Getting to Know Kerry Makielski
Vice Chair and Director of Finance and Administration
Vice Chair and Director of Finance and Administration, Kerry Makielski
January 14, 2025
To welcome and introduce our new Vice Chair and Director of Finance and Administration, Kerry Makielski, to Stanford's Department of Medicine, we asked her all our burning questions about her biggest personal and professional accomplishments, passions and interests (outside of work and science), and her favored sources of inspiration. Here is what she said.
What was your first (or most unusual) job?
I started babysitting at the age of 9. My first job on a payroll was at a plant nursery, Meadows Farms in Virginia. I worked there all 4 years of high school, started as a cashier then went into sales where I wrote up a paper ticket of customers’ plant/tree orders instead of lugging them into the building where the cashier was! I became immune to the horrible fertilizer smell surrounding the cashier area and I used to know the name of every tree, perennial, and annual bedding plant by heart.
What’s the best piece of career advice you ever received?
Wow, this is a hard one as I have received such great advice throughout my entire career!
I would like to highlight my second boss out of college, Laurie Kahn. She owned her own recruiting firm where we placed media sales professionals throughout the US, but we were located in Chicago. She constantly reminded me to ask questions and continue to reach further, and go for whatever dream you have, professionally and personally, which is a big reason why I am here.
Kerry Makielski (second from left) with her family.
What are you most proud of accomplishing to-date?
Professionally, it would be taking my first job in healthcare as a Fellowship Coordinator/Administrative Assistant for the Division of Hematology/Oncology. Being curious, never sitting still, and learning everything I could eventually led me to opportunities that built off of one another and ultimately brought me here.
Personally, it would be my family [pictured here]. I have an amazing husband, Eric and two boys, Evan (17) and Matthew (14). They are my everything, and we are all so excited for this opportunity to move to the Bay Area and make lots of memories.
Who or what do you turn to for inspiration?
Oh my gosh, so many individuals have inspired me but I should start with my parents. My dad is a retired sales director and my mom is still on the go, running circles around all of us. They engrained in all 3 of us siblings to work hard but also have fun. They currently reside in central Wisconsin but I am looking forward to them spending some of their winter visiting the West Coast.
What is on your California bucket list?
Exploring the Bay Area first so we know all the good restaurants and local shops. Then heading on Highway 1 and exploring the amazing coastline of California.
What interests or hobbies do you have outside of work?
My husband and I enjoy going to the gym for cycling and strength training group sessions a few times a week. Also, I like to say I am a golfer but, in reality, I try to golf while enjoying the outdoors with my family.
What are you reading, watching, or listening to right now that you’d recommend to others?
For podcasts, I listen to The Headlines and The Daily by the New York Times every morning to start my day off and stay up on current events. As for reading, I have two books in my bag for my upcoming plane rides: Who Killed Jane Stanford by Richard White and a novel, The Palace at Dusk by Angela Terry…she is my brother-in-law’s sister, who resides in San Francisco, and this is her 3rd novel!
What might people be surprised to learn about you?
At the age of 6, I learned to waterski in the summer and snow ski in the winter. It’s been over 18 years since I last waterskied and I look forward to snow skiing more frequently in the coming years.