Since 2013, Regional Sales Manager May Huffer has been helping organizations choose the right mix of consulting services from HRchitect to ensure their upcoming HR technology projects are successful. Get to know more about her in this month’s HRchitect spotlight.
Hometown: Although I lived in various places as a child, I consider my hometown to be Las Vegas, NV because that’s where I spent most of my school years before attending college.
Alma Mater: University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV).
All-time favorite restaurant: Buca di Beppo, which is an Italian restaurant with locations throughout the United States. Going to Buca makes me think of my Grandma, since we’d always take her there on special occasions.
Last book you read: Look Alive Twenty-Five, which is one of the Stephanie Plum novels in a series by Janet Evanovich. The series is fantastic and I’m looking forward to reading the next one.
Favorite movie: I would say Titanic.
Hobbies: Lately I’ve been taking my daughter to the movies to see some cartoons, and that’s been really fun but I also enjoy reading and doing some genealogy research to learn more about my family lineage.
How did you find out about HRchitect, and what made you join? I was introduced to a member of the HRchitect sales team at an event in the Dallas/Fort Worth area, and we bonded over working in sales. I kept my eye out for opportunities at HRchitect, since based on that conversation, it was clear the company was poised for significant growth. A few months later, when I saw an opportunity posted, I applied and interviewed for the role.
I was really excited about the opportunity to work for a company in an industry that was totally new to me. I knew that there would be a significant learning curve to learning the HCM technology industry, but I was ready to take on that challenge and move away from the world of commodity sales.
In your own words, what do you do at HRchitect? I’m responsible for business development and relationship management in the northeast and southeast regions of the U.S. and eastern Canada.
What does a typical work day look like for you? Typically a lot of prospecting with internal and external clients. My goal is to make sure the prospects and partner reps that I communicate with always keep HRchitect top of mind when they have a need for consulting services. I spend a lot of time working collaboratively with our Marketing/Sales team to move leads and get projects/bids moving forward in the sales process.
What motivates you to wake up and go to work every day? Everything I do is for my daughter, Charlotte, but I genuinely enjoy working with everyone at the company. Matt Lafata our President & CEO gives me the autonomy to run my region as I see fit and provides us various tools to be able to do that successfully. It’s really motivating to me to know that I work for an organization that is supportive of what I do, and allows us the freedom to run our days in such a way that works for me both professionally and personally.
Is there a vertical that you find is really active right now? I’m seeing a lot of demand in the software vertical. Growing software organizations are reaching out quite frequently in the past quarter, needing help with figuring out a strategy for their HR technology. Quite a few of the organizations I’m working with at present are small software companies experiencing a period of high growth. It’s a bit ironic, but not all software companies know how to select and purchase the right software, particularly with all the nuances of HR technology systems.Since these companies are growing, they need to get a handle on having the right systems in place to allow them to expand, and we’re happy to help with that.
You’ve been to a number of industry conferences. What’s the best keynote speech you’ve had the chance to see? I saw Condoleezza Rice speak at an Oracle industry conference in Washington D.C. a few years back. Not only is she a great role model and strong inspiration for women, but she’s an amazing speaker and shared strategies around organizational transformation and success as it relates to our industry.
Which employee perk that HRchitect offers do you enjoy the most? Why? Other than the flexibility (working from home and the great work/life balance), the opportunity to attend different industry conferences. It’s always neat to have some face-to-face time with our clients, prospects and partner reps. I really like meeting new people, and since HCM technology is relevant to all verticals, I get to talk to clients and prospective clients every day, who always bring a different perspective to the table. The nature of our business allows me to have a different day every day, depending on who I’m talking to.
Learn more about May Huffer