Episode 62: Women in Screening: Journeys, Growth, and Mentorship

In this episode of Behind the Screens, I sit down with an incredible panel of women leaders across the background screening industry to talk about how they built their careers, what keeps them engaged, and how the industry continues to evolve.

What stands out is a shared theme: no one planned this career, but once they entered the industry, they stayed. Why? Because of the constant change, the investigative nature of the work, and the real impact on people’s lives.

We also explore how women are shaping the future of screening through leadership, collaboration, and a more holistic approach to problem-solving.

This is a conversation about growth, mentorship, and finding your place in an industry that never stands still.

In this episode, you’ll learn:

• Why background screening becomes a long-term career for many professionals
• How curiosity and problem-solving drive success in the industry
• The evolving role of women in leadership across screening organizations
• Why mentorship and community are critical for career growth
• How PBSA supports education, networking, and industry standards
• The importance of collaboration, empathy, and listening in leadership
• Practical advice for newcomers entering the screening industry

This episode is for you if:

• You’re building a career in background screening, HR, or compliance
• You want to learn from experienced women leaders in the industry
• You’re navigating career growth, leadership, or mentorship
• You’re curious how others built long-term careers in screening
• You want real-world advice on thriving in a fast-changing industry

Connect with US:

• Les Rosen- https://www.linkedin.com/in/lesterrosen/
• Subscribe to our YouTube Channel- https://www.youtube.com/@BehindtheSCreens200

Transcript

SPEAKER_00 0:06

Welcome to Behind the Screens Conversations with Background Screening Pros. I'm Les Rosen, your host, and I'm excited to have you here. On this podcast, we chat with the people who know the background screening world inside and out. Executives, industry experts, legal pros, and more. We dive into their personal stories and insights to give you a real look at what's happening behind the scenes. Whether you work in the screening industry or are just curious, behind the screens bring you the real unfiltered conversations from the people who make it all happen. Stick around for stories you won't hear anywhere else. Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to another episode of Behind the Screens. I'm your host, Les Rosen. And before we get started, let me give my thanks once again to Barry Nixon and the Pre-Employment Directory for sponsoring our podcast. And for today's podcast, a special shout out to my friend Andrew Cashman, who helped arrange today's program. And today it is a real privilege to have this much talent in one podcast. Today we are hosting a very special panel that we're calling Women in Screening. My goal for this podcast is to move beyond the surface and really dive into the professional and personal journeys, the hard-earned expertise, and the unique perspectives of four of the most accomplished members of our industry, as well as have some fun to find out things that you may not know about them. So it's a great deal of pleasure. I welcome to today's podcast. Anna Jeff Coat, Brittany Adams, Christina Taylor, and Stacey Laird. Good evening or good afternoon, everybody. Welcome to the program.

SPEAKER_02 1:50

Good afternoon.

SPEAKER_00 1:52

So let's start off like we usually do. Let's find out where all our guests are calling from today. I think we're all over the United States. Anna, why don't we start with you? Where where are you today?

SPEAKER_03 2:02

I am in Fort Worth, Texas.

SPEAKER_00 2:04

All right. And uh what are you doing there?

SPEAKER_03 2:08

It's a good question. Well, today I'm it's a little bit hot for February, I would say. But um yeah, I was born and raised here, and so I haven't had a reason to leave quite yet, but we'll see.

SPEAKER_00 2:20

And you do you do know you're allowed to, right? I mean, okay. I just wanted to make sure that you're aware of that. And Brittany, where are you calling from?

SPEAKER_04 2:28

Yeah, I'm in beautiful Oregon, so about 10 miles south of Portland in Lake Oswego, and we have a beautiful sunny day. Actually, it's been beautiful the past couple of days, um, unseasonably, but I've been here about seven years.

SPEAKER_00 2:43

Oh, Lake Oswego, that's a beautiful area. Uh Christina, what about you? Where are you caught talking to us from today?

SPEAKER_05 2:48

I am just about an hour away from Anna. I'm outside of Dallas, Texas. So we're we're relatively close. And yes, I know I can leave, but I'm born and raised in Texas as well. You'll hear me. I'll end up with a y'all here in a minute.

SPEAKER_00 3:01

It'll be all right, you all. I love it. I love it. And finally, Stacy, where are you calling from today?

SPEAKER_02 3:08

I am on the beautiful island of Puerto Rico. CRI opened an office here about two years ago. So I now work out of this office. Our main office is in Tampa, but I'm here predominantly most of the time.

SPEAKER_00 3:22

Guy, I have to ask, are you close to the beach?

SPEAKER_02 3:24

About 25 steps, actually. Our office is not far.

SPEAKER_00 3:29

Do we strangle her now or later?

SPEAKER_02 3:33

I know. It's not bad, it's not bad.

SPEAKER_00 3:36

It's not bad. Well, all right. Well, someone has to do it. Okay. So let's just start off a little bit about each guest, and and we're gonna I'm gonna ask each guest to talk about their current role, their current position, what you do, what you like about it, what you find interesting, and also to kind of give us a summary of your career path. What was your journey to get to where you are today? How did you get from A to B? So for that, let's start with Brittany.

