Mejia's Motto
Mejia’s motto is simple: work hard and always put your best foot forward.
Hard work, integrity and grit are some of the many values that define Latino Leader and Entrepreneur Juan Mejia. His persistence in “el mundo de la vida” propelled him to have much success in life. Mejia’s mission was sim- ple: work hard and always push yourself to want more.
“I wanted to grow up being just like my father and my mother from a professional perspective,” Foot Locker HR Representative, Mejia said. Juan’s childhood and rhetoric from his parents allowed him to see the better fight in life.
“As a result of their perseverance, they really still instilled very good work ethic, obviously having a mindset where we're constantly learning.”
As a result of his exposure to hard work, Juan was able to find his calling in life and use his assertive mindset to land a corporate position with Foot Locker. “I worked in several different HR roles following my graduation, from recruitments to HR generalist, but back in 2006 that’s when I was extremely fortunate to land an HR analyst position with Foot Locker,” Mejia said.
“One of the reasons I say that I was fortunate was because the core value of the company really matched the core values I grew up in: Teamwork, integrity, those things really resonated with me and I’ve been very fortunate to progress through different roles and increase responsibility.”
After landing an HR position, Juan’s drive did not stop there as he was focused on using his work ethic and skills to best promote a safe environment for the company. The advice his parents gave him as a child resounded in his head, as he continued to use that tight-knit family bond from his childhood and center it around the growth of the company.
“I think one of the reasons that brought my success is how I don’t look to accomplish things by myself,” Mejia expresses. “I look to accomplish things as a team and really surround myself with a diverse group of team members that have unique qualities that can help us create and innovate solutions within the organization”
One of the top initiatives Meija centers his time on, is the well-being of others. The care-free attitude presented further demonstrates the mission Juan instills in Foot Locker and the motto of the community’s best interest.
Putting others first is what best allows any company to move forward and Juan is fully committed to that mantra. “Within Footlocker Inc. and really within myself, one of the things I really pride myself on is really having a strong leadership presence, so what that means really is that I’m committed to helping team members navigate uncertain situations with empathy,” Mejia said.
“I think first and fore most we need to recognize that every single one of our team members are in a different place in their career journey and their experience, so it’s important that we create an environment where people can have point of view.”
Before the COVID pandemic, Mejia led Foot Locker with the mindset of inclusion and diversity. Having people from all different types of backgrounds and hearing what they have to say really allows any company to flourish as one, at least that’s the perspective Mejia sticks by.
Even with a Pandemic in place, Juan’s attitudes of hard work and inclusion never changed.
“To executives and leaderships positions like myself, I would say that we also have an accountability and responsibility to invest in our community, not only in creating a diverse workspace in hiring Latinos and creating a diverse representation at all levels.”
“You always want to make sure that you challenge yourself and that you bring peers and a diverse workforce to make the right decisions,” he expresses.