Lauren Ford at Flowcode

Getting to Know: Lauren Ford

1. Tell us a bit about your role and what a “typical” day looks like

While my role is technically in HR, my day to day role is truly a varied one. One day I’m creating a schedule for new employee onboarding, other days I’m nailing down logistics for our company off-sites, ordering snacks and lunches for the office, sending out contracts, updating our domain inventory, calling in a fix for the HVAC, trying to find a klezmer band for an office pop up. It’s all over the place.

1. Tell us a little about yourself and how it played a part in your role now?

I moved to NYC to be an actor which eventually led to me being a freelancer for 10 different companies in 8 different job categories. I am used to learning on the fly and wearing a thousand different hats. Even though the hats changed, it is still very similar to what I do now. Y’know, monkey juggling and trying to make people happier.

3. What is the most challenging part of your job and how do you manage with challenges?

The most challenging part of my job is that I do a massive amount of context switching and priority juggling without any transition. I’ll be doing very deep detailed record auditing and suddenly I’ll get pinged about the internet slowing down and I have to drop what I’m doing and become a ten minute expert in nano ports, where in NYC you can buy them and pick them up in thirty minutes. It’s all over the place and none of the tasks are particularly related so I have to do a lot of process management to keep all the balls in the air. I make a lot of mistakes and it’s hard not to self-flagellate but then I remember the 180 other things I didn’t drop and I feel a little better about it.

4. What is your biggest career-related win? What is your biggest loss??

My biggest career win is that I transitioned out of twenty years focused on one profession and end goal, to reinventing myself in a new professional career. Since making that leap, I’ve worked with two amazing industry leaders, first at Brooklyn Brewery (as the public programming manager) and now at Flowcode. I actually started here as an office manager but transitioned into HR over the course of three years basically learning as I went. Now I’m about to take the SHRM exam which is something I never imagined for myself.

My biggest career loss was just not having the courage and resilience to keep going with acting. Giving it up was so hard and I juggled with a loss of identity and feelings of failure during and following the change. I don’t regret doing it nor do I regret giving it up but the loss still stings. It’s hard to know exactly what you want for so long and then suddenly to realize that the target has drifted so far that it’s time to rethink everything.

5. What advice would you give to someone in your field or looking to pursue a career in your field?

For anyone who has decided to transition from an artistic career to going into a more traditional job: don’t underestimate the power of networking.

You can be perfect for a job and submit a great cover letter but the difference between getting an interview or not is almost always having someone within the company put your resume in the short pile. Great recruiters will respond if you message them directly (that’s how I got into Flowcode) but still just find a way to be a person and not a number. Artistic work has applicable merit to other professions whether that’s creativity or intuition or connecting with coworkers and, if you can get that first interview, great recruiters will see that, BUT you have to get that first meeting so don’t be afraid to ask your LinkedIn network for intros. It’s absolutely key to getting a foot in the door.

6. Where do you see yourself in 5+ years?

By then I’m overdue for a fourth self-reinvention so it’s anyone’s guess.

Women's History Month is celebrated as a way to honor the contributions women have made to society throughout history. It is a month that is focused on educating people about the important impacts powerful women have made, in both the past and the present. This month we will be highlighting the many women at Flowcode making history. Make sure to?subscribe?to stay in the loop of new highlights.