Corey Crapella grew up in Northeast Pennsylvania in the small town of Clarks Summit. He and his two sisters were raised with the ideals and values of a blue-collar environment where hard work and family are their greatest strengths. At the age of 13, he immersed himself doing manual labor work. When he came of age for college, he was able to pay for his studies with very little financial assistance from his family. It was a great accomplishment as he was the first in his family to be able to continue his education past high school.
Corey graduated from Kutztown University in 2007. He met his wife in college. She was in a sorority and was majoring in education. Corey was originally pursuing a career in education and teaching but he changed his focus and earned his degree in Business Administration and Management. While in college, he demonstrated leadership qualities by serving as President of his fraternity. He was recognized for his leadership, receiving awards from the University as well as the community.
After graduation, he landed a full-time job with Sherwin-Williams. He had been working part-time as an intern in his final semester of college and then entered their management training program. Upon completion, Corey and his wife moved to Philadelphia. He worked in Retail management and operations. Eventually, he was responsible for multi-site management for this market. His position required that he addressed areas of profit & loss, new business development, and everything that comes with productivity. Although he liked the business aspect of his job, he had to acknowledge that something was missing in his career.
His epiphany came when he realized that his strengths were in teaching and coaching. He had a rare opportunity to go into a role in human resources with Sherwin-Williams. He was promoted to a Training and Development role that covered the entire east coast and Canada. In this position, he was able to hone his presentation skills. He made presentations to large groups. He learned how to articulate clearly. He learned how to impart knowledge to others. He trained every level of staff members from interns to senior executives on multi-faceted aspects of the business.
When he became Human Resources Manager, his position covered New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut. His business partner was the Vice President at Sherwin-Williams. He had six districts to manage in every aspect of human resources. He was coaching advising, consulting and executing through others in the field. He’d sometimes have to put the “cape” on and rescue a situation depending on the level of seriousness.
Corey departed Sherwin-Williams after almost twelve years, in the fall of 2018. He became a human resources consultant taking assignments with multiple organizations ranging from healthcare to banking. While continuing to help and consult others, Corey will be embarking on an adventure with a new company this month.
Tell us something about yourself that people don’t know about you.
One obscure fact that most people don’t know about me is that when I first went to college, I was originally pursuing a career in education and teaching. I grew up with multiple cousins and of course my two younger sisters. I love kids and enjoy making them laugh and helping them figure things out. I enjoy watching the light bulb go on when they “get it”. I think I found a great balance in my career with my business acclimate, which I truly enjoy and my personal passion which is helping others by teaching and coaching.
What are your strengths?
A strength that my previous supervisors have eluded to would be my coachability. I take direction very well. I ask questions to clarify and follow up to ensure I am aligned with their expectations. Personally, I would say my drive is my biggest strength. I was the first in my family to attend college. I paid my way through school on my own. I held multiple jobs while taking on leadership roles in multiple on campus organizations. It is important to me to set a good example for my two sisters as well as my daughters.
What is your proudest achievement?
Something I am currently proud of is raising my two daughters with my amazing wife, to be great kids and hopefully well-rounded adults. They are growing and learning so much each day. Currently both are taking swimming lessons and recently conquered their fear of roller coasters! I am a very proud Dad!
When you first started out, was there ever a doubt that this career would work for you?
I think it is very natural to doubt yourself or the decisions you made, especially when you’re coming directly out of school. I think it is pretty normal to think that way. We as a society put a lot of pressure on ourselves to identify what our path will be in life at the age of 18. One thing I have learned is that life is not linear. You do not go in a straight line from point A to point B. There are ups and downs along the way and people change. But what helps me is at the end of the day, I have a strong core of family that surrounds me. I can go to any one of them to consult with or find some sort of direction or guidance. They always keep me grounded and give me a clear perspective. My family is always supportive in good times, and not so good times.
What is one marketing strategy other than referrals that you use to generate new business?
Being in human resources, I am not really at that end of needing to generate new business. My mantra is to build relationships. I don’t try to treat people as a business. My position is to build relationships and to help individuals. I find this to be a strong business tactic for me.
What is the toughest decision that you have had to make in the past few months?
I recently had an opportunity to take a safe route and have a secure and easy road for my family and me going forward. I also had the opportunity to follow my passion and perhaps have more pay-offs and more dividends down the road. It was a tough call to make because it is not just me anymore as a single male. I have two daughters and a wonderful wife that I have to consider when making decisions. My wife and I partnered together to make the big decision and as a result, we made the best decision as a team for our family.
What do you think makes you successful?
I believe the thing that makes me most successful is my resiliency. I get knocked down; I get right back up. I know it sounds very simple. In action, it is very hard to do. You are always going to have set-backs in life. There are always ups and downs, peaks and valleys, ebbs and flows. You have to be able to bounce back. You just have to realize that the lows won’t always be lows and the highs will come around again. So, appreciate the highs when they’re high because that will change again as well.
What does the future hold for your career in human resources? What are you most excited about?
My future in human resources is to continue helping people. There will be more coaching, more developing talent, and being a strategic partner out there in the business world. One of the things I truly believe is that people are an organizations number one asset. My job is to continue to drive that premise. There is not a business that moves forward without good people in it. I am excited about getting out and meeting new horizons and continuing to help people in my field.
What do you like to do for fun?
I have a seven and a four-year-old daughters, it is all about them! I am a family man. Very little is about me anymore. My fun is their fun. We go to superhero movies. Last week we took a little boat on the lake and went fishing, we like going to the beach. Whether swimming, being outside, water balloons, anything along those lines, I love hanging out with family and friends.
What books have inspired would you that you would recommend?
I am not an avid book reader. I digest information in short articles. I follow magazines online or specific publications. I also like listening to Ted Talks. For me, listening to platforms such as Ted Talks and other thought leaders is where I get my inspiration.
What is a recent purchase that you’ve made that has helped you with your career?
One thing my wife has instilled in me is to be a “life-long learner”. To believe that education should never end. As such, I earned my Certified Professional (CP) from Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM) a while ago and recently earned my Senior Certified Professional (SCP). I think it is very important to continue to learn, grow, and expand.