SPEAKER_04 4:03

Yay, thanks, Les. Um, this is my 21st year on March 1st. I'll have my 21st year in the background screening industry. I am currently. Wow, congratulations.

SPEAKER_01 4:13

I think.

SPEAKER_04 4:14

I did take a small sabbatical away from the industry, but I'll get to that. Um uh I'm currently the VP of Risk Intelligence at Equifax Workforce Solutions. I lead a team in the talent business unit. Um, my team is responsible for the strategy and execution of criminal data with our Screen Art Partners. So it's a lot of fun. This is what I've been doing pretty much since day one back in 2005. I really do find a lot about this industry uh interesting. And I would say we all kind of share in this, probably, but um really the intersection of compliance, data, technology, and just real people's lives that we impact, right? So I think that's really when we take ourselves outside of our own little bubble and we look at like why are we doing this and what we're doing and how it impacts people from a reputational perspective, from a financial perspective, from a safety perspective, very importantly in a career perspective, um, it's really important for us to remember why we're doing what we're doing, you know. And I love that part of the industry. It's tricky and it's a careful balance, right? So my journey again started a long time ago. Um, I replied to a monster jobs ad on monster.com.

SPEAKER_00 5:38

If anyone remembers show of hands, anyone remember monster.com? That's a blast from the past.

SPEAKER_04 5:46

I know. Uh I have a marketing degree. I had done some sales, some in advertising. This was a business development role I was looking to move into. Um, I uh I responded and I got the job. I was the sole uh revenue driver, I could say, for a small company called NC Records Online. Later became rapidcourt.com and um started my journey there. I was there for about a decade, uh, grew a team, uh, grew across the country in data product offerings and um and all different things. And I'm still very close to a lot of people that I started with way back then. We kind of grew up in the industry together. And um, like I said, about a about a decade in, I was like, I want to experience new things. I was a new mom. I just kind of wanted new challenges and things like that. So I uh accepted an opportunity to do a business development role, a sales role in um the work comp industry, work comp insurance, and and believe it or not, there's actually a decent amount of overlap. I saw some some of the same people at conferences really involved in that risk, you know, kind of reduction um in the workplace. Uh a couple of years, learned a lot, grew professionally, grew personally, and uh kind of just missed background screening. I think what I realized is that this is kind of like a big family. And I enjoyed having that as a constant in my adulthood. And so uh I kind of pivoted and and ended up getting hired as uh uh a business development leader um for Apris. So um really fun and exciting opportunity for me at the time. Um when I came on board, I remember having one of the initial um meetings, and um my leadership was like, you you gotta buffle in because you're in for a ride. And he and he was totally, totally on point. Uh within two years, we acquired innovative enterprises, secure attached screening, typhoon data, and some other smaller vendors. And it was a wild ride, and it was cool because it kind of brought me back to uh working with people that I had worked in a different capacity with previously. So kind of full circle. I think that's normal in the industry, right? Um, and then a couple of years later, Equifax purchased Apris. So that's where I am today. Worked under a couple of leaders at Equifax. I've learned a lot, I've grown my career a lot, continue to lead a team of people, which is my favorite thing to do, and really mentor people through um their careers. So yeah, and Equifax really gives me the capacity to do that. So yeah.

SPEAKER_00 8:31

Oh, okay, great. Well, Brittany, thank you. And now let's uh go to Christina. Christina, tell us who you're working with, what you're doing, how you like it, and how did you get there?

SPEAKER_05 8:41

Yeah, absolutely. So, Christina Taylor, I lead product partnerships for Checker in my current role. I've been with Checker for just about six years now, actually a little more than six years now. And prior to that, I worked at backgroundchecks.com for 12 and a half. So a little bit less than Britney, but I am about to celebrate 19 years with the industry. And it's very true. You know, once you start, you don't ever leave. It's it's definitely one of those that we I think they do some sort of like secret handshake when you join and you agree to never leave because I never found my way out. But I was a backgroundtext.com for a long time. I started as an entry-level job just to get me through college and uh was gonna take a very different career path. And then I it I loved it. I found a passion for data quality. When I started, I was developing relationships with ports and buying data for our own proprietary NatCrem database, and then also working with our partners and data providers within the NatCrim space. And so we just continued and I found this way to make it into a career, and I loved it. I love data quality and compliance and really just had a hunger for learning more and more about the industry. I love to be a subject matter expert in all things, so that gives me a thirst for learning all the time. And so after 12 and a half years, I it was shortly after GIS purchased higher right. I decided to take a leap of faith and move on to another opportunity. I moved over to Themus, which was the data company that had evolved from court ventures to Experium Public Records and then on to Themis. I had developed relationships with that company through my work at backgroundchecks.com. So moved over to Themis and led data quality and some other, you know, customer relations and things like that for Themus. And that was not long after Checker had purchased Themus and part of its series of acquisitions. And so I ran, ultimately ran operations for Themus and what is now Tassera for about four years and then moved over to Checker Core. And so at Checker now, I sit within the product organization. I report to our chief product officer, Elon Frank, and we are working on all of the partnerships that power Checker's products. I really enjoy being in the CRA space again and really teaching the people about how our supply chain works, how criminal data is. And then also it's been a nice journey for me to learn even more about the other side of the business that isn't criminal, right? I get so involved in criminal that now it's like learning about drug screening and employment verifications and professional licensing and a bunch of different areas. So my purview covers all of those product lines that that power checkers background checks.

