Renee Biggs on 10 Years of Growth

Renee Biggs is inspired by the female leadership at Red Cross, and she wants young girls to feel emboldened. “You see a little girl and say, ‘you’re so pretty.’ But it should really be, ‘you are so pretty and so smart.’ We should change that. Because there’s nothing that can stop women,” said Renee. She will be celebrating 10 years with us in April.

Renee began her healthcare career in nursing and wanted a change. She loved patient care but wanted a different approach. “I met Dorothy Armstrong, who still works here. She would tell me how much she loved her job at Red Cross and encouraged me to apply,” said Renee. She started out as a charge nurse within the collections department and was soon promoted to team supervisor.

The opportunities kept coming for Renee, as she transitioned into our donor recruitment department. She managed a territory of blood drives for 2 years. While researching ways to grow in recruitment, she saw the opening for the collections manager. She went for it- and has been our region collections manager for over 5 years.

“I wanted a leadership role. I love people,” said Renee. “I have a good mentor in Chris Baker. I couldn’t imagine anyone better at stewardship for the company. He taught me everything- how to be a good collection manager and how he views people. How to be a good people manager.”

Since stepping into her leadership role, Renee has developed a team culture of respect, accountability and problem solving. “You must have the ability to meet people where they are… Change is such a big thing at Red Cross. Help people buy into it- into the why and the how,” she said. The biomedical department is going on 21 months of exceeding goal- and it’s because of the team support.

Renee truly loves her job and the people she has met. “I tell every person that comes into the door what a great opportunity this is. For me, this has been my career. Anybody that comes in can move up and within the organization. It takes internal and external customer service and display those 5 C’s,” she said. Our 5 C’s are compassionate, collaborative, creative, credible and committed.

She’s most proud of her team and how they continue to rise to meet challenges. Renee has committed to learning how to be a motivating leader. “That’s the key quality- being able to see everyone for who they are. Being seen is very important… Everyone is different. That’s diversity. But that’s what makes us great,” said Renee.

In her free time, Renee can be found with her family. She has been married to Jay for 17 years and they have 4 children and 2 grandchildren. They are active members of their church and recently went on a mission trip to Scotland. Their dog, Luna, is the house princess and “spoiled.” #WomensHistoryMonth