Sheryl Sandberg
Sheryl Sandberg, born in 1969 in Washington, D.C., attended Harvard as an undergraduate and business school before beginning her career at the World Bank and the U.S. Department of the Treasury. Sandberg has worked as Facebook’s COO since 2008, after a successful tenure as vice president of online sales and operations at Google. The best-selling book Lean In: Women, Work, and the Will to Lead was released by her in 2013.
Education and Early Years
Sheryl Sandberg was born on August 28, 1969, in Washington, D.C., and relocated to North Miami Beach, Florida, with her family when she was two years old. She was a member of the National Honor Society at North Miami Beach Senior High School and finished ninth in her class with a 4.60 grade point average in 1987.
Lawrence Summers served as Sandberg’s thesis advisor at Harvard, where she majored in economics. Her economics research was frequently viewed via a feminist lens, since she focused on the relationship between economic injustice and domestic violence. She also formed the group Women in Economics and Government, which she claims was intended “to encourage more women to major in economics and government.”
After graduating with highest honors in 1991, Sandberg began working as a research assistant for Summers, who is now the World Bank’s chief economist. She worked for Summers for two years before enrolling at Harvard Business School and earning her MBA with honors in 1995.
Summers invited Sandberg to become his chief of staff when he was appointed undersecretary of the Treasury in the Bill Clinton administration. In 1999, when Summers became secretary of the Treasury, she accepted the appointment and remained in the capacity. She worked alongside Summers until 2001, when the Republican George W. Bush stepped into the White House and political appointments from the opposing party took charge.
Google VP
Sandberg traveled to Silicon Valley after leaving her government position, hoping to participate in the emerging tech boom. Google showed early interest in her talents, and she found Google’s objective, which she characterized as “making the world’s knowledge freely available,” appealing enough to join the business in November 2001.
As Google’s vice president of worldwide online sales and operations, Sandberg oversaw online sales of advertising and publishing products, Google Book Search, and consumer goods. Sandberg worked at Google until 2008, a period that was distinguished by astounding professional achievement and an ever-growing reputation as one of the country’s most prominent leaders.
COO of Facebook
Sandberg joined Facebook as its chief operational officer in March 2008. Sandberg supervises Facebook’s business operations from her position as chief operating officer, notably assisting the company in scaling its operations and expanding its worldwide reach. In addition, she is responsible for sales management, business development, human resources, marketing, public policy, privacy, and communications.