SPEAKER_00 11:41

Wow. Well, that keeps you busy. So that's great. Brittany, you're at 21. Christina, you're at 19. And you both went through the cycle. You both got cycled through the various things that have occurred in the news over the years. Well, congratulations, fantastic. So I I think let me put the same question to Stacey. What are you doing now? What do you like about it? And how did you get there?

SPEAKER_02 12:00

Well, I just celebrated my 26th year anniversary at criminal research and investigation. So half my life I've been working at CRI and it feels like it's just flown by. You know, we are a wholesale provider in the space, so we provide our services to a lot of the CRAs in the background screening space. I have really grown over the years to appreciate all our clients and everything that we can do for our clients. And I think that's really kind of what powers us as a company is that relationship. And like Brittany said, understanding what we're delivering as far as who the end user is, like what we're really doing in this industry. The end user, we're protecting protecting people, protecting employers. And we tend to we spread that within our organization from day one with all our employees that come on board. But I initially started in this industry with one of the very first wholesale screening companies, Alan Haft and Associates. They were in Florida. I was in my early 20s, and we used fax machines and stamps and called vendors. There were no real computers then in our relational and the age, but very different time from what it is now. And you know, just been within the industry and watching it change and evolve has been a pretty wild ride. And, you know, every year we attend conferences and webinars, and things are changing so rapidly. And I think that's why people stay, right? There's no nothing idle, everything's changing. It's always interesting, it's always engaging. And so, you know, I've been here 26 years and you know, hopefully another 20 years in the industry.

SPEAKER_00 14:01

So I think we all suffer from attention deficit disorder because we all we all love, oh God, it can't it something has to change. What's what's going to change today, right? Yeah, yeah. I mean, it's the stimulation of like, oh, everything I knew now is now different. Okay, let's jump into that. So this is crazy. So you've all had the same experience. Well, thank you. And and Anna will uh tell us what you're doing and how you got there.

SPEAKER_03 14:25

Well, I feel right now like a baby in the industry. I've not been in it as long. So I'm the operations manager at Imperative Information Group, and we're a consumer reporting agency located in DFW. And I would have to say I agree with you, Stacy. The most interesting part of my role is definitely the variety. I mean, with all the different regulations and the jurisdictional details and the different areas of background screening, the days never feel stagnant, and I'm never bored. So it's great, and I love the opportunity to learn and improve my knowledge base. I was lucky enough to find this industry after taking some time off when my kids were young. So I only got into the background screening industry back in 2017. And I started as a research analyst and I loved the work. I really enjoyed it. But then about a year into that position, I had the opportunity to move into the operations manager role, and I've really enjoyed it. And it's been a great fit, it's been a great opportunity to learn. I still feel like I have so much more to learn, but I love that feeling. So it's been great.

SPEAKER_00 15:31

So other than having to see my coffee every day, you love what you do.

SPEAKER_03 15:35

You know, most of the time he's out and about. I thank God, right?

SPEAKER_00 15:41

I can say that because Mike and I have been friends forever, so I can't.

SPEAKER_02 15:44

Yeah, yeah, I believe that he knows everybody.

SPEAKER_00 15:48

So this is really interesting. You all have similar experiences of just being appreciating the you know, change. So that that that's so much fun. So the uh one of the interesting things that I love to ask yes is as we kind of you know go back and look at your recruiting industry, the name, if you if you care to a couple mentors or a couple shout-outs of some influencers. And if I'm keeping track right, I think Christina's up next to start this individual around. So yeah, Christina, anything you want to share on that on that front?

SPEAKER_05 16:21

I mean, Craig Kessler, the president of backgroundchecks.com, uh undoubtedly taught me everything I needed to know about the space. I was, like I said, I was 19, 20 when I started, and he taught me everything about this space and and really pushed me to learn more and was never unwilling to sit down and talk and brainstorm about an idea. And then later on, Kioki Huffman was just everything. Kioki undoubtedly changed my life by bringing me over to Themis. So those are probably two of the ones that that were made the biggest impact in my life and and in my career. And then also Chris Lemons. I can't help but hear Chris's voice to this day. Anytime, he's uh chief compliance officer for hire right now. But there are so many times where I think even today, I'm like, oh, Chris would say this or Chris would do this, because uh we worked so closely together over the years. We actually started within two days of each other at backgroundchecks.com and spent all of our time together doing lots of fun compliance-related issues. And so he was a big influence to me as well.

SPEAKER_00 17:31

Oh, that's great. And uh, Stacy, what about you? Anyone you want to give a shout-out to?

