Angela S. Bohannon

I attribute my success to my 25-year career journey that started at Target Corporation in Chicago, where I helped open the Chicago market and transitioned from undercover security into human resources. After 12 years at Target, I grew my career at CNA Insurance for almost 10 years as an HR business partner, including a unique 4-year experience in an operational role where I had my own sales account management team, sales goals, and a P&L. This business-side experience is something that sets my HR expertise apart and allows me to be a true business partner who understands operations. I then spent 12 years in private equity, which culminated in leading HR for 16,000 employees across 15 countries during a major acquisition for Skyview Capital in 2019. Even though I was a team of just two people, I was able to figure it out and make it happen, providing a smooth transition for employees. When COVID led to a reduction in force, I seized the opportunity to become an entrepreneur and founded Simplie HR 4 years ago. My education from Aurora University in organizational management and human resources, along with my cannabis business certification and DISC certification, have also been instrumental in my success.

The best career advice I've received is that you can have a successful career and with hard work you can supersede your own expectations. I'm proud of my most notable achievement of managing HR for 16,000 employees across 15 countries during a major acquisition for Skyview Capital back in 2019. I was the chief HR officer for all those employees, and it was my first time leading something of that scale. Even though I was a team of just two people and had a lot of hiring to do, I was able to figure it out and make it happen. It was such a great learning experience that helped me realize I can provide a smooth transition for employees, because it doesn't matter if you have one employee or 16,000 - the process is still the same to ensure a smooth transition through an acquisition. That was the largest acquisition that Skyview took on, and it was one of my greatest accomplishments.

My advice to young women entering the HR industry is that you can work hard to climb the corporate ladder and build a successful career. I started at Target Corporation doing undercover security while going to school to be a police officer, and when I was asked to transition into human resources, I gave it a shot and built my HR career from there over 12 years. I then moved to CNA Insurance as an HR business partner for almost 10 years, including taking on an operational role with sales responsibilities that gave me unique business-side experience. From there, I spent 12 years in private equity, eventually leading HR for 16,000 employees globally across 33 countries. Now I'm an entrepreneur running my own HR consulting firm, Simplie HR. The journey shows that with hard work and willingness to take on new challenges and experiences, you can supersede your own expectations and create the career path you want.

The biggest opportunity in my field right now is being in my role as an entrepreneur and being able to help any and all clients that need me. With Simpie HR, I work with a variety of clients across different industries - from private equity firms doing acquisitions and carve-outs of businesses with employees in multiple countries, to orthobiologics and doctors starting their own private practices, to schools and school associations. Every day is different based on client needs. I help with everything from HR due diligence before deals close, to standing up operations from scratch as a startup, to helping doctors with credentialing for insurance, to identifying skill gaps and single points of failure in organizations, to creating standard operating procedures. The opportunity is in being able to provide that variety of HR support and really focus on workforce infrastructure while being a true business partner that understands the business.

The values most important to me in my work and personal life center around giving back and enjoying life with loved ones. I'm very passionate about my volunteer work at the Honor Foundation in San Diego, where I help military veterans transition to civilian life through mock interviews and resume review. This is close to my heart because my husband is a veteran and was in the Iraq War, so I know what veterans go through and I feel like I'm able to give back. I help special ops veterans translate their military experience into meaningful metrics and stories that companies can understand, doing a lot of coaching and prepping. Outside of work, I love to travel and have different life experiences. My husband and I also love hosting friends and family at our home, where we've been fortunate enough to create a paradise in our backyard with a swimming pool. We especially enjoy having people over in the wintertime when there's snow everywhere else but not here in Southern California. For us, it's all about enjoying life with the people we care about.