Leah Frankel, B.B.A. ’78, M.B.A.’86

Member of Adelphi University’s Profiles in Success program.

Assistant Vice-President of Sales Administration in the Consumer Products Division/Multi-Cultural Beauty Division at L’Oreal USA

“One of the most important aspects of a person’s life is the ability to achieve a balance between their work life and personal life,” said Leah Frankel, BBA ’78, MBA ’86, the assistant vice-president of Sales Administration in the Consumer Products Division/Multi-Cultural Beauty Division at L’Oreal USA. “This balance provides for a healthy attitude and the energy to meet life’s challenges. It is a valuable lesson that I learned at Adelphi and carry with me today.”

Frankel, a West Hempstead native, first came to Adelphi in the late 1970s and enrolled as a Management major. “I was fortunate to have received an academic scholarship to attend Adelphi,” she said. “With its reputation as a school focused on addressing the needs of students interested in business administration, Adelphi certainly seemed like the right choice for my course of study.”

Among her favorite professors at Adelphi were Greg Gutman, Patrick Mulene, and Carol Eisenberg. “They all left lasting impressions on me,” she said. “Their talents and expertise in their respective fields of marketing, creative problem solving, business law, and business communications, provided the groundwork that enabled me to pursue my career objectives.”

She also greatly enjoyed the time she spent working with Professor Carol Schroeder, who was the data systems librarian at Swirbul Library. “I assisted her with library searches on various topics during my undergraduate studies,” said Frankel. “It involved searches on specific topics of interest in data bases that the Library had access to. This was truly the precursor to online internet search capabilities.” 

Some of Frankel’s fondest memories of Adelphi were made while sitting in the University Center with friends and fellow students. “It was an opportunity to share ideas in a relaxed environment, and I always looked forward to it,” she said.

After graduating with her Bachelor’s degree from Adelphi in 1978, Frankel went to work for Revlon, the multinational cosmetics, skin care, fragrance, and personal care company based in New York City. Her career in cosmetics began in an assistant support role and according to Frankel, who never planned on working in cosmetics, her career in the industry, “just happened.”

Several years later, one of her former co-workers from Revlon asked Frankel if she would be interested in joining L’Oreal, the world’s largest cosmetics company, in an entry level position within the Sales Administration Department of the Designer Fragrance Division. “I was excited to have the opportunity to become part of a company that was at the forefront of the beauty industry,” she said. “I knew I would be enabled to grow professionally and utilize much of what I had learned at Adelphi.”

Shortly after transitioning into her role at L’Oreal, Frankel started to consider pursuing her MBA. “As a result of my positive experience there as an undergraduate student, I made the decision to return to Adelphi while working full time, and obtain my MBA,” she said.

In 1986, Frankel earned her MBA from Adelphi and began her ascent through the ranks at L’Oreal. In 1991, she was named the manager/director of Sales Administration for the European Designer Division. Over the course of the following five years, she would be promoted to manager of Marketing Services for the Redken International Division and then director of Sales Administration for the Maybelline-Garnier, Consumer Products Division.

In 2004, Frankel was promoted to the role of assistant vice-president of Sales Operations in the Consumer Products Division/Multi-Cultural Beauty Division, and is currently assistant vice-president of Sales Administration. “My current role has afforded me the opportunity to work together with many different teams and organizations,” she said. “One of the most interesting opportunities I have had is learning new systems, processes, and tools. I am currently a major stakeholder in our Trade Promotion Management Tool that was introduced to the division, and have led many field sales trainings in this as well as many other areas.”                

Frankel says that Adelphi gave her the necessary tools to be successful in her career. “Communication skills are extremely important to succeed in this business. You need to know how to communicate orally and through your writing and I learned how to do both at Adelphi,” she said.  “Adelphi also helped me to be disciplined in studying and preparing for exams and projects. I learned how to budget time and be organized and structured. The University provided me with time management skills which have been key in my career and life.”

Published January 2017