Celina Shands

Celina Shands is the CEO of Full Capacity Marketing, a 21-year-old strategic marketing and communications firm that focuses on workforce development, education, nonprofits, and entrepreneurship.

Celina, your passion for workforce development and education is evident from your clients, your team, and your 75 global awards not to mention being recognized with a 2021 Stevie® Business Award for Communications Campaign of the Year, as an American Marketing Association Marketer of the Year, and as a two-time Women Who Mean Business finalist.

How did you become known as the go-to expert in this industry?

I was born and raised in North Carolina and like so many of the millions in this country had a tumultuous childhood where alcohol played a negative role in our family dynamics. Fortunately for me, my sister was the constant in my life. She raised me and consistently told me that I could do anything and be anything if I dreamed it. Even though I doubted myself, she didn’t, and more importantly led by example starting her own company. To this day, I have her listed in my contacts as Shero Sister.

Through her guidance, I was able to go to a small private school and play sports so that I could channel that negativity into something positive. I played every sport the school offered so I could be somewhere other than home

- basketball, softball, volleyball, track and field. It was there that I met my best friend and her family who took me under their wings. I spent summers with them cropping tobacco and afternoons playing sports.

I was able to get a scholarship to play basketball in college and continued to follow my educational path studying business and marketing, all the while meeting mentors along the way who helped me (teachers, coaches, teammates). I call them my pivotal peoplethose that made a huge impact through their mentorship.

When I graduated, I took a break for three years to figure out what I wanted to do. I did odd jobs and waitressed and played at the beach. Hurricanes are a common occurrence in my hometown, and in 1984 when Hurricane Diana hit, I decided I had enough with continuously packing up my things and moving off the beach to safety. So, I stayed packed, bought a new car and decided to drive to California to try something new. I had a whopping $50 in cash and a credit card when I left to see what life could offer in California.

The transition from a small town where I knew everyone to the giant city of San Francisco was a trip! From trying to figure out how to get on BART, to making eye contact and saying good morning to everyone (because I’m Southern polite), I soon realized that I was “no longer in Kansas” anymore. It took me about three years to learn the new culture and find my way to the next step in the journey.

I followed my passion for being an athlete and ended up getting a master’s degree in sports medicine. For many years, I had a company that helped doctors integrate sports rehabilitation as part of their practice. But when insurance laws changed, the model became outdated, so like any entrepreneur I had to reinvent myself.

I decided to utilize my business and marketing background and took a job in the public sector as the marketing director for the San Diego Health & Human Services Agency. I happened to write a business plan for a foster youth facility as part of my work there and someone on their board approached me about working with his organization which focused on workforce development.

I had no clue what workforce development was all about but once I understood that it was an industry helping youth and job seekers find their career path through education and training, I was hooked! After all, that was something that I had done my whole life through the help of my mentors - - finding the right path and next steps. After four years with the workforce organization, I began to realize that I could use my talents to help similar organizations how to build an effective brand within their respective communities. That’s how my company was born 21 years ago. What an incredible journey!

What prompted you to name it Full Capacity Marketing?

The company was named Full Capacity Marketing because we want our customers to be at full capacity long after our contract concludes and understand how to keep building a strong sustainable and relevant brand.

The whole concept of education and the workforce is beyond a passion for me, knowing that it can replace poverty and despair with a true sense of self. To date, we’ve helped more than 500 workforce and education organizations keep their missions alive and well. One of the clients we’ve represented since 2017 is the Coalition on Adult Basic Education, an organization to advance national and international adult education and literacy opportunities for all persons, especially undereducated and/or disadvantaged adults. During a time of sweeping funding cuts, we mobilized COABE’s 79K members through a storytelling campaign called Educate & Elevate designed to demonstrate the value of adult education. The campaign has produced $5M in additional funding for this system.

Where do you see the company going now?

In 2023, I’m taking Full Capacity Marketing in a broader direction so that we can expand our services to entrepreneurs and small businesses across all industries. As a workforce and education thought leader, I’ve known that entrepreneurship has always been identified as a workforce development strategy, even though it’s a path less often taken. It makes sense that through our collective expertise as entrepreneurs, we also build the capacity for those seeking to take this path. I feel like a little kid again expanding the company at my age!

What is your definition of success?

I think success is such an inner journey and such a personal choice for each person.

The definition has certainly changed for me over the years. Early on, it was all about survival and money. But now I think it’s finding work and a mission that really drives you and inspires you to get out of bed every day and try your best to make positive change. The financial rewards are a byproduct of that passion, so if I can feel inspired every day about what I do, then I know I have success.

In general, I think it’s all about facing your fears, being willing to know that while you may have had bad circum- stances in your life – they do not define you. They can shape you if you have trust and faith in yourself and surround yourself with excellent mentors that you trust. And part of that is letting go of people in your life that doubt you and/or your abilities. You can choose to be around people who believe in you and release others with love and kindness.

Thank you for sharing your inspirational journey to entrepreneurship. With everything you’ve built up over your career, how do you find time to unwind?

As much as anyone, I understand the need to fill my own cup and do so regularly. I have rediscovered my love of horseback riding and have a fulfilling relationship with an amazing man. I created FCM as a virtual company from the get-go, so we split time between my home near San Diego, and his home in Las Vegas. We love live music, good food, and game nights to name a few ways I unwind!