Her Happy Place

Dorea Mays ’16MHR has a lot of reasons to smile. After earning her master’s of human resources (MHR) from Rollins, her career soared within Rosen Hotels & Resorts, culminating in a promotion to vice president of HR. But the smile on her face comes from a deeper place.

“I love my job,” says Mays. “I love the whole idea of human resources. I love this company and I love problem solving—I call it ‘my jam.’”

Such affection could easily be lost in a sea of duties. Human resources at the Rosen organization encompasses not just its 4,000 associates but also a self-funded medical center, two preschools, an insurance company, a technology company, an aquatic and fitness center, a philanthropic foundation, and oh yes, seven hotels. Yet Mays brings genuine joy into her job every day.

“I love the view from my office,” Mays continues, looking over the 12th hole at Rosen Shingle Creek Golf Course. “Golf is still a new game for me, but I love learning from my 55-and-over friends every time we play.”

Mays’ love for learning and the purity of her happiness grows every day. She didn’t even know such love existed until she entered her first MHR class at Rollins.

“When it came to employee relations, compliance, and HR business strategy, I’d been there and done that,” she says. “But what I didn’t expect from the program at Rollins was a shift from an HR mindset to a leadership mindset. That became the gold nugget for me.”

To be clear, going back to college was not Mays’ idea. At the time she was the associate director of HR and a pillar in the Rosen organization. So, when a colleague asked if she’d ever thought about getting her master’s degree, her answer was a simple no.

Neither of her parents had finished high school. But Mays did learn priceless life lessons from them: kindness from her father and spunkiness from her mother. Growing up on U.S. Navy bases, she also learned the value of developing relationships with people from diverse backgrounds.

It took Mays 10 years to earn a degree in organizational communications from UCF while working full-time. She remembered draining her 401(k) to pay for tuition, and she remembered tests as “big and scary.”

“I didn’t want to go through that again,” she says. “But I did start thinking, ‘what’s my next step?’ I dug around and found out Rollins offered the MHR, that I could take classes two nights a week after work and invest in myself. Honestly, I was a little apprehensive until my first class.”

That’s when Mays met several women, also HR professionals, who quickly became the sorority sisters she never had. She actually enjoyed driving to Rollins after work, switching from heels to flip-flops, and learning in a personalized environment.

“I discovered a lot about myself,” she says. “For all those years, I thought I was a good listener. It turns out, I wasn’t as great as I thought. Through the MHR program, listening became one of the most valuable tools in my toolbox. It’s made me a better problem solver and given me another layer of credibility as a leader.”

The leadership layers have piled up since Mays completed her MHR. She’s been promoted to her VP role at Rosen. She launched her own LLC—Inergy20 Leadership, a pro bono consulting company—and earned a certificate in coaching. In 2024, the HR Florida State Council named Mays its HR Professional of the Year, and a year later the Orlando Business Journal honored her on its list of Women Who Mean Business.

Her smile widens as she thinks back to that gold-nugget moment at Rollins—the shift from HR manager to a leader who truly listens. It’s an approach that now defines her work, her purpose, and the future she’s building. And now we understand why she so freely opens up from that deeper place to say: “I’m loving it.”