Influential Woman · Automotive and technology services
Jessica Dudley
Founder & CEO, Smarter Way To Apply Powered by Jess Recruiting LLC
Chandler, AZ
Her Story
About Jessica
Jessica Dudley serves as Founder, Director of Operations, and Executive Director of SmarterWayToApply.com, a business that began in automotive recruitment and HR and has pivoted to offering technology services and solutions for small and medium-sized businesses. She holds a Bachelor's in Human Resources Management, is a Certified Diversity Recruiter, and completed the TIP Strategic Talent Management course through HCI. Her professional journey started after being laid off, leading her to launch JEFS Recruiting, LLC nearly three years ago, which evolved into its current form. Dudley remains connected to the automotive space through ongoing contracts while focusing on client needs like product platforms and websites. She is a member of WOCON (Women of Color and Automotive Network) and serves as lay secretary at Greater Bethel AME Church, where she supports community education initiatives. Previously, she served five years on the board of Helping Hands for single moms and volunteers with Threads at Marcos de Niza High School through the Tempe Community Council, assisting with donations of hygiene supplies and essentials for students.
Her Interview
Ten minutes with Jessica
01What advice would you give to young women entering your industry?
Anytime that you're uncomfortable, that's where my most growth has developed. Do your research and find out as much as you can so that way you can have a little bit more confidence. Show up and put your head up, put your shoulders back, and walk in there as confidently as you can, just still knowing your piece and what you bring to the table, and what your value is. Say it with passion. Follow through with what you say. Every step that you take is just going to get you a little bit more closer to whatever your goal is, and it's not going to be an overnight success. It is going to take the right circle of people that can help encourage you, but all of that is just really gonna stem from your internal beliefs in yourself.
02What are the biggest challenges or opportunities in your field right now?
From a business standpoint, some of the challenges I've faced is some no's along the way. You don't anticipate so many no's as you're building a business. In various industries, sometimes there's those gender and ethnicity parts where they just immediately count you out because of those things, right? You think of automotive industry as a male dominant, you know, there is not a whole bunch of women in that space.
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