SPEAKER_02 17:36

Well, of course, you know, uh Lauren Zuluwaka, who's the owner of CRI, who's since retired. It was her and I for many years starting in the business, and you know, two women. And so a lot of times we just leaned on each other. We had a very different skill set. I call, you know, she was I call her the captain of the ship, and I was the navigator, right? So she had vision and I figured out a way to get us there. So that working relationship for 25 years of my life was, you know, the best thing I could have ever had. I've just had a lot of mentors and people that influenced me along the way, people that had tons of experience or people that were brand new. I mean, even people coming into the space now, they teach me something all the time. I am always learning from them or inspired by them or pushed by them to do something maybe that I wouldn't have normally done. You know, I look at some of the people that I've known for years, Andrew Cashman being one. Andrew was my vendor manager when he was at Employee Screen IQ and he was tough. He would he would call us and he was tough. And, you know, he taught me so much just in that uh relationship that we had together, and we're you know great friends today. So it's those interactions that I've had throughout the years that have really kind of determined and and shaped how I am within the industry today.

SPEAKER_00 19:14

You know, that's an interesting point too. Sometimes you get someone who's new who's not used to the way you do things, and they say, Well, why are you doing that? Well, because that's just the way we do it. Well, yeah, yeah. But why are you doing it? You realize, oh yeah, maybe we should rethink this. So that's that's a good point. So if I'm keeping track of where we are, I think uh Anna and then Britney. Anna, do any shout-outs or talk about any mentors?

SPEAKER_03 19:37

So Maricella Cesare was with Imperative, and she's actually the person who hired me when I first started. Now she's over at Meridian Link. And she over the years, she's been such a great influence, as well as just somebody who has helped me out. Because when I moved into the operations manager role, I had about a year of experience just in background checks at all, and mostly employment related, hadn't really dabbled that much in the other areas. And over the years, she helped me out so many times where I was like, hey, you know, I'm having an issue with this. And she, of course, knew Tazworks back in front, and we were on that platform, and she would show me how to fix it and show me how to do stuff, and so she really helped me along the way. Also, big shout out to Noelle Linetti. She I always found her very inspirational. She has such a wide knowledge base, she knows so much information. She's been around for years, and uh, she's really been an encouragement to me over the years.

SPEAKER_00 20:32

Yeah, in the industry, I mean Noelle Harding, right?

SPEAKER_03 20:34

Yeah, yeah, yeah.

SPEAKER_00 20:35

Yeah, yeah, yeah. Exactly.

SPEAKER_03 20:38

Oh, that's great. She's great. Well, thank you.

SPEAKER_00 20:41

And and and Brittany, what about you? Anyone you want mentors or any shout-outs? People influential in your career or how things progress for you?

SPEAKER_04 20:48

Yeah, you know, there there are a lot, and it's wild that you said Noelle Harling, because I remember my first PBSA, which was NAPBS at the time. I went to, I think it was in Nashville, and she spoke. And it was a small group at the time, but I was really young, and I was like, wow, I want to be like her when I grow up. And so I I've never told her that. She probably is like, I don't even know who you are. But I will never forget that moment. So if she's listening, hopefully, you know, she appreciates that. But really, there is this really cool group, kind of uh what I felt like was a core group for my, you know, immediate peers back in the day, and we kind of grew up in the industry together. I would say it's, you know, Vince Brote, Nick Fishman, Andrew Cashman, Jen Hoots, Dustin Dahl, Mike Wine, Mark Weinberg. There's there's a the list goes on and on, but we really grew up together and we learned from each other and we worked with each other here and we worked against each other there. And I think you really start to appreciate people as you, you know, have those experiences with them. And then, you know, I Have to say, I think as a woman, my really, really like number one mentor, I think, would be just my group of women that I've had since elementary school and middle school. Somehow I have the privilege of having these amazing women who are career-driven and mothers, and we all just support each other through it. And even though they're not in background screening, there's this, you know, camaraderie there. And there's this, well, who needs to mentor who at what point, you know, and it's just it's a really cool group. So I would say outside of the screening industry, just women in general, I have a great group, you know, that keeps me lifted.

SPEAKER_00 22:44

Oh, that's fantastic. Well, before we actually go into questions on the particular topic of our podcast day, Women in Screening, just one last round robin question. And I think this one, I think it's Stacy's turn to take the lead. It's fun to ask people to about looking back at their career, about one or two moments I c I call it the proud moment section where you you you think of something that you've done, it could be personal or professional, that brings a smile to your face and say, gosh darn it, I did that. And that's something you're you're you're you're happy about. And that you wish to share. So I think Stacy, you want to kick this one off?

SPEAKER_02 23:22

Yeah. So when I look at my kids, number one, I gosh darn it, I did that. You know, that's it's pretty amazing. It really is. Professionally, the the first thing that comes to mind is we we I I believe it was last year, the end of last year, we were working on an RFP, a pretty large RFP, and one of the questions had to do about our client base and needed to know some general information on our client base. So we went in and looked at the majority of our clients. Well, our oldest clients have been with us 25 years.

