Building a business is a journey ... We're doing it as a community

When I was 23 years old I got my first tattoo. It’s a small mountainscape with a Hamsa symbol in the sky. The tattoo represents two things:

1. The mountainscape symbolizes the challenge of making progress. Life is a series of treks up the mountain.
2. The Hamsa was a symbol my mom wore on a necklace. For me, it represents her watching down on me as I navigate life.

A few months after getting this tattoo I began working on YAA. YAA is the largest mountain I have ever tried to climb. I frequently have relied on the memory of my mom to motivate me to keep going.

Over the years I’ve realized that some treks up the mountain are best done independently, while others benefit from getting a group of people together. I knew from the start that YAA is a mountain worth climbing amongst peers.

When Ray Shefska, Arash Soheili and I launched YAA in December of 2019, we had no clue where it would take us. We simply knew that we wanted to empower consumers and break down information asymmetry. Fast forward to today, and we’ve been able to do that for and with millions of people. That’s been incredibly rewarding.

From the outside looking in, some might think that we’ve reached the top of the mountain already. “You raised millions of dollars in venture capital. You get millions of views on your YouTube videos. You have tens of thousands of paying customers.”

Sure, for some that could represent the “top of the mountain,” but I know that even after 18+ months, we’ve barely left base camp. We have a lot more climbing to do.

To make it to the top of this mountain, we’ll need more people on the YAA team who are committed to our mission and vision. Today I am very excited to welcome seven new members to the YAA team:

Kimberly Kline has been with the YAA team since December of 2020. She recently joined us full-time to continue to advocate for fairness in the finance office at the car dealership. A 15 year veteran of the retail auto industry, Kimberly brings a passion for consumer empowerment that is energizing and admirable. We’re very excited to have her on the YAA team full-time!

James Vincent has been with the YAA team since December of 2020, and he recently joined us full-time as well. James is responsible for all of the incredible content we produce on the YAA YouTube channel. His positive attitude, commitment to learn and grow, and focus on providing value to the viewer are what make him stand out among the crowd. We’re very fortunate to have James join the team full-time.

Veera Srinivasan joined the YAA team today(!) as our Head of Software Engineering. Veera is a life-long learner who wants to make a meaningful and positive difference in society. I knew when I first met Veera that I wanted him to be a part of the YAA journey. Veera is a passionate problem solver, highly accomplished technologist, and charismatic leader. YAA will get further, faster with his involvement.

Katherine Kendall recently joined the YAA team to support the design of our product experience. Katherine “gets it” when it comes to the challenges consumers face when buying a car (maybe that has something to do with the fact that she recently leased a new Mini Cooper), and our team is stronger as a result of having her involved in YAA.

Justise Lasley joined the YAA team a few months ago as an Auto Advocate. Justise is the most patient, empathetic, and thoughtful member of the team. He supports over 100 members navigate their car buying process each week via live-chat. Thousands more benefit from his posts in the YAA community. Thank you Justise!

Mario Rodriguez joined the YAA team as an Auto Advocate. Mario, who goes by Space on the YAA community forum is an incredible consumer advocate. He has never once created a post on the YAA community. Instead, he has responded with 700+ comments helping other community members. How incredible is that? His commitment to empowering others energizes and inspires me.

Phil Nader recently joined the YAA team as an Auto Advocate. To his family and friends, Phil is the “car guru”. If you’re buying a car, you get Phil’s help. Now his advocacy spreads further with his involvement in the YAA community and live-chat.

I am humbled and appreciative of each of you that is a part of this journey. Thank you.

If you are interested in being a part of our advocacy, please consider joining our team here: https://joinyaa.com/careers