For Jessica Polfer, leadership in the community is about choice.

The 43-year-old mother of three said that rather than spend her free time looking at “screens” on a cell phone or television set, she ventures out to engage with people, which gives her energy and purpose.

“It’s easy to get caught up in that trap of scrolling on your phone and watching a lot of TV,” said Polfer, who lives on a farm near her hometown of Benton with her husband Tony and three daughters. “It’s about finding ways to be involved that are important to you, and in that way, the extra things aren’t work but something intentional that adds to your life.”

Polfer is currently senior manager of talent acquisition, diversity, and inclusion at Colony Brands in Monroe. She works virtually on some days and on others, commutes the 50 or so miles to town from the family farm. 

In addition to her high-profile role at Colony Brands, Polfer finds time to volunteer as a religion instructor at Saint Rosa in Cuba City. She is also president of an economic development group promoting business opportunities in Benton. And at some point, she found time to earn a Master’s degree from an Ivy League school, Cornell University. 

Still, she said it’s impossible to “do it all” so she makes very deliberate choices about how to spend her time. Sometimes it’s on the farm, helping her family with beef cattle or crops. And sometimes it’s working on her computer from home. But she says since taking a job at Colony Brands nearly 10 years ago, she has tried to carve out a role that adds value to the organization and to her home life. 

She admits to being super busy, but stops short of calling herself a workaholic.

“I’ll admit, I’m just not one to stay home when I can,” she said. “And I do run on coffee…. also, I find that when you are doing something you enjoy, it’s not extra work, it adds to your life.”

Previously, she worked for a large engineering services firm in Dubuque that was made up of nearly all male co-workers. It not only taught her about leadership and perseverance, but also how to navigate the business world as a woman, while also clarifying the work-life balance that has served her well and helped her be an example within the Colony organization. Her education, including studying overseas, also helped in the process of becoming a well-rounded human and leader.

“I think there’s an understanding today about what’s expected,” she said. “My time studying abroad, including in Switzerland, taught me the value of different perspectives and experiences.  This has carried over into my work today.”  

Now she’s focused on improving the environment for workers — of all kinds and backgrounds — to thrive at Colony Brands.

“Facilitating our efforts at Colony Brands to cultivate an even more inclusive work environment has been some of my favorite, and most challenging, work to date,” she said. “Intentionally seeking out different perspectives and trying to understand them helps us not only respect one another as individuals but also become better problem-solvers. We don’t always have to agree, but I know that we’ll get further by working together — and that’s good for business, our relationships, and our communities.”

But she concedes, it’s a lifelong learning process, and fulfillment and success do not just happen by accident.

“It’s a constant balancing act as a woman, mom, employee, and volunteer to feel like you’re ever doing as much as you’d like to be,” she said. “It’s still hard, but I’ve seen the lines between work and home soften a bit.”

And she allows that at times, women need to give themselves a break from the constant pressure to be everything to everybody, especially in a wider culture that she agrees has grown more coarse and a bit angry in recent years. Still, there’s hope in people for a better day.

“I see more empathy from leaders than I did a decade ago, but I don’t know a working mom who doesn’t get worn out. It’s been important to me to learn to prioritize what’s important….meaning my house might occasionally be a mess, but I’m teaching my girls to be competent, caring adults while getting to do valuable work in my community and with my colleagues at work. I know it’s a privilege that I’m able to choose to do all of these things because of support from my family and colleagues.”