Her Story
About EMILEE
I started my career as a CNA and lead nursing assistant, but when I became a mom, I was looking for something I could do from home to balance both aspects of my life. I was offered the opportunity to start recruiting within the construction industry space, and I really fell in love with the work-life balance aspect and being able to make an income while working from home. I found a huge passion for getting to talk to people on the phone and progressing people in their careers. I had a background in the restaurant industry from lower-level positions when I was younger, so I was familiar with that concept. After working in construction and data center construction recruiting, I transitioned to Gecko Hospitality about a year and a half ago, where I work as an executive recruiter predominantly in the hospitality and restaurant industry. My typical day involves managing our Washington state market, going over my job board, prioritizing what needs to be done, and checking things off my notepad as I go. I'm responsible for client development, candidate development, and all the administrative tasks, which includes helping to schedule interviews, getting candidates prepared via email or phone, encouraging them to have good interviews, and literally walking them through the process from start to finish. My day definitely does not look the same every day, which keeps things interesting.
Her Interview
Ten minutes with EMILEE
01What do you attribute your success to?
I attribute my success to becoming a mom. Once I became a mom, it just kind of pushed me to grow and to be better, and to look for new opportunities that would be worthwhile and worth pursuing. Being a mom really does kind of change you, so it definitely forced me to kind of grow up a little bit and fight for a better position. That's what I would attribute it to.
02What’s the best career advice you’ve ever received?
The best career advice I've ever received is don't be afraid to pick up the phone. When I first got into this type of position in the construction aspect, I was so nervous to pick up the phone and do a cold call. I was always so worried about catching people at an inconvenient time. But it's really about getting out of your comfort zone and realizing that doing at least one thing during the day where you are going to be uncomfortable will allow you to push yourself to be more successful. I've had that mentality for probably about 4 or 5 years now, and then we just did a training about 2 weeks ago with Barb Bruno, a keynote speaker on LinkedIn, and that was actually something that she even said, so it just kind of reaffirms that mentality for me. It's something that I hear all the time in this business.
03What advice would you give to young women entering your industry?
I would definitely say either job shadow or ask lots of questions to somebody that you want their job. When I kind of first started out, I did have a great mentor, and he really helped to push me into kind of the person that I am, and that was because I asked the right questions. I oversaw his desk and what he did and how he was successful, and I tried to not only model that, but then continue to just kind of adjust with the changes in the recruitment industry. The biggest piece of advice is definitely trying to find someone, a job, or someone that really inspires you, and try and have a conversation with them, and see what's worked for them, and try and figure out a plan on how to make it work for you.
04What are the biggest challenges or opportunities in your field right now?
The biggest challenge in my field right now is probably the ghosting aspect. I've had a lot of issues with that as far as when I schedule interviews with people, especially for lower-level positions. We tend to have a lot of people schedule interviews and then not make their interviews, so that's definitely been probably the biggest point of contention. Sometimes finding new clients can also be a challenge. Those are probably the most challenging aspects of my position.
05What values are most important to you in your work and personal life?
I would definitely say hard work, determination, communication, and time management are the values most important to me. In the industry that I'm in, you have to work hard, you have to push yourself, you have to manage your time correctly and effectively, and you have to be able to communicate in order to be successful. Those definitely are some key values that I am about as a person, both personally and as a recruiter.
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