Alumni Spotlight

PATH OF A WARRIOR Alumni Spotlight

FULL THROTTLE

BY DEANA CROUSSORE

How does a girl from a small town with little hope of going to college land a gig with Audi? The same way she tackles everything. Veronica Papach makes her own path—with her foot on the throttle.

Veronica admits she wasn’t a great student. Still, she made up for it by being doggedly determined and highly involved—traits that cling to her like road dust. In high school, she was a three-sport athlete and vice president of her class. But, as one of six children, the idea of going to college wasn’t on her radar until her high school basketball coach sent a highlight video to Indiana Tech, resulting in a scholarship.

Once at Tech, she enjoyed a close-knit community of student-athletes who became lifelong friends and benefited from professors and coaches who invested in her success.

“I don’t think I would have thrived in a larger school where you’re just a number,” said Veronica. “Coaches advocated for me in ways that I would never have advocated for myself at that age.”

Veronica took advantage of every available opportunity— holding nothing back. During her senior year at Tech, she juggled 18 credit hours, worked early mornings at Spiece Fitness, interned with the local arena football team, participated in the work-study program and played basketball. Looking back, she admits she’s unsure how she did it all.

“When there isn’t another option, you can absolutely do incredible things,” said Veronica. “You push yourself. You keep working. You work through it no matter what.”

That mantra has persisted through her burgeoning career.

In 2005, Veronica went home to Hammond, Indiana, and began the circuitous route to her current home in Virginia by way of Chicago, Philadelphia and Washington D.C.

For nine years, she worked her way up in the fast-paced, 24/7 operation of Caesars Entertainment, learning everything she could about loyalty marketing and how to create a better experience for customers. In 2010, Veronica realized she needed one class to complete her degree. So, while working full-time for Caesars, she took an online course through Indiana Tech, earning her B.S. in Business Administration. Four years later, she was ready for a change and moved to Philadelphia where she successfully applied her knowledge to make a significant impact at a smaller casino. From there, she made the leap to the automotive industry with Pep Boys, where she helped redesign their customer experience and learned about audience segmentation and data integration. Then, in March of 2019, just a year before the world shut down because of the COVID-19 pandemic, Veronica’s trademark dogged determination led to her current position at Audi of America. As CRM (Customer Relationship Management) Strategy and Execution Lead, Veronica designs marketing strategy and communication on a national level using data-fueled

intelligence to put the customer at the center of everything they do. She also works closely with Audi of Germany. “I work for an amazing company that has been supportive in every way,” said Veronica. “I love what I do right now. We have an amazing team.” “Everything can Last November, Veronica was exactly where she be an opportunity. wanted to be professionally and was focused on her health, even completing her first half marathon. It’s all about your Then in January, at age 38, came the detour she perspective. If you’re never expected—thyroid cancer. Her response? The same as always—throttle through it. grateful, it really “Nothing is slowing me down in any way. This is changes everything. just what I need to do right now,” she said. There’s so much Veronica is looking forward to putting cancer in growth to be had.” her rearview mirror, taking more of the road trips that she loves, running her next half marathon and possibly traveling to Germany with Audi. “Everything can be an opportunity,” said Veronica. “It’s all about your perspective. If you’re grateful, it really changes everything. There’s so much growth to be had.”

Keep us connected!

Your stories are what make Indiana Tech proud, and we want to hear from you! Share your successes, update your information, learn about the Alumni Association and find ways to connect with your peers, friends and faculty members on our website at Alumni.IndianaTech.edu. You can also email your updates to Alumni@IndianaTech.edu.