Notes

Careers, hiring, and building teams.

Practical perspectives from 10+ years of placing senior talent and building People functions at venture-backed startups.

Community
Alta stopped being an idea
It started with a lunch and a question I couldn't put down. In June, a room full of senior women in Arizona tech found each other at our launch. The story behind Alta, with photos.
July 2026
Org design
Hire someone or buy a tool? Usually neither
Something breaks and the answer is always the same: add headcount or add software. Most of the time the team and tools you already have can fix it. What digging looks like before you spend.
July 2026
Hiring
The first round of hiring is becoming machine to machine
Candidates use AI to apply. Companies use AI to screen. Both sides are optimizing for the machine in front of them. What that means for your resume, and for your hiring process.
July 2026
Job search
The market got narrower than most people realize
I wrote a post for recruiters about senior interviews. My DMs filled with senior candidates out of work. Here's what their response told me about this market — and three things I'd change today.
June 2026
Interviewing
The candidates who get my offer aren't the most polished
The senior candidates I hire usually aren't the most polished interviewers. They're the ones who aren't trying to be interviewed at all. Why a real conversation wins.
June 2026
Job search
You're applying to jobs that don't exist
Roughly 20% of job postings right now are ghost jobs. How to spot them, why they shouldn't count as rejections, and where to put your energy instead.
June 2026
Community
Why I'm building Alta
There are 500 to 800 women working in tech at the senior IC level and above across the Phoenix metro. Most of them don't know each other. Here's why that's about to change.
May 2026
Leadership
The loneliest point in your career isn't the beginning
When you're running a function, mentors drift, recruiters have an angle, and most of your network doesn't understand your role. What's missing is peers.
May 2026
People strategy
Your startup needs a People strategy before you think it does
Most founders wait until 40 or 50 employees to make their first People hire. By then, they're not building. They're untangling.
April 2026
Career strategy
3 things hiring managers actually look for
After reviewing thousands of resumes and hiring hundreds of people, here's what actually moves the needle when you're trying to land the role.
April 2026