fellow successful Leavey School of Business graduates. She has proven her value and worked her way up through an org chart over the course of three-plus decades, going from overseeing budget planning to overseeing an entire operation in a chief executive role.

As the United States grapples with the ongoing economic aftershocks of the COVID-19 pandemic and faces new threats to its access to critical raw materials and defense supply chains, there is much to be learned from history.