Tete A Tete with Ashleigh Anderson
Mama tried and she soared.
Meet Ashleigh Anderson. She’s the Head of Talent Acquisition at Credit Karma. Ashleigh is based in Charlotte, NC (remote to San Francisco) with her son Cade and daughter Vivienne. A single mother who has redefined what it means to be a remote employee in a competitive industry, working at some of the most sought after tech companies. She is a class act when it comes to showing up and supporting people she cares about. From personal experience I can attest that she is a force to reckon with when it comes to her commitment to recruiting the best talent for her company.
Ashleigh and I worked at Zynga at the same time but never with one another. A few years later our paths crossed at a small gaming start up out in Miami. I very quickly knew that she was a stand up person who would give it to me straight and always hold up the mirror to me in the hardest of moments. She fast became my friend and we shared experiences that have had a hand in shaping who I am today.
I am so grateful to know her and watch her as her career soars all while making sure she is raising good, honest, responsible humans in her kids.
How did you know you wanted to be in Talent Acquisition?
I didn’t. The Universe has a way of putting me exactly where I need to be. Back in 1998, before the days of online applications, I emailed my resume for a Marketing role at Microsoft in their Atlanta office. At that time I didn’t know recruiters were a thing, and just assumed my resume was going directly to the hiring manager. So, you can imagine my surprise when the recruiter called me. The recruiter came bearing both good and bad news. The bad news was I wasn’t qualified for the marketing role I had applied for. The good news was they were interested in hiring me as a Technical Recruiter in the Seattle office. So off I went to Seattle to interview for a role I didn’t even know existed, to a city I had never visited. Infact, at that time I had never been west of Texas. To be honest, knowing nothing about recruiting, I figured I would go on the interview, have a free trip to Seattle, and gain some great interview experience at the hottest company in the 90’s. What I wasn’t prepared for was the offer they gave me to join their company and move to Seattle. If you can believe it, I actually turned down the offer. But after a terrible conversation with my then boyfriend, who told me I couldn’t move so far away, and the thoughtful and enormous bouquet of flowers sent by the recruiting team at Microsoft with a card telling me how much they wanted me to join their team, well the choice was clear. I jumped on a plane 2 weeks later and moved to Seattle.
Who inspires you?
Hands down, my mama! My mom, Karol Anderson, got her degree in math in the ’60s. At a time when most women went into teaching, my mom pursued a career as a software developer. It wasn’t easy for her back then, and she was actually told during her first interview, that while she was by far the best candidate, they wouldn’t give her the job because she would probably leave to have babies. She finally landed a job and just like we’ve all seen in recent movies, she was usually the only woman in the entire department. I’m in awe of the gumption and drive it took to pursue a career in a field where women weren’t welcome. The stories she shared from her career days would now spark class action lawsuits. The stories from her career also inspire me everyday and blazed the trail I now walk — knowing that anything is possible.
How do you manage stress?
Well, I have yet to master the art of managing stress. As a single, working mother, my life is full of stress and I’m constantly looking for ways to bring balance to my life. That said, it’s typically the simple things that reduce my stress and bring me joy. A good ride on my Peloton, a long walk outiside, and cooking a great meal for my kids. Oh, did I mention a great cocktail on my porch with my friends? That never hurts.
How do you balance work and life?
Most of my career has been spent working remotely from North Carolina for West Coast tech companies. Denise Novsel, a talent leader and amazing woman, was the first person to trust that I could do great work regardless of where I lived. She hired me as a remote employee. This was a pretty novel idea in 2007 but is now, especially with Covid, a common practice. What this afforded me was the opportunity to be both a “stay at home” AND “working” mom. What it afforded the company was the ability to hire talent from all over the world. It was such a gift to have the flexibility to work and be available for my two young children. I’m so thankful that Denise chose talent over location. I’ve now led start-up recruiting teams from 10 to almost 50 people at fast growing tech companies, all while sitting in my home office. The best leaders in my career — Colleen McCreary, Flo Thinh Chialtas and Meg Makalou — hired me for the job they trusted me to do, not for the city I lived in.
How do you balance motherhood and your career?
Lot’s of take-out! All joking aside, balancing the two is often challenging. I have two kids in high school and have been a single mom for over 12 years. I think RBG said it best “You can’t have it all, all at once…I think I have had it all. But in different periods of time…” There have been moments in my life where my work has suffered because I put my family first. There have also been times where my kids would say I’ve missed things with them for work. My hope is that when my kids look back at how I raised them they see that “hard work really pays off” and that “Mama tried”.
Have you ever dealt with imposter syndrome / gaslighting? How did you handle it?
Imposter Syndrome is a very real thing and I still deal with it EVERY. DAMN. DAY. When those self doubts start to creep in, I remind myself that I have learned from, and worked for, the best in the business…and I don’t doubt them, so why doubt myself?
Do you struggle with confidence? How do you overcome it?
I am a very competitive person and a lack of confidence wasn’t a thing for me growing up. What I realized early in my career was that if I was the best person in the room, I needed to go find a different room….because that was the only way I was going to grow. I consistently surround myself with amazing and talented people who both challenge me to be better and lift my confidence in my own abilities.
How do you combat bias in the industry?
Combat is a good word… because I do think women and underrepresented minorities have to fight like hell for a seat at the table — especially in tech. As a talent leader, I can build and implement diversity hiring strategies all day long — but if the teams choose to hire people that look like them (gender, ethnicity, education, experience) it’s all for nothing. The best thing we can do is educate the people we work with on the value of diverse voices in creating the best products. Tech companies are building products that are used by everyone. If we want to build products for everyone, then we MUST give everyone a seat at the table. If that doesn’t work, well, I’ll show them the data on why diversity helps innovation and ultimately the company’s bottom line. No leadership team will argue with that.
What do you think is the biggest challenge for the next generation of women in tech?
The biggest challenge will always be how to balance a family and a career, whatever your family may look like. We are often expected to not only work but to also take on the majority of duties at home, whether that be with a partner, children or an aging parent. Some women choose a job over a career simply because of the emotional labor of also leading the family. Women should not have to make this choice. It’s funny how as women we often identify as a stay at home mom or a working mom. Have you ever heard a man identify as a working dad? No!
I am also fascinated by the statistics around the gender wage gap. Women in their 20’s actually earn more than men their same age. But sometime in their late 20’s and early 30’s all this changes. Just about the time that many women begin to start a family they also start to make less than their male counterparts. Until companies create policies that value work/life balance for both women and men, women will always struggle to do it all.
I’m really proud of my current company, Credit Karma, and our forward thinking Chief People Officer, Colleen McCreary. Colleen created a compensation philosophy based on pay equity. At Credit Karma we pay for the position, regardless of who is in that position. For example, every Software Engineer II in San Francisco is paid the same salary, regardless of their gender, sex, race, ethnicity education or years of experience. This is true pay equity.
Advice to women wanting to get into Tech, what do you wish you had known?
Don’t read through a job post and disqualify yourself because you don’t check every box. You are not a checklist. You are a person with potential and passion and transferable skills. Believe in yourself. Try new things. Take risks. You want to work for a company that gives you opportunities to continuously grow and challenge yourself. Never underestimate yourself, and PLEASE apply for the damn job!