SPEAKER_01 24:03

Wow.

SPEAKER_02 24:04

So we have about a 95, 96% retention on all of our clients over all these years. And I think that speaks to the company that CRI is and the level of service that we deliver. And that is a super proud moment to know that our clients trust us and they've stuck with us all these years, you know, and we've built relationships, friendships, and that's just it's I don't know that you find that in other industries like you do in background screening. I've never found it, but I just felt like I've I'm proud for me, I'm proud for our team, and happy for our clients too, you know. So very proud moment.

SPEAKER_00 24:48

Well, congratulations. It's such an interesting economy. We're such a high-tech industry, but still a lot of it comes down to relationships. So there's kind of uh, you know, both sides of the coin. So let me uh go on the round robin. So Anna, you're you're up. What uh a proud moment that you want to share with us? It brings a smile.

SPEAKER_03 25:06

Yeah, I would say so. When I moved into the operations role, I was just like a year into the industry, and one of my first big tasks was to obtain PDSA accreditation. And it was it was great because I really was able to learn a lot about the industry really quickly, but it was a pretty big endeavor for a pretty new person to the background screening industry. And so when we got that pass, that felt really good.

SPEAKER_00 25:33

Oh, fantastic. Yeah, it's great. And Brittany.

SPEAKER_04 25:38

Yeah. So I would I would echo what Stacey said. I took my daughter, who's a senior in high school, to visit University of Oregon last weekend because that's where she will be going in the fall. And when I look back on the last couple of decades of my life, getting my children to the point that they're at now, and also maintaining a career since she was six weeks old, somehow, you know, it was a balance and it was a give and take here and there. Man, I didn't think I could do it when it all started. So I would say that's definitely my proudest moment, both personally and professionally.

SPEAKER_00 26:16

Oh, that's fantastic. And Christina, what comes to your mind, top of mind?

SPEAKER_05 26:21

You know, uh as a mom, I I have to say the same thing. I have been, and interestingly enough, I have been a remote employee. Craig Kessler gave me that chance many, many years ago. My daughter's 13. And so I've been a remote employee long before it became necessary for a pandemic. So being able to grow in my career and balance the needs of the household and two children and all of that has been a significant one for me. But and and I could think of, you know, oh, I've I've launched this project that saved a couple million dollars, or I signed this new partnership opportunity that did that has changed things. But for me, when I think about professional moments and those proud moments, I really find joy and and pride in bringing multiple groups together. Usually it involves some sort of teaching about how the industry works or how a product works or how the background screening process works. But bringing multiple groups together and really getting aligned and getting us all focused on the same thing and then executing in that is really something that I have found is not just a one-time proud moment, but a many, many times proud moment. And so I found that that's something that I just really can can do well and can bring people together and then execute. And I really enjoy that.

SPEAKER_00 27:48

Oh, that's fantastic. Well, I mean that's all great answers and great information. And oh, and and by the way, Noelle has been on the podcast previously, so so her episode is out there as well. Well, let's jump into the title of the panel, Women in Screening. Let me put this out there, and anyone is free to jump in and answer. So, what unique skills or perspectives do you feel that women are bringing into the screening process that the industry is learning the value? Does that make sense? Yeah. Anyone wanted to jump in? Whoever wants to start.

SPEAKER_02 28:23

Well, I'll answer. I feel like women are able to listen, assess, and deliver. So many times, you know, the clients come, they talk, they have a problem, they they're looking for a solution. So let me listen, let me understand the problem, then we can deliver or create a a response to a solution to this, and we'll deliver the result, right? So I think it all starts with good listening.

SPEAKER_03 28:56

I agree. Like to even when I so because sometimes even when it comes to dealing with like a consumer who needs something, taking that moment to slow down and really listen to what they need, I think improves their experience as well. So it's across the board as far as clients, consumers, vendors.

SPEAKER_05 29:20

Yeah, absolutely. I think that to extend on that, I think we uh have a tendency to think about things in a different way, no offense, less. But we we think about things from a more broad and global perspective. We're we're listening with empathy, we're thinking about the entire system, we're really trying to bring different elements together to whether it's to be to solve a problem, to bring forth a new solution. We're really combining like rigor and structure along with empathy and then solving a problem or creating a solution that works for our space. And we all know we don't forget a thing, right? So we have that ability to recall something that we did 20 years ago and and bring it to the solution today.

SPEAKER_00 30:06

I don't know why this comes to mind and and uh and Brittany will give you a chance to jump in. But my wife has a theory that if you ever get stopped for a traffic ticket, if it's a woman officer who stops you, you're over. She's gonna remember everything, write everything up. If it's a male officer, she can play the game. I'll go to traffic school, and then and then you know, he's not gonna remember anything. So that's just it's just funny. Right.

SPEAKER_04 30:28

But it's funny.

SPEAKER_00 30:30

And Britain, you want to jump in there as well?

