Her Story
About Scharlene
I've been in the HR and AI coaching fields for over 30 years, and I'm passionate about helping people in everything I do. I founded my own HR consulting company where I work with clients to customize whatever training they need - whether that's creating onboarding programs, developing training around specific business needs, conducting audits of HR staff, writing policies and job descriptions, or providing training in all areas of HR and AI. I actually create all my own curriculum, even for the classes I teach. One of my most notable professional achievements was my global HR director role, where I used to travel around the globe training managers and meeting with different key stakeholders in organizations. For the past 10 years and 2 months, I've also been teaching as an adjunct professor at Lone Star College. Right now, I don't have a full-time job with another company - I do my consulting full-time along with my teaching. I'm particularly focused on my AI coach role, where I'm working to help seniors understand how to navigate through this AI world and keep us all safe. I have a real passion for helping and training people, which has been the driving force throughout my entire career.
Her Interview
Ten minutes with Scharlene
01What do you attribute your success to?
I attribute my success to just commitment and dedication. I try hard to have a goal and work toward it, so it's really about staying committed and dedicated to what I set out to do.
02What’s the best career advice you’ve ever received?
The best career advice I ever received was to take Toastmasters - to learn how to speak and not be afraid to speak in public. That training really helped me develop the confidence and skills I needed to communicate effectively in my career.
03What advice would you give to young women entering your industry?
My advice would be to just stay dedicated and committed to the industry and be active. If you're going to be a part of any industry, especially human resources like my field, or any field really, be a member of the associations, network, and stay in the loop with all the magazines and the articles and all the updates so you can stay on top of all the trends, because life changes every day, very fast. That's why I love participating in those certification programs and training, because it's going to change, and I like to stay sharp. You have to keep your knowledge base current.
04What are the biggest challenges or opportunities in your field right now?
The biggest opportunity is always trying to help others. The challenge is sometimes people don't want to learn new things - it's a change management issue. Sometimes people are so used to doing what they always done, they don't always like change. Change is always gonna happen, but that's sometimes hard to get people to sunset current procedures or processes to welcome new ones. It takes a little while and it's usually a challenge, but it's usually always going to happen whether you agree to it or not. Sometimes it's like pulling teeth getting people to be excited about it.
05What values are most important to you in your work and personal life?
The values most important to me in my work and personal life are honesty and Christianity. These principles guide everything I do, both professionally and personally.
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