Ashley Harris

I've been with Aries Building Systems for 8 years, starting in what I call a complete fluke - I don't even remember applying for the position. When the president hired me, he was very adamant about adding himself to the offer letter because he needed me to come in and clean house, to do things that not everyone would be on board with. What I didn't realize walking in was that a lot of people were related to each other and had been with the company for a long time, so there was a sense of entitlement. Over my 8 years here, I've been instrumental in growing our company from one entity to five separate entities: Aries Building Systems, Schoolhouse Manufacturing, Waco Manufacturing, Waco Modular Manufacturing, and Class Leasing. For each entity, I had to do onboarding, set up protocols, procedures, and policies - all that lovely stuff we do on a day-to-day basis. I was also instrumental in moving us from a paper company to a digital company, because there's a generation that believes if it's not on paper, it doesn't matter. I implemented our new safety protocol company-wide across all entities, making sure we're not only bringing people on from an HR standpoint, but maintaining their safety while they're with us. We're international and national, so I have to make sure we're in alignment with protocols and procedures in every state we operate in, including our huge manufacturing facility in California. I'm currently in school working on my master's in behavioral and clinical mental health counseling because I realize that a lot of the dilemmas I deal with when it comes to people and personalities are not necessarily work problems, but something inherent that's just reflected in the work. I'm looking to have my master's completed in the next couple years and just went through my first round of residency. I feel like HR was something that picked me - I didn't necessarily pick it - and it has been very fruitful for me. I enjoy helping people become their best selves.