Beth Sprole (W'87)

What did you study at Penn?

I studied Marketing and Entrepreneurial Management and earned a Bachelor of Science in Economics from Wharton.

Outside of class, what were you involved in on campus?

I enjoyed giving campus tours and had an off-campus job that paid my rent. I was a Philadelphia union bartender which was quite an experience.  I'm fortunate that I was the first generation in my family to attend college. 

What was your favorite part of being an undergraduate at Penn?

I loved the Penn campus community. There is nothing like Locust Walk in the fall or spring, football games, and other PENN rites of passage. The campus has continued to expand its footprint and facilities in West Philly that add to the student and neighborhood experience. 

My favorite professor was Bernie Tenenbaum, who taught entrepreneurship. Bernie's class was electrifying and pragmatic, with guest speakers who shared their lessons of success and failure. 

What advice would you give to your younger self? 

Worry less about what's next and enjoy learning. A lot of my Junior and Senior years were spent thinking about what I would do over the summer and my future job. If you are doing your work and engaging, you will succeed!

I encourage actively seeking out mentors professionally and personally. This is something I should have taken advantage of and was a miss. 

Also, engage with your local PENN or Wharton alumnae club as soon as you graduate. I'm now involved with the WCNY and wish I had engaged sooner. 

What did you spend your summers doing while at Penn, and how did these experiences lead to a transition for you post-graduation?

I had an internship doing market research in Philadelphia. I am glad I did that and would encourage people to try different things because college is a great time to have different experiences. It is just as important to learn what you don't want to do as it is to find what you want to do. After this internship, I knew I wanted to do something other than market research. Instead, I did want to work in marketing. 

My first job after graduation was in sales for Procter and Gamble in Metro, New York. P&G was known as a training company and a top-rate brand organization. P&G delivered on its promise. I gained valuable experience and ultimately transitioned into Customer Marketing and traditional Brand Management for Guinness/Diageo. This led me to start my consulting business for Fortune 500 companies delivering product innovation, business strategy, and brand turnaround solutions for incremental growth. 

What do you do now? 

I started another consulting business, Brand Building Partners, where I help start-ups and other organizations identify and unlock incremental revenue opportunities. My work mainly surrounds product development and marketing strategy. I pivoted about ten years ago into healthcare and wellness. 

How did you get involved in healthcare?

Philips HealthTech was a client that convinced me to join the company and ultimately opened the door for another leadership role with CVS Health for a turnaround acquisition in healthcare.

Being curious and able to identify what problems you are trying to solve and for whom has been a superpower. Having analytical skills in finance or business analytics while adding a problem-solving component is critical regardless of industry or sector.

In terms of my personal experiences, my parents both had cancer. I experienced healthcare in a personal way while I was working on sleep health and products such as wearables for Philips. I realized there is a critical opportunity and need. To meaningfully improve the healthcare experience, the connection point of the clinicians, patient/family caregiver, and healthcare business must be motivated with a compelling value proposition for change.

What do you think has been your greatest accomplishment?

I'm most proud of my professional accomplishments while leading a team. At Philips, one of the product lines in my category portfolio was a niche light therapy business that we were able to transform into an entire sleep health category. That was a tremendous amount of satisfying work: 10 months of planning that I orchestrated, and my team delivered over a million dollars in sales in just one day on Amazon. We were the first business group in all of Phillips to do that. I am incredibly proud of the team, and we had a lot of fun doing it. 

Do you have any advice for Penn undergraduates?

A good post-graduation strategy is to seek out companies and roles where you can roll up your sleeves and learn fast, learn a lot, and accumulate great experiences. Find an organization with a recognizable brand name that trains, develops, and identifies high potentials. Go there. These experiences and the credibility can be the foundation for future executive leadership roles. Plan your next move if you aren't gaining experiences relatively early on. Stay curious and keep learning beyond your business specialty. 

Also, take advantage of the opportunity of mentors. That includes tapping into your local Wharton and Penn Alumni clubs. 

What hobbies do you have, and how do you balance your social and work life?

I've always loved working, and I'm blessed with other responsibilities. I don't believe one can "have it all," at least not at the same time. There are consequences to our choices and priorities. Only you can figure out what is best for you. There is no one way.  

I like to explore new areas or neighborhoods domestically and internationally. My husband wanted to see the Grand Canyon, which sparked our first of more cross-country family adventures. I have to admit, the idea of spending 19 days in a minivan with three kids sounded terrible! 

I was wrong. It turned out to be a cherished, memorable trip that motivated us to see more regions of the US and National Parks. We are heading to Glacier National Park next summer in Montana!