Her Story
About Haley
Haley Bredbenner, is a human resources professional and currently serves as Human Resources Director at Atlantic Orthopaedics & Sports Medicine in Portsmouth, New Hampshire. In this leadership role, she oversees human resources across two companies, supporting approximately 120 employees and 30 providers. She partners closely with executives, physicians, and department leaders to align people strategies with organizational growth while overseeing areas including employee relations, talent acquisition, benefits, payroll, compliance, risk management, organizational development, and workforce planning.
Haley began her human resources career in 2022 with Securitas Security Services USA, Inc., where she progressed through recruiting and human resources roles and developed a broad foundation in employee relations, investigations, performance management, leave administration, compliance, benefits, onboarding, and HR operations.
In 2025, Haley joined Atlantic Orthopaedics & Sports Medicine as Human Resources Manager. In that role, she helped lead initiatives involving HR systems implementation, benefits strategy, compliance, recruitment, employee engagement, and organizational development. She was promoted to Human Resources Director in 2026, expanding her role in organizational strategy, leadership development, risk management, and workforce planning.
Haley holds a Master of Arts in Public Administration and a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology and Criminal Justice, with a minor in Sociology, from the University at Albany. She is SHRM-CP certified and has also earned SHRM credentials in Veterans at Work and Getting Talent Back to Work, reflecting her commitment to creating employment opportunities and supporting an inclusive workforce.
Throughout her career, Haley has built her leadership approach around continuous learning, resourcefulness, integrity, and a willingness to take on new challenges. She is passionate about creating workplaces where employees feel supported, leaders have the tools they need to succeed, and organizational decisions balance the needs of both the people and the business.
Her Interview
Ten minutes with Haley
01What do you attribute your success to?
I attribute a lot of my success to being open to learning and recognizing that I’m never going to know everything. When someone brings something new to me, I try to approach it with curiosity rather than feeling like I need to already have the answer. I’m willing to do the research, ask questions, and really dig into something until I understand it. I think being resourceful and having the mindset of, “I may not know this yet, but I can figure it out,” has been a big part of my growth and success.
02What’s the best career advice you’ve ever received?
The best career advice I’ve received is that you can be nervous and still be a leader. Being nervous or unsure doesn’t mean you’re not qualified or capable. You don’t have to feel completely ready before taking the next step in your career. I’ve learned that some of the biggest growth happens after you take that step. When you challenge yourself, figure things out along the way, and realize you’re more capable than you initially gave yourself credit for.
03What advice would you give to young women entering your industry?
My biggest advice would be to never stop learning and always try to be resourceful. Before you ask someone for the answer, take the time to see if you can find it yourself. Research it, learn about it, and then ask questions when you need to. That’s how you build confidence in your own abilities.
I’d also say don’t let anyone make you feel like your ambition is too much. If you have an idea, pursue it. If there’s something you want to accomplish, start working toward it. You don’t need to wait until you feel completely ready or until someone gives you permission. Have the motivation to take initiative and just do it. Some of the best opportunities in my career have come from being willing to take that first step.
04What are the biggest challenges or opportunities in your field right now?
One of the biggest challenges in HR is that it can be a difficult field to break into. A lot of roles require experience before you’ve really had the opportunity to gain that experience, so many people start in recruiting or an entry-level HR role and have to be intentional about building their knowledge and working their way up.
For me personally, another challenge has been finding my voice as a young woman in rooms with executives and other senior leaders. You have to learn to trust that you earned your seat at the table and that your perspective has value, even when you may be one of the youngest people in the room.
I also think women are still navigating the balance between being ambitious in their careers and the expectations that can exist outside of work. But I see all of these as opportunities too. There are more opportunities for women to step into leadership, advocate for themselves, and show that you don’t have to fit a certain age, personality, or traditional career path to be an effective leader.
05What values are most important to you in your work and personal life?
The values that are most important to me are integrity, honesty, kindness, trustworthiness, and doing what’s right even when it isn’t necessarily the easiest choice. In both my work and personal life, I want people to know that they can trust me and that I’m going to be honest and fair with them.
Especially working in HR, I think it’s important to look at decisions from every perspective. It can’t always be about what’s easiest for me or even what’s best for the company in that moment. I try to think about the people involved, the organization as a whole, and what is fair and ethical. At the end of the day, I want to be able to stand behind the decisions I make and feel confident that I handled them with integrity.
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