Learning to Love Learning

Pat Renzi is a Principal at Milliman and the CEO of Milliman’s Life Technology Solutions business.

Having spent 30 years providing commercial technology solutions to support actuaries in risk management, product development, and financial reporting, she is passionate about leveraging technology to allow insurers to better serve their customers, their employees, and their shareholders.

Pat is a strong advocate for more diversity within actuarial science and technology, understanding the importance of diversity in background as we expand the use of data in driving decisions. Pat is the Chairperson of Milliman’s Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Committee and is working with a small group of insurers to leverage technology to provide resiliency strategies to Black-Owned small businesses

Sponsor Information

Visit www.yourheights.com and use acuriouslife10 for a 10% discount.

Transcript

Hadley: [00:00:00] So Pat, welcome to the show. 

[00:00:03] Patricia Renzi: [00:00:03] Thank you very much for having me glad to be here. 

[00:00:05] Hadley: [00:00:05] I cannot begin to tell you how much of an honour it is to be having this conversation with you to be, to have you on my show. I think hands down you are one of the most inspiring leaders that I've ever had the pleasure of working with hats off, um, and much respect.

[00:00:22] Patricia Renzi: Thank you very much. Hadley: Okay. So back, I normally kick off the show by asking people one simple question. Uh, what does curiosity mean to you?

[00:00:31] Patricia Renzi: [00:00:31] So whenever I hear the word curiosity, I always think of curious, George and I love curious, George, and, and the reason I love curious George is because he just always wants to learn, you know, he just dives in and he's so excited about learning new things.

[00:00:51] And that's what curiosity means to me is just that, that passion around learning new things and wanting to just dive in, explore, jump from thing to thing and just, you know, always want to learn more. So that's what curiosity means to me 

[00:01:06] Hadley: [00:01:06] that I think captures it perfectly. So, okay. Back now, again, you know, this is a campfire, like type discussion.

[00:01:15] Um, and essentially we just gonna talk about you, um, and find out what's behind the woman. Right. Um, and generally where we start with that is right at the beginning. So where you were born parents siblings. 

[00:01:30] Patricia Renzi: [00:01:30] So, um, I am the middle of three girls, um, and I was born in Westchester, Pennsylvania, so small town outside of Philadelphia.

[00:01:44] Uh, my mother and father were both born and raised in Westchester. Um, Farmers.      Hadley: Okay. What kind of farmers? Patricia Renzi: Uh, so my mother's family was, um, they had milk cows and then they also raised sheep. 

[00:02:04] Hadley: [00:02:04] Okay. So did you grow up on a farm?

[00:02:05] Patricia Renzi: [00:02:05] I did not, no. my, both my parents. 

[00:02:10] Hadley: [00:02:10] Okay. So your parents and their families were farmers.

[00:02:13] Patricia Renzi: [00:02:13] Yeah. So, and my grandfather, um, on both sides, they still had farms. So as a child, we would go to the farms. And so, yeah. 

[00:02:24] Hadley: [00:02:24] Understood. Okay. So you used to the, not necessarily just the Philly kind of inner city life, but the, the big wide open world and which is the one that resonates with you most. So, so I'm assuming you've, you've kind of have an association with, with both the open-world as well as the inner cities or 

[00:02:44] Patricia Renzi: [00:02:44] until I went to university, it was, um, even though I lived in.

[00:02:49] Yeah, sort of a suburban area. Um, it was still, everything was farmland around me. And so going into Philadelphia, even though, you know, it's 30 minutes, it was like a big trip. Right. And so, 

[00:03:06] Hadley: [00:03:06] yeah. Yeah. Did you have to put on your Sunday clothes or

[00:03:14] Patricia Renzi: [00:03:14] yeah. Yeah. It was a big trip to go into the city. And, um, so, so definitely, um, you know, as a child, um, it was very much of a not city life. I w it was, that was really foreign to me until I went away to university 

[00:03:35] Hadley: [00:03:35] with this kind of backdrop of curiosity. Most people don't necessarily remember the detail, but was there anything that stood out in that early life that you think has

[00:03:46] played a part in who you are today?

