Meet Betty Gabbaie | CEO of Zentap, UCLA Instructor, Marketing & Communications Executive

We had the good fortune of connecting with Betty Gabbaie and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Betty, we’d love to hear about how you approach risk and risk-taking
My father, who was an extremely shrewd businessman, was an avid risk taker and with most of those risks came big rewards. I remember when I was around 15, he wanted to start a new business in a completely different industry that was very competitive, which meant moving his family from San Diego to Los Angeles. While most of us were stressing out, he knew he would succeed because of his mindset. He believed in himself and although the first few years were rough, he flourished and created a multimillion dollar company.

As you get older and have more responsibilities and a family to care and provide for, I think taking risks is still very important but they need to be calculated ones. I do wish I would have taken more risks earlier on in my life/career, like when my former boss Rick called me to come work with him at a company no one had ever heard of called “Google”, but overall I am happy with my decisions and to where they have led me.

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
My first job out of college was with Rubin Postaer, an independent advertising agency that saw the digital revolution coming early on and started an “interactive” agency, RP Interactive, to support clients like Honda with online advertising. Of course we were all figuring things out as we went along and that really has been true of every job I have had since. Either the role is completely new and I had to figure it out on my own or I was replacing someone who was no longer there and the same held true. Also, since that role, my expertise has always been in digital marketing which is constantly evolving so I have to stay current and be able to adapt which I think is very critical in the fast-paced world we live in today and something that a lot of people are not comfortable with. For me the “unknown” can be exciting and I like to be able to create my own process and system for things, while some are not comfortable with that.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
So much to do in just a week but I would definitely take them to the Malibu to enjoy the beautiful views and have a delicious meal with some drinks at Nobu or Geoffreys. I also love the Temescal Canyon hike and would do that to get our calories in. At night I would hit up the Hollywood Bowl since that is one of my favorite things to do in L.A. and pack a picnic basket with some Trader Joes and Whole Foods munchies and wine. I would also take them to my new favorite hot spot Mainro so they can have a taste of Miami while they are here with a really great vibe, some entertainment and great music. No visit to California would be complete without stopping by my hometown of San Diego, so I would take them to La Jolla and have lunch at Georges at the Cove to enjoy the gorgeous view and then have dinner in Little Italy in the Gaslamp District.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
My shoutout goes to my wonderful parents who have given me this beautiful life and opened so many doors for me. They came to this country as immigrants but wanted to make sure their children succeed and are exposed to different things. As a child, my mom signed me up for every hobby/sport possible (gymnastics, soccer, tennis, ballet, tap, basketball), because she did not have that opportunity growing up. My father worked hard to be able to provide for us and was always supportive of what we wanted to do and would guide us. He passed away 5 years ago and I miss him dearly.

I also want to thank my very supportive husband, Shawn, who has been very involved with our three kids so that I can continue to work and juggle both a career and motherhood. While it is not always easy, his involvement and willingness to always help makes a huge difference.

Website: www.zentap.com

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