SPEAKER_04 30:32

Yeah, no, I mean, really, just to just to tack on to what everybody else has said, I think, I think the empathetic kind of listening and and softer approach definitely comes with women. Not, you know, not all women, but you know, I think generally speaking, and we are in such an industry of like binary decision making where it's a clear or not. It's you know, a hire or not. It's a you know, yes or no. And I think that over the past decade, a little bit of gray has been introduced into the industry, like with fair chance hiring and with maybe giving someone a little bit more of a chance to prove themselves and maybe monitor them on a continuous basis or something like that. So, really just that little bit of gray, I think, can actually really help us evolve as an industry. And I think women probably have something to do with that.

SPEAKER_00 31:25

I really I really like the all those a little bit of gray and then here, Chris, you know, the discussion about seeing the the the uh the the whole the the whole picture. And and then that really leads into a question I I think I accidentally jumped over. I actually meant to first ask what do you think about the role of the women in the industry? Has that changed over the past few years? Has that evolved? And how do you see that going? Take it away.

SPEAKER_05 31:48

I definitely have seen a difference in the roles that we hold. And it's certainly not to say anything negative about the lower level positions, you know, the entry-level positions, but what I've seen is the women in this space are not just in marketing and operations anymore. We're in legal, we're chief compliance officer, we're in product, we're in sales, we're doing all of these. You can see executives, you can see that just from this panel. We are across every organization, every role within in the company, and really bringing strategic value to it. So that that's something that I feel I've seen in the last 19 years definitely increase is leadership and growth and and becoming a a voice for the space in a really special way.

SPEAKER_00 32:39

Great.

SPEAKER_04 32:40

Yeah, I'd agree with that. I feel like also we've seen an increase in women-owned businesses, which is is awesome. I don't think there were many of those back when I started. Stacey was probably the only one I can really think of. So CRI. So I think that's a really cool thing to see. And it's from the CRA perspective, it's vendors, it's consultants, you know, kind of across the board.

SPEAKER_02 33:06

Yeah, I've really I've really seen the shift, I have to agree, over the years. You know, I you think about who exhibited at the background screeners conference, and there weren't many women. You know, very few of us were there. And so now I looked on LinkedIn and there's a a new CEO of uh one of the top three background screening companies. There's, you know, somebody's posting their new women-owned business certificate that they got. There's, you know, women promoted left and right within our industry, and it's it's great to see. I feel like we're on equal footing, you know, just great to see in the industry the change.

SPEAKER_00 33:47

Yeah, and thinking back, I mean, I I mean Tammy Cohen was an early pioneer. Yeah, but but after Tammy, other than Tammy, there weren't that that many now. It's it's it's right, it's really changed. And Anna, you want to talk jump in here?

SPEAKER_03 33:59

Well, I was just gonna say, in my almost nine years, I haven't seen the early side of that. Since I've been in here, it's been a woman-dominated industry, and I've loved it. It's been great. So I I see where we've gotten and where we're going, and uh it's really exciting.

SPEAKER_00 34:16

That's fantastic. Well, let's move on to a question about uh industry misconceptions. Have there been any industry misconceptions that you've seen about women in a screen that you like to correct, or how that misconception is sometimes manifested as an invisible barrier that you and your colleague had to navigate? Has that happened to you, uh, anyone on this panel?

SPEAKER_04 34:37

I would say I don't deal with this at all anymore. I I remember in my 20s saying, okay, I can't wait, wait to hit 30. I can't wait till my 30th birthday when everyone else is like, I don't want to be 30. But I was like, I want to be taken seriously, finally, you know? And I think that that was all in my head. And I think it's a it's a very common thing for especially younger women. And I do see that changing, which is so great. But I would say if there are younger women listening, don't let that be an invisible barrier for you. Because, you know, yes, you know, you might gain more confidence with more experience, but you are just as important to be entering this industry and growing this industry where you are, where when you're there, as you know, someone who's been here for decades.

SPEAKER_00 35:22

So that's great. And Grasita, go ahead. And we'll go and go Stace and Anna.

SPEAKER_05 35:28

Yeah. So one thing that I think it goes back to my earlier answer about being collaborative. And I think that there's a misconception that being a collaborative leader means you're not a decisive leader. And I think we as women tend to, we want to bring people into the room. We want to listen, we want to make sure everyone feels heard. And that doesn't mean that we aren't being decisive. It means we're taking into consideration diverse perspectives, wanting to hear, you know, understand our blind spots and get everyone on the same page. And it, and I want to, you know, I've seen a trend in bringing ownership into the room and really being that decisive leadership and making the hard calls sometimes. And the the reality is we just have to be explicit. We say, here are our options, here are our trade-offs, here's the things that we are thinking about that we're intentionally not doing, here's our recommendation. And this is something that when you you can be collaborative and decisive at the same time and and not you know feel at fault for that.

SPEAKER_00 36:33

Excellent. Anderson wanna jump in on that.

SPEAKER_02 36:37

Yeah, Christina, I that is is such a good point. You know, I feel like you know, we're so much stronger together. I have decisions that I want to make, but I want to make the best decision. So let me include these other people that have so much information to add that I may not have so that we make the best overall decision for the company. Now, is that is that exclusive to women? No, it's not, but I do think women tend to lean that way. But I also know women don't have a problem with making a decision and making the best decision for the company, no matter you know, even not being collaborative in all cases. But I agree that women tend to lean that way a little bit more and pull on the knowledge of their team.