[00:03:47] Patricia Renzi: [00:03:47] So, um, I, I think as the middle child, um, I was maybe, I don't know if I felt protected between not being the youngest and not being the pressure of the oldest child and, and the freedom of being the youngest child. I felt like, um, you know, I think a lot of the middle children feel like they were ignored, but I loved that because that allowed me to just kind of be myself.

[00:04:19] And so, um, so I was very curious and, um, and felt like I kind of had that freedom to do that. Yeah. So when I was four, um, we had a house fire and, um, my father was killed and my younger sister was burned very badly. 

[00:04:42] Hadley: [00:04:42] I'm really sorry to hear that.

[00:04:42] Patricia Renzi: [00:04:42] So it was, uh, I mean, it was was traumatic, but it also was, um, the outcome of that was probably the most influential thing in my life.

[00:04:56] And that my mother who had been, you know, stay at home, mom, mother of three, took over my father's business, ran it by herself, raised three children. Hadley: What was the business sorry, Pat, just? Patricia Renzi: Uh, he was a pharmacist, so he owned a little, little local pharmacy and, you know, and, um, and she was a phenomenal business woman.

[00:05:21] She was just incredibly strong. And, um, so seeing that was, that was really what drove me. Yeah. Yeah. 

[00:05:33] Hadley: [00:05:33] And I'm assuming, I mean, that must have had. Obviously the, the tragedy of your dad, but also the strength of your mum and how she reacted to such tremendous tragedy, but with strength, you know, I mean, you can imagine what were the things that drove, her children, her kids, and, and it's, it's kind of a, well, this is what I have to do, right.

[00:05:57] For, for the sake of my children, life goes on. 

[00:06:00] Patricia Renzi: [00:06:00] Yeah. And as an adult, I think you, you appreciate much more the emotion that she must have, what she, you know, the sadness and the loss that she was feeling. But, um, but we never saw that. It was just, you know, I'm, I'm moving forward. Of course we're going to do this and yeah.

[00:06:22] Hadley: [00:06:22] Yeah. And that takes strength. That takes strength of character. Okay. And, and then, and you were four at a time, so, so what, what, what are those, what are those next kind of years look like now as your mom is, is taking on this, this, the onus of building a business as, as you say, an exceptional business woman, but clearly also an exceptionally strong one.

[00:06:48] Patricia Renzi: [00:06:48] Yeah. So it was, um, you know, I have to say that and you know, this is certain, certainly hats off to my mother, but I felt like I had kind of the most normal, happy childhood anybody could have. It was, I, it was, um, you know, we used to. Uh, we used to help my mom in the store and, you know, do inventory. And it was one of these old fashioned pharmacies that had the soda fountain in it, you know?

[00:07:21] And, and so, um, 

[00:07:24] Hadley: [00:07:24] yeah, it’s more than a pharmacy.

[00:07:26] Patricia Renzi: [00:07:26] so we used to help her, um, you know, get everything cleaned and make the simple syrup to make the different sodas. We'd help her with that on the, you know, and it was just, um, it was just fun. It was, uh, you know, it was a great life. We lived in this small town and, um, you know, we just rode our bikes everywhere and everybody knew each other.

[00:07:50] And so everybody was looking out for each other and it was just really, it was idyllic. And there's this, you know, there was this tragic thing that happened, but. My mother never. We never felt that.

[00:08:07] Hadley: [00:08:07] Yes, I get what you mean. And, and where the community, it sounds like the community around it would have been supportive or were there issues, I guess, going back a little while, was, were there issues, the fact that she was a woman or was the community, like completely supportive of it?

[00:08:21] Patricia Renzi: [00:08:21] No, it was, and this is probably the other thing that, um, certainly drove me is that, and you know, again, I didn't know this until I was in my late teens, but, um, but when my, when my mom went to take over my dad's pharmacy, um, you know, she had just lost her husband. She had her youngest daughter who was two years old, was in the hospital and was in the hospital for two years straight.

