Deborah Clark

Deborah Clark is the former senior vice president and general manager of Marketplace.

I obsess about Marketplace: How to grow it, how to scale it, how to deliver the resources that make it easier for the talented people across the team to be their most creative selves. And I proselytize — we can help all Americans understand the economic forces that shape their lives — and that feels big and important.

What was your first job?

I think it was actually working at a Jack in the Box when I was a junior in high school. Yuck.

In your next life, what would your career be?

A trial consultant — I love the mix of cut and dry (law) with nuance (how people behave).

What’s your most memorable Marketplace moment?

So many … maybe sitting in the Nevada desert in a field of solar panels, sweating profusely in the 100+ heat, awaiting the arrival of then-President Barack Obama and his cavalcade. One of the engineers with us, who shall remain nameless but you can find HIS bio starting with the initials JP, was literally out for the next two days after that interview because he suffered an extreme case of sunstroke.

What’s the favorite item in your workspace and why?

My then-11-year-old daughter once sent an email to my work address and got an auto-response that I was away from my office on business travel. She responded: "What? What is this? This email doesn't make any sense. It is almost as though you hired me for Marketplace." I keep a printout on my desk and it makes me laugh every time I read it.