SPEAKER_01 37:30

Exactly.

SPEAKER_03 37:31

I think a great thing I had to learn is that I don't have to necessarily know everything. I like to try to learn it, and that's very exciting and interesting and keeps the days going. But it it's okay to like step back and be like, okay, I'm not the expert in this, so I'm gonna reach out to these people who are and bring them to the table and get all the best information and then collaborate and make that decision. So yeah.

SPEAKER_00 37:56

That's great. I mean, it changed the order around a little bit that we talked about, but I I I think this question probably is the next logical one. But what kind of support systems or practices have made a difference for you professionally? I mean, a couple of you've talked about having to balance, you know, the home life balance and and kids, family, and work. So what type of you know, support systems, support groups have have have helped you through those uh those type of issues?

SPEAKER_03 38:23

I'm not sure if it's like a support group, but I have really gotten into yoga and meditation. No, that's great, yeah. I might I have a 14-year-old and a 12-year-old, so I still feel like I'm very much a full-time parent, but I'm working this full-time job. And so I found it's really helpful for me to step back, maybe even get out of the house and spend a little time getting a workout in a quiet room where I'm just being coached through it and being told listen to your body and don't push yourself, you know, beyond what feels right. That's something that's helped me a lot.

SPEAKER_00 38:57

But it's true, you do have two full-time jobs. You have the household family job, and then you have the professional job, and you know, without getting the guys mad at me, off many of them don't have don't have that type of uh duality. So it's a completely different perspective. Anyone else jump in?

SPEAKER_05 39:16

Professionally, I think having a really great network, having people that whether it's at a conference or on an email or you know, hop on a call, you have people that you can call and you have experts that you know where you can just say, Can I bounce this idea off of you? Or I'm really struggling with this situation, and and they know you and they've like Brittany said, you know, there's a lot of people that we've grown up with in this space, and we can just communicate and they understand, they speak the same language with us, they know all about this space. And then for me personally, sometimes the the best support system is my family, whether I tell my husband he's like an honorary employee because he knows everything about everything that's going on. He's like, She did what? He did what he knows the whole thing. And my dad is is nowhere in this industry and he listens to everything he says. I think he probably understands about 10% of what I do, but that's okay. He listens really, really well. And even, you know, my kids, if I walk out of my office, like I said, I work from home. And so if I walk out of my office, my sweet little son will be like, Did you have a rough day? And I'm like, let's go play baseball outside. Like, let's just go do something. So I think the support system depends on what you're trying to tackle in that moment, but no matter what, you just find your person for whatever it is that you're feeling today.

SPEAKER_00 40:36

Yeah, that's that's great advice. And Brittany, you mentioned you have a group of friends from early on that that sort of thing that having a network helps.

SPEAKER_04 40:44

Yeah, that's true. And just going back to the collaboration, I mean, I think that's you know, as long as you have a team around you or industry colleagues around you that you can collaborate with. I mean, I lean on my team quite a bit. And it doesn't mean that I feel like I can't do everything. It's just we're better together. So I think that and and you know, and my leadership, Bart Lottenbach is awesome. He's really good to bounce things off of as well, and and knows when I need to vent or when I'm, you know, just super excited about something. So I think just having that surrounding yourself with those people. But I would definitely say, I think as my daughter, unfortunately for her, as she's gotten older, she has been my sounding board for a lot of things. And she is way more mature than even I am today. So I mean, she's just helped me through so many things, but but family's huge for sure. Yeah, and I have a son too, and he he likes to ask me how things have gone and how my date was, and he'll ask me how this podcast went later.

unknown 41:45

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 41:46

Oh, that's great. I I mean I love the phrase better together. I'm I'm hearing these consistent themes that you know, you know, you know, friends, family, support, and as Anna says, taking care of yourself as well, keeping uh you know, maintain that that life work balance. Uh and Stacey, I don't think we uh you want to jump in?

SPEAKER_02 42:03

Yeah, I I just uh agree with both, you know, work-wise, you've hired this these people, and you've there's this talent, so rely on the talent. They're there for a reason, they have experience, so draw on that and and pull from from their knowledge as well. And family's just a huge part of it, a supportive family, big or small, and Brittany, just like you, my youngest daughter, whoa, I mean, she corrects me all the time. And I'm like, how did you where did you learn that? How did you get so smart? You know, so yeah, insane.

SPEAKER_00 42:44

Oh, that's fantastic. I love that. How did you get so smart? That's and maybe this might help some sum it up. Is based on everything we've talked about, is there an early lesson you learned in your career that that pops to mind that kind of encapsulates you know some of the experiences you had that that has stayed with you that you like to share with the folks listening? And I'll just make this an open question, whoever wants to start.

SPEAKER_02 43:11

Well, I'll I got this piece of advice at our very first uh background screeners conference. I think it was the first one. It was from Tom Irvin, who later became the one of the founders of Convergence.