[00:08:54] And she was going to run this pharmacy and the bank would not turn the loan over to her. As a female, unless she had to have her father who was a retired farmer, sign it,

[00:09:11] Hadley: [00:09:11] Oh, my word, I guess it was signs of the time. And maybe that's even where the question came from. Right. And, and I guess part of that question is, is also just looking to understand some of the things that drive you, you know, I mean, I know that, that you are very driven by equality and fairness and, and, you know, it sounds like these are the kinds of things that, that played a kind of very important part or significant part in, in, in that 

[00:09:44] Patricia Renzi: [00:09:44] I think the other thing that, you know, was my younger sister, um, is, is badly scarred from the fire.

[00:09:55] And, um, when she was in school, um, We were in primary school and I must have been in fourth grade and she would have been in second grade. And, um, she would for, she was, was like sick every day. You know, she couldn't go to school. She was, and, um, they couldn't figure out what's going on. And the doctor said, you know, this is, she's just, there's like fear.

[00:10:25] She's sick to her stomach because she's afraid. And so what we found out is that she was being bullied. And, um, so, you know, I am a very peaceful person, 

[00:10:37] Hadley: [00:10:37] but don't get on your bad side. 

[00:10:42] Patricia Renzi: [00:10:42] So yeah, here I am. Um, you know, and at that point, you know, girls wore their little dresses to school and, you know, I, Hadley: You stood up for your sister. Patricia Renzi: I just, I stood up.

[00:10:56] Um, yes, I got, um, I got called into the principal's office, but I think you see those kinds of things and it's just that, um, those injustices, the inequities, the, the, you know, and so, and then also how my mother was treated. I know that, I mean, we had very supportive neighbours who were willing to help her in, um, you know, like taking us places and things like that.

[00:11:23] But. But because she was a single woman, she was never invited to dinner parties. She was never invited to. And so I saw her being excluded and I saw my sister being, um, you know, being bullied or being, being ostracised. And I think those things just stick with you. And so that has sort of become my calling is to really focus on those things

[00:11:50] Hadley: [00:11:50] and just quickly, how old, so what's the difference between you and your elder sister?

[00:11:55] Patricia Renzi: [00:11:55] Almost exactly two years and then 18 months with my younger sister. 

[00:12:01] Hadley: [00:12:01] Understood. Okay, cool. And so, so, so I guess from this point, then getting to this place where you were saying, you're now a teenager and you now understand, you know, you got to understand a little bit more about what your mom has gone through.

[00:12:15] Why did that come about? And I'm assuming this is you in high school now, right? Yeah. 

[00:12:20] Patricia Renzi: [00:12:20] So when I was in high school, um, I. Uh, it was, uh, it was my curiosity. I think that I just, you know, you, you see things and you look around. And so then I would just ask my mother, you know, why is this happening? Why, um, you know, why are you not allowed to do this in your business?

[00:12:46] Why are these things happening? Um, you know, there was a chamber of commerce in our little town. And, um, my father was actually the president of the chamber of commerce before he was killed. And then, uh, after that, they wouldn't allow my mother to join, but they would let my sisters and I attend like their Christmas parties, but we had to be taken there by one of the other business men in the community and you see these things.

[00:13:20] And so then. Yeah, you just kind of, as you're, when you're younger, you see it. But then as I got older, I would, I asked why. Yeah. And I was like, well, this doesn't make sense to me. Why is it this way? And, um, yeah. And you just, you start to see those things. And then I realised the challenges that my mother had and how strong she had to be to just, um, you know, to move through that and to be, I mean, she was a phenomenal mother.

[00:13:54] She was so involved in our lives and yet she was trying to run this business with all these headwinds. And, um, you know, so as you get older and you start to just question those things and you put it all together, 

[00:14:07] Hadley: [00:14:07] I guess it's even more so because it's avoidable because it's simply someone's mindset that happens to be off-centre that makes a situation that is already unthinkable

[00:14:21] worse because of the way that you think, you know, and nah, I'm with you. So what was the thing that got like the business through that phase? Was it like additional support from the community coming to buy more stuff or because it was anyway central to the community and the kind of only pharmacy in the, was there anything that made it easier for your mom or that helped?

