My name is Randi Ordeshook — this is why I joined Aha!

What is the first thing you do when you join a new organization? Usually, you meet people. You introduce yourself and ask questions. These interactions are fascinating to me, and I enjoy coordinating them — it is one of the reasons why I took on so many club leadership roles and studied psychology in school. But the best parts are beyond the first impressions. It is in those moments when things start to click.

I love bringing people together — especially when it helps someone find a place where they feel like they belong.

I have been in people-focused roles since the start of my career. The first was through a leadership program at Target where I trained to manage one of their retail locations. Did I expect to be leading a team of more than 100 people right out of college? Not exactly. But I ran with it. And I am glad I did. I learned to hire and coach people for the job. It was so rewarding to help the team grow in both ways, and that is when I decided to pursue a career in people operations.

I lived on Long Island at the time and was eager to work in Manhattan. I set my sights on Macy's Herald Square: the flagship store. And I was persistent. I learned that they hired thousands of people during the holidays every year, but had not yet figured out a smooth way to handle this process. So, I convinced them to let me help — I was hired to oversee their recruiting efforts.

My first project was to build a seasonal hiring plan. It went well, and this snowballed into a full-time HR management position at the store, where I helped with everything from hiring to benefits and performance reviews. I was thrilled to take on this role. But making an impact on the team's success was even more motivating.

I spent five years at Macy's. In that time, I transitioned to the corporate side as an HR business partner. This role was more internal than recruiting — I focused on onboarding and development for team members. It was exciting to build more employee-facing experience. But my group was one of many in the organization. Eventually, I found myself wanting to be part of a smaller, more dynamic team.

My next move was to a leading global wine and spirits company. I continued with a similar HR business partner role, but shifted to talent acquisition after a few years. This, I loved. I joined a high-performing team and worked to improve our hiring process. It reminded me of how much I enjoyed the recruiting side of HR, which helped me clarify what I wanted to pursue next.

I knew how to help people find the right roles and grow in them. I was motivated to work at an organization where I could make a direct impact in both areas.

I was immediately impressed from the start of my interview process with the Aha! team (and as a recruiter, that is saying something). The questions were challenging, but focused. And the conversations were genuine and productive. I received feedback immediately after every round, so it was always clear where things stood. And from application to offer, the entire process moved super fast.

I was also happy to learn that the founders were still deeply involved in the day-to-day operations of the company. To me, this hinted that Aha! was a close-knit team that cared about one another as much as the business. And I was right — everyone I interviewed with was incredibly kind and seemed to share a passion for what they were building. I was seriously blown away.

I joined Aha! as the director of People Success about two years ago. Early on, I had the opportunity to help build a new recruiting team. I took the time to understand who we are and what we look for, and then helped hire some stellar recruiters to join me. We now work closely together to evolve our hiring and development workflows. For example, we expanded our recruiting efforts to ensure a broader group of people know about our open roles. We also automated our annual check-in process for team members.

We receive thousands of applications each month, and a real person reviews every one. Our team continues to grow organically based on the success of the business. Over the past few years, we have continued to hire across the company. (We are looking for exceptional people in engineering and Customer Success right now.)

It is a joy to meet so many talented people who are interested in joining Aha! and support their career growth.

My role here is unique. I am involved in each person's entire journey at the company. That means I am there for our prospective candidates as well as the team members who have been at Aha! for nearly a decade. I have gratitude (or as we call it, #hatitude) every day.

That is why I joined Aha! — and why you should too.