Tiara Levers, HR Manager on Influential Women

Influential Woman · Human Resources

Tiara Levers

HR Manager, Nestlé

Alexandria, VA

Certifications · Degrees · Memberships

Degree Bachelor's Degree in Human Resource Management and Labor Studies Degree Rutgers University Degree Master's Degree in Labor Studies and Employee Relations Cert Senior Certified Professional (SCP) - Society of Human Resource Management Member Society of Human Resource Management

Her Story

About Tiara

My journey into HR started unexpectedly during college when I was at a crossroads as a pre-med student who wasn't really enjoying it. I went to my career counseling office and did a career assessment, and HR came up as one of the recommendations. I took the Intro to HR class and fell in love with the field - everything that HR is responsible for, the breadth and depth of just HR itself, and the fact that it's something that every single company, organization, establishment needs. That's what spearheaded my journey into the field. I graduated from college with an offer from Amazon and jumped right into the HR world in 2017 as part of their HR college program. I spent about 6 years at Amazon, starting as a senior HR assistant and growing my career up to a senior HR business partner, even serving as an acting HR site lead for a while. I supported multiple fulfillment centers across New Jersey, and even did a few away missions to different states to help them out with best practices. In my last 2 years at Amazon, I switched over to the Amazon Web Services side of the company, supporting cloud computing and elastic block storage units with tech engineers and product managers. That led me to move to Arlington, Virginia for their second headquarter. After speaking to mentors, I realized I wanted to challenge myself to step out of my comfort zone that became Amazon and see how other companies are doing HR. I got reached out to by Nestle on LinkedIn, and after several interviews, I landed the role as HR Manager for Nestle USA in February 2024. I'm currently supporting our Chief Marketing Officer and her different marketing-adjacent teams, including social media marketing, marketing strategy, and corporate communications. One of my proudest accomplishments was being part of Amazon when they were going through labor relations negotiations out in Alabama - it was a short-term assignment where I was able to connect with people and provide such great service that even when my assignment ended, people were still messaging me. I had such a lasting impression on them that it renewed some people's faith and confidence within the company itself.

Her Interview

Ten minutes with Tiara

01What do you attribute your success to?

I would say, for me, it's my passion for the field, and then just my caring nature. I feel like no matter how big or small your role is, everyone has a chance and opportunity to make a difference, and the impression you leave on people can be lasting. So I try to just be the light that I could be in different areas and scenarios, even in the workplace, and that's something that has helped me just continue driving and driving over the years. It's not an easy field - it's not always building teams. Sometimes we do have to have difficult conversations, or sometimes I do have to let people go, and that often takes a toll on me because you're impacting someone's life in a major way. But I was speaking to a mentor of mine, and we were talking through it, and we're like, the day that we don't feel anything when we do that is the day that we should stop being HR business partners. Being caring and thinking about people and putting people first is truly the nature of the role, even though sometimes it does mean having those difficult conversations. So I would say that has really fueled me to continue - this is where I found that I can be impactful to other people, and just help others either grow, develop, or become who they need to be within the workspace.

02What values are most important to you in your work and personal life?

The thing that I love the most, and always will be, is just the people that I get the chance and opportunity to come across. The people drive the company, the people drive the results, they drive every single thing. So when you do take the time to invest in people, care for them as people, and really involve them in the overall strategy, it just shows better outcomes. That's something I enjoy - being able to either make someone's day by helping them find a resource or navigate a difficulty with their payroll, or even things that I get to do with some more of the senior leaders from a strategical perspective, to build out new roles and create new teams. That just constantly energizes and refreshes me. I strive to make a difference - no matter how big or small your role is, everyone has a chance and opportunity to make a difference, and the impression you leave on people can be lasting.

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