[00:14:44] Patricia Renzi: [00:14:44] So I think that, um, it was fairly central to the, um, to the, this little small town that we lived in. Um, there were two pharmacies in the town. I mean, my mother was, she just was very persistent and she was, she was, um, she was really a good business person. She by training as a nurse. And so, um, so what she did was she said, you know, I need to lock in contracts

[00:15:17] with the hospitals and with, with like nursing homes and because she understood how that all worked. And so, um, so she just went and talked to people that she knew at the hospital where she had used to work and then she would, you know, went to nursing homes and just, and she locked in these contracts and she expanded the business and it really thrived.[00:15:43] 

[00:15:43] Hadley: [00:15:43] So, you know, it's stories like that. That just makes me, I kind of almost, you feel like you're feeling inside and like yeah. I'm, I'm ready to rock. I’m rocking it. 

[00:15:52] Patricia Renzi: [00:15:52] Yeah. Yep. Oh, she was, yeah, she was, uh, she really, she drove the business forward. Yeah. 

[00:16:00] Hadley: [00:16:00] Okay, cool. And, and from that point then, so, you know, from the point at which curiosity leads to

[00:16:06] I now understand a little better what my mom has gone through. And more importantly, what she achieved against all odds, you know, from, from that moment then, you know, well, what does it look like throughout the rest of high school? 

[00:16:22] Patricia Renzi: [00:16:22] So, um, at that point, um, I'm not sure that I, you know, it was, I certainly wasn't sitting there saying, you know, I'm gonna, this is what I'm going to do.

[00:16:37] I was, but I was very focused on, um, sort of making her proud. Right. And so it was, I'm going to do well in school. I'm going, uh, you know, I'm going to, um, I'm going to get a good job. Um, I am going, I'm going to make something, help her. I'm going to, I'm going to do something. Right. And it was more just, um, it was not so much about that.

[00:17:02] It wasn't even really seeing what she had been through. It was just knowing that it was really important to her that I succeed. And so that was what was really driving me was just to make her proud 

[00:17:16] Hadley: [00:17:16] well done. And I mean, she has to be. Never mind the success is I keep saying this Pat, but you, as a person are just phenomenal, you know?

[00:17:30] Patricia Renzi: [00:17:30] Well, that's my mom that she was a phenomenal person. She was, um, yeah. 

[00:17:37] Hadley: [00:17:37] Um, okay, so, so, so how did that influence then what you studied? So I'm assuming this drive to make her proud and to make something of yourself and to help her and, you know, has resulted in good grades. So how does that influence or how do you go about choosing what to study at uni?

[00:17:55] Patricia Renzi: [00:17:55] So, um, I, when I first went to university, I wanted to be a doctor and, um, and that was really driven by, um, you know, her being a nurse and being in the medical profession and, um, you know, wanting to just, you know, show her that I could do it because she had such, um, uh, she was, I'm sure she was proud of what she accomplished, but she, as a nurse, she just really, um, had strong admiration for doctors.

[00:18:32] And so I said, all right, I'm going to do that. And, um, people told me that you should be a physical therapist, you know, you're a girl it's too hard, you know, and 

[00:18:46] Hadley: [00:18:46] I guess that was like a bull to a red flag, I guess, bring it on! I guess I’m becoming a doctor then

[00:18:55] Patricia Renzi: [00:18:55] you know, tell me I can't do it. And that's what I'll do. Um, although as I, you know, once I got, uh, into school, I realised that, um, every time I see blood, I pass out. So I thought

[00:19:16] but, um, but I, I always loved math. I mean, I just, and I think that's curiosity too, you know, math is just, um, math just leads you to be curious, right. It's just, it's kind of the underpinnings of everything. And so it's, um, So and you can, you can discover so much through math. So I always loved math. So, um, so I decided I would major in math.

[00:19:45] Um, but I wasn't really sure what I wanted to do, um, with that. Um, and so, um, when I graduated, I started, um, I started graduate school in...