2026 photo, L to R: Susannah Chance, Jeanne Tebbetts, Rachel Sanborn – 2012 images include Jane Sanborn and Pogo the Wonder Dog
Susannah Chance, Jeanne Tebbetts, and Rachel Sanborn bonded over their passion for running and desire to help others. Through the power of connectivity, these valued team members all contribute their skills to supporting Work Opportunities Unlimited (WOU)’s mission of meaningful employment for all.
Senior Vice President of Human Resources Susannah Chance has been part of the WOU team for 30 years. She started in the Laconia, NH office as a recruiter, spent time as part of the Concord team, then managed the Dover staffing team before becoming WOU’s first official HR employee in 2000. In her personal time, Susannah enjoys being active, as does her neighbor, Jeanne Tebbetts. “We ran a couple marathons, lots of half marathons, 5Ks, you name it. We spent a lot of time together,” shares Susannah. During this time, Jeanne was employed elsewhere but seeking more hours. “Running together meant we had the opportunity to talk about many topics along the miles,” says Jeanne. “I had asked Susannah about WOU and was impressed with the mission and belief that all people can work.” Susannah needed additional support in the HR department, so Jeanne joined WOU on a part-time basis in 2013. She started with entering candidate resumes into the applicant tracking system, then added tasks like assisting core team members through the onboarding process and performing background checks as she increased her hours. In 2016, Jeanne split her time between HR and Marketing, eventually switching to Marketing full-time, where she manages the websites, social media, analytics, and candidate and client outreach. She loves working behind the scenes to ensure systems work reliably and to represent WOU and Leddy Group in a consistent, positive, and true manner. Whether updating the website or adding an interesting caption to a social media post, Jeanne enjoys showcasing her colleagues doing what they do best.
Jeanne introduced Susannah to her dear friend Jane and Jane’s daughter Rachel, who joined them on their runs. Rachel was in high school at the time, running for soccer, and when her season was over, she thought it would be fun to train for a race with the group. The four women committed to running a marathon and spent a great deal of time training together and building their friendships. Susannah and Rachel ran at a similar pace, so they got to know each other well as they trained with Susannah’s dog Pogo at their side. Rachel recalls, “During this time, I was applying for college and thinking about my major. Susannah became a friend and a mentor to me. She is a very good listener and asked great questions.”
Rachel attended St. Michael’s College in Vermont and earned a degree in sociology. She married and moved to Maryland, working at various non-profits where she served as a volunteer coordinator and in fundraising. However, Rachel was considering a career change to human resources. “I found it really rewarding to work for non-profits that supported the community and had great missions but felt that the roles I had were not the best fit for my personality and skills,” she says. “In 2020, I started doing small projects for WOU including field employee birthday cards and creating e-business cards. At the end of 2021, I was very excited to hear that Susannah had a full-time payroll manager position available on her team.” Rachel had not managed payroll before, but she enjoyed analyzing data and managing spreadsheets in her previous fundraising role, and Susannah knew she would excel in the position. Plus, as Rachel says, “I knew that by working directly with Susannah, I would have the opportunity to learn so much more.” Rachel was offered the Payroll Manager position and joined the team in February 2022. She processes payroll for the entire company, including core team members, staffing field employees, and some clients supported by the career services division. After her first year, Rachel’s responsibilities expanded to client and core team onboarding as well. She loves supporting all the divisions at WOU and her friendly, collaborative team. Having been friends with Rachel’s family since she was very young, Jeanne shares, “I knew that Rachel would be a fantastic addition to the team at WOU because she is very bright, thoughtful, patient, and determined.”
While Susannah, Jeanne, and Rachel have found common interests outside work to keep them active and enjoying free time together, they remain keenly aware of the responsibilities and sensitivities inherent in their work roles, so they like to keep personal and professional connections separate. The resilience, strong work ethic, and trustworthiness they each demonstrated along the many miles of training and adventures they’ve shared serve them all well in their careers and have forged a strong bond among the three. Susannah shares, “I’m thankful that Jeanne and Rachel chose to come on board. Over time, both of their careers here have evolved into roles that really play to their strengths, and they’re committed to all the great things that we do. Jeanne and Rachel really understand that no matter the role, everyone is ultimately here to help the client.”