SPEAKER_00 43:26

We were new to the and great great guy, by the way, who's great guy, sadly has passed, but a wonderful, wonderful guy.

SPEAKER_02 43:33

He for some reason took a a liking to Lauren and I, and he said, Listen, girls, you gotta get out of the booth at the conference. You don't stay in the booth if you want to meet people and make sales, you gotta get out of the booth. And we took that to heart. And, you know, so now, of course, hallways, elevators, bars, you know, all the places during the conference. But he was the one. That kind of guided us very early on the proper way to handle yourself at a conference and you know network.

SPEAKER_00 44:10

I love that. I mean, as a former CRE owner, I hate it. Can I tell you as musical I haters I used to tell my folks, you just can't stand there. Go out and you know, touch somebody, you know, meet someone. That's that's great. Who wants to go next?

SPEAKER_04 44:24

I'd say make the most of PBSA, uh, whether it's the conference or being a part of a committee. I did that early on. I led the provider committee. I don't think it's called that anymore, but I learned a lot. I got a lot of built my network through doing that and and learned a lot about the industry, actually. And and then just, you know, at conferences, to Stacy's point, get in front of people, schedule time with people, be there when they're walking by, not just at the booth, everywhere, and and ask them questions and and be inquisitive because you can learn a lot from a lot of people in this industry. And, you know, and I think we've said it before, it's constantly changing. So getting, you know, different perspectives can really help you navigate those changes. But yeah, be involved in PBSA and go to the conferences, especially if you're, you know, still learning.

SPEAKER_00 45:22

Yeah, I I mean everything I learned it comes from 90% comes from talking to people. And it's just amazing. Uh Christina and Anna, you want to jump in?

SPEAKER_05 45:32

Yeah, I think for me, the what I have learned is that great work doesn't always speak for itself. Sometimes you have to connect it to an outcome.

SPEAKER_00 45:42

That's true.

SPEAKER_05 45:42

You know, like I I think, especially when you work in a very high-stakes environment and there's a lot of things going on, you want to assume that your work is just speaks for itself, or or that your collective teamwork speaks for itself and and that everybody notices. And sometimes you have to be able to connect it to an outcome and and make it very clear and say, I delivered this new feature, or I saved this much money, or I reduced risk in this area, or we collectively did those things. And it's not about you know promoting yourself, it's about showing the value and really being bringing tangible wins to your team, your collective efforts, your organization, and be your own best champion. I think that that's it's so important. We don't want to be too loud, too this, too that. And I think that's something that we can we can learn from and do better and and be our own best advocate.

SPEAKER_00 46:38

That is such a great point, because uh, you know, it if you don't speak up, and I I know what you're saying, you have to do it at the correct level. If you overdo it, it comes across poorly. But if you don't if you don't point out the obvious, I mean sometimes people don't see the obvious or they they just don't know. And so you know you have to advocate for yourself and your team. That's that's great advice. And and Anna, you want to jump in?

SPEAKER_03 47:02

Yeah, I think one thing that I had to learn early on and very quickly is that it was okay for me to admit that I didn't know something. And that in acknowledging that, it became an opportunity to learn something, and it didn't have to be a negative thing, it could be positive. And so that was something that once I accepted that I wasn't gonna know everything, and I could go out there and learn some of it and ask people for help, it became a lot more enjoyable to learn.

SPEAKER_00 47:30

Yeah, that's such a great point. Yeah, I mean, a lot of the things I've learned were for people ask me questions, I thought, yeah, I never thought of that before. And then that uh triggered I had to think about it and talk about it, ask other people. Well, before we move on from the the name of the podcast, Women in Screening, let's just ask an open question. Is there anything that I really haven't asked that you would like to mention in addition to what we've talked about before? And anyone just jump in. We leave anything on the table here.

SPEAKER_05 47:58

I can't think of anything. You were so thorough.

SPEAKER_00 48:02

Right. Well, that's good job, Les. Right. Well, yeah, and these are all such great points, and all the I mean, just everything that that you've said is is just really, really, really interesting. And let's pick up on what what Britney talked about, I think Stacy alluded to it as well, really quickly, the role of PBSA in your career. How has PBSA and involvement in PBSA impacted you?

SPEAKER_02 48:26

PBS, I mean, that's has taken the whole industry to a different level. I mean, you know, when we meet, it's it's like a big reunion, you know, so there's those friendships are solidified at that time. I mean, they provide guidance. They, you know, I just can't imagine operating out here without PBSA under the guidance of PBSA. I mean, I I think it's invaluable.

SPEAKER_05 48:56

I like how PBSA is speaking up for us when as whether it be the wholesalers, the CRAs, any, they they speak up, they are a powerful voice for us and and a thought leader as well. And they know how to bring people together. The networking we've talked about, networking is so important, not just because people are you know moving on to other opportunities within the industry, but also I think we're challenging ourselves to be innovative. And PBSA encourages that. They're encouraging these tough conversations and to spark innovation amongst us. And I I really like that that collaboration.

SPEAKER_00 49:