Early in her career, Ronnie Marquez-Posey dreamed of being a “wall person.”

From her cubicle at the Ohio Department of Job and Family Services, she admired the leaders who had offices along the wall.

“Those were the folks that were making the big decisions,” said Marquez-Posey, 48, of Canal Winchester, who worked her way up to bureau chief of trade and veteran services in the Office of Workforce Development.

“I wanted to do that. I started going to school part-time and I ended up getting my MBA. Now, it's my turn. I got into that wall.”

Marquez-Posey is one of 12 Columbus women being honored as “high-impact” leaders in a 19th-annual initiative by Women for Economic and Leadership Development (WELD), a Westerville-based nonprofit. The “Women WELDing the Way” honorees will be highlighted in a 2023 calendar, featuring the theme “intentional leadership: building purposeful connections.”

The women will be recognized in a ceremony at the Ohio Statehouse Atrium on Nov. 3.

Marquez-Posey also is a board member of the Women’s Fund of Central Ohio and a member of the Columbus Women’s Commission. She said she seeks to affirm others inside and outside of the workplace.

“You can either hurt someone or you can build someone with the words that you say,” she said.

That philosophy is shared by Charlene Free, owner of Flow of Life, a professional speaking and leadership development business.

She describes herself as a “transformational leader,” who tries to build a pipeline of other leaders.

“A lot of times, people just need somebody to tell them that they can lead,” said Free, 54, of Pickerington. “Sometimes, people also need a chance to lead. They may need to develop some skills, but I’m going to help them do that.”

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Free also is a longtime speech pathologist who serves the geriatric population.

“I'm making a difference in their lives," she said. "A lot of times, those people are left behind, left out or forgotten about.”

But Free hopes to devote more time to her business and plans to launch an initiative helping women and girls.

“That is my dream calling,” she said.

Aditi Bhatiya knows all about changing trajectories. After immigrating from India, she studied biology and worked as a scientist for Ohio State University. She discovered she was more interested in managing the research lab than doing the research.

She worked her way up to assistant director of research operations and compliance for the Ohio State College of Medicine. Today, she is a business operations consultant for the university's office of Technology Commercialization.

But that’s hardly all. Bhatiya also runs a digital marketing business, event-planning firm and catering service, which are all housed within her company, The Spice Age Group.

Her nonprofit, Passport 2 Fashion, provides a platform for diverse designers to showcase their clothing, which caters to a wide range of cultures, body types and gender identities.

“There is a large amount of sacrifice that goes into keeping all of this stuff going,” said Bhatiya, 40, of Hilliard. “But there's nothing else I'd rather do.”

Bhatiya uses the hashtag #BlandisBanned to promote her ventures.

“It's really important for diverse minds and diverse bodies to feel like they belong,” she said. “Whether it's through fashion, whether it's bringing cultures together through food, whether it's bringing people together through common experiences, that really is the foundation of all of this.”

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Like Bhatiya, Shelli Wuerth has her hands full. As a commercial administration director at Huntington National Bank, she supports the executive team with everything from mergers and acquisitions to risk management and diversity and inclusion.

"I love taking chaos and putting some structure around it,” said Wuerth, 52, of the Arena District, who also is active in a women leaders' group at the Community Shelter Board. “And it allows me to work with a lot of different people.”

Having spent nearly 25 years at the bank, Wuerth has worked to fine-tune her leadership approach, which includes responding to tough criticism. In an early-career leadership assessment, her colleagues said she was short and direct, and lacked emotion.

“It was just so eye-opening,” she said. “It was really good feedback. And I do think it has helped me grow and expand my skills."

Wuerth said leaders not only have to be willing to adapt, but must also seek out mentors, broaden their network and apply the advice they receive.

“You have to be vulnerable,” she said. “You have to build your own brand and figure out how it works for you.”

Other WELD honorees include:

• Sierra Austin-King, Educational Service Center of Central Ohio

• Elizabeth Boyuk, Fifth Third Bank

• Lorraine Lutton, Mount Carmel Health System

• Tei Street, Ohio State University

• Angie Thomas, Cardinal Health

• Beth Thomas, Change 4 Growth Consulting

• Milly Valverde, Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center

• Danielle Willis, Knight Consulting Group

ethompson@dispatch.com

@miss_ethompson

This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Women for Economic Leadership and Development honors 2023 leaders