“It’s about understanding the executive team’s high-level vision or dream, interpreting it, and bringing it back down to my team so they know where we’re headed and what we can do as a department to pave that path forward for the dreamers. She seeks, too, to support her Gila River Indian Community through her efforts as CIO at the Community-owned Gila Resorts & Casinos, which is set to open its fourth Arizona property, SanTan Mountain Casino, in late 2023 (at time of speaking). Since that conference, Villareal has made it a point to empower the women around her, many of whom she knows might struggle with their confidence like she once did. I realized that every single one of us had a story of coming in and coming up, and it was my time to come up.”
“I walked in and said good morning to everybody, and I ended up feeling so excited and empowered. “I decided just to be myself,” she says of the event. Despite these misgivings, she pushed herself to attend a women’s leadership conference that ended up shifting her perspective. “I couldn’t help wondering why people wanted to come speak to me,” Villareal admits. The unexpected attention created an added challenge for her to overcome on top of adapting to a new role: imposter syndrome. Since stepping into the role of chief information officer at Gila River Resorts & Casinos, Robin Villareal has found herself in the spotlight like never before.
