Originally, Sheena M. Haberstroh intended to pursue a career in medicine. However, she had to work her way through higher education. While working with Citigroup, she fell in love with business, which altered her career trajectory. As an MIS specialist, Ms. Haberstroh has gained valuable expertise in project management, business monitoring and scheduling by preparing documentation, analyzing practices and providing strategy for the department to ensure they pass audits, validating cost codes for employees and preparing a variety of presentations for others at the bank.
Backed by nearly two decades of considerable expertise, Ms. Haberstroh currently excels as a senior associate of data engineering with Fannie Mae. Since 2010, she has designed and managed SharePoint sites, page layouts and workable lists for daily use within the teams that she manages. Likewise, she has maintained and assisted in the development of databases for reporting automation, and collaborated with several technical teams for production support. She believes she has a natural knack for problem solving, as she often stumbles upon errors in the database and corrects it with ease – something she is particularly proud of. In her exemplary work with Fannie Mae, Ms. Haberstroh has been honored with the We Can Be Counted on Award, as well as a Diversity in Inclusion Award. Likewise, she has been the recipient of two Quality Excellence Awards, as well as a Community Award from Citigroup.
An expert in her field, Ms. Haberstroh earned a Bachelor of Arts in business, education and speech pathology from the University of North Texas in 2005. She is a believer of continuous education, and took courses and training where time permitted. Devoted to her community, through Citigroup, she contributes for those in need through Hearts and Hammers, which assists local, low income homeowners in preserving the exterior of their homes, and the March of Dimes. A member of the organization Women in Business, Ms. Haberstroh also maintains affiliation with the Women in Technology (WIT) employee resource group within Fannie Mae for the last three years, through which she attends WIT conferences and has brought it back to the company by writing a blog, as well being a participant in a panel discussion. She has also volunteered with various other nonprofits through Fannie Mae, including the North Texas Food Bank, Hope Supply Co. and Grace Bridge.
Ms. Haberstroh attributes her success to having a great eye for detail and noticing where there are gaps or needs for improvement. She also notes her continued drive and motivation to the passing of her husband Robert in March 2020 after a 13-year fight with cancer (first being diagnosed in 2007), and having to raise their three young children – Jacob Matthew, Jackson Reece and Julianna Marie. Having a slim chance of survival, as it was a massive brain tumor, she knew she would have to be able to take care of their family. He was her strongest supporter and believed in her. As she navigates through life while raising her children without her husband, Ms. Haberstroh continuously ensures that they are happy, healthy and promises to keep them at the forefront of all of her decisions. She has a great deal of support around her, but she is highly driven and constantly inspired by Robert. She learned work life balance when he was first diagnosed, and her family and children always came first. By day, she worked full-time and at home, she was a mother, a caregiver to her husband, and a researcher of new treatments that were available or that they could try.
Most recently, Ms. Haberstroh has assisted with Adopt-a-Block through the Lakes Church in Sachse, Texas, in which she is a member. She caters to administrative work for the food pantry, meal delivery during COVID-19 and registration. Additionally, while her husband was in rehab last year after breaking his femur, he and Ms. Haberstroh organized a donation for the elderly for her husband’s 40th birthday in February 2020, consisting of items the residents needed to be able to buy in their bingo store; they truly found their passion for the elderly during this time. Her hardest project recently was to figure out a way give him the funeral service he deserved during COVID-19, opting for a livestream service to share their story with 1,200 views.
In the coming years, Ms. Haberstroh intends to continue advancing in the industry and obtain a role in the technology space. Ultimately, she aims to switch toward individually geared positions so that she can help people directly. For those looking to pursue a similar career path as Ms. Haberstroh’s, she advises individuals to keep moving forward no matter the setbacks, remain willing to participate in training opportunities and being open to exploring routes of receiving information, whether it is through studying or taking a course on a subject. Additionally, she believes knowing your audience is key to a successful profession and networking is crucial to developing longstanding relationships with potential clientele. Her favorite quote is, “The past is history, the future is a mystery and the present is a gift.”
