Her Story
About Kathryn
I have been in the human resources field for about 18 years. Currently, I serve as Vice President of People at Root Insurance, where I oversee total rewards including compensation and benefits, talent development, HRBPs, facilities and real estate, employee engagement, and recruiting. I inherited a team that needed significant retooling and have successfully rebuilt processes, hired new staff, and implemented new systems over the past two and a half years. My PhD in industrial organizational psychology sets me apart by making me highly data-savvy and focused on research design and validation.
Her Interview
Ten minutes with Kathryn
01What do you attribute your success to?
I attribute my success to being curious, being humble about what you don't know, treating people with respect, making sure that what you're doing adds value and supports the business, and being a good person. I focus on doing good things for the organization and caring about people's development.
02What’s the best career advice you’ve ever received?
The best career advice is to be really open to different experiences, say yes to opportunities even if you don't know what you'll get out of them, follow your interests and curiosity, and learn from every experience whether you love it or not.
03What advice would you give to young women entering your industry?
Get comfortable with data and Excel, use good storytelling backed by data, establish a leadership philosophy early, build strong partnerships, and say yes to projects as learning opportunities rather than just administrative tasks.
04What are the biggest challenges or opportunities in your field right now?
The biggest challenges are demonstrating business value in HR, balancing strategic and transactional work, overcoming the perception that HR is not data-driven, and using data and scientific methods to measure performance effectively rather than gut feelings.
05What values are most important to you in your work and personal life?
Treating people with respect, accuracy, quality of work, a little humor, and being open to new experiences are key. Family is very important, and finding a balance between work and personal life depending on what's going on.
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