C-Suite: Yvette Murphy-Erby

Fast fact: Murphy-Erby, a professor of social work, was promoted to her current role in 2019 and has worked in multiple leadership positions since she joined the UA faculty in 2004.

Which supporting skills do you think are most important when it comes to leadership? Recognizing, acknowledging and valuing the contributions of others to the organization’s success such that people feel not only that they belong but that they matter.

What is one thing you would change about your company if you could today? That we would be excelling in our quest for a more diverse, equitable and inclusive culture and climate where everyone was supported to not just make it but to thrive.

What’s the most recent book you read? “Misogynoir Transformed: Black Women’s Digital Resistance” by Dr. Moya Bailey.

What is the most used app on your phone? Outlook, the system used for my work email and calendar.

If you had $1 million to give, what would you support? The IDEALS Institute and the Division of DEI at the UA for their efforts toward a more diverse, equitable, and inclusive campus, Northwest Arkansas and state; and TheatreSquared in Fayetteville for making theater diverse, inclusive and accessible to all.

If you could change one thing about your leadership style, what would it be and why? I would be super organized.

What is the best business advice you have ever received or given? No matter what, give your best, do what is just and right, and be true to yourself.

What do you think is most important in creating a positive culture? Harnessing the power of collective impact and respecting the value of what each individual has to offer toward the shared goal.