The best way to predict the future is to create it.

In 2010, I started my career in brand & retail marketing. I was always putting myself in other people's shoes and looking for ways to improve their experience with the brand. A customer walking into a store. A retail manager asking for support. A team member collaborating on an event. I really enjoyed making someone's day a little better.

Fast-forward to 2017, I found myself in a product role without knowing it (as one does). I was working with a developer and a creative agency, advocating for participants of an internal innovation program, whereby users digitally shared their ideas. Once again, I wanted to create a good experience, so I started asking questions about my "customers" — Who were they, and what was their day like? Did they capture ideas before this program? If so, how? If not, why would they start now?

Somewhere between doing this research and asking the developer to significantly streamline the submission process, I learned that I was doing this thing called product management. Specifically, human-centered product management. At the time, it just felt like common sense. But the more I learned, the cooler it sounded.

In 2019, I wanted to keep exploring this product career path, so I took a lateral position as a strategic project manager. I could easily leverage transferable skills to provide immediate value, but I'd also be partnering directly with product teams and learning on the job. I gained invaluable experience working with Engineers, UX Designers and Researchers, Agile Coaches, Data Analysts, and of course, Product Managers. I learned so much in a seemingly short time: how to run collaborative workshops and brainstorming sessions, how to frame problem statements into "How Might We" questions, how to probe for deeper insights, and how to focus on desired outcomes over outputs. 

That experience came in handy a couple of years later, when I jumped at the opportunity to join a global Product & GTM strategy team. I've spent the last few years working on a fast-growing, complex Enterprise product, specifically focused on growing customer engagement and enabling Sales and Client Success teams around the world. 

I'm known for fostering collaboration in order to drive large, cross-functional projects, asking thoughtful questions to uncover key details and insights, and leading with empathy and intuition in order to balance data analysis and overcome (inevitable) ambiguity. I'm organized, detail-oriented, and I appreciate a good pre-read. I am not one for politics or posturing. I strive for life-work balance — not the other way around. And I genuinely (nerdily) enjoy putting together an impactful presentation.

I'm pretty excited to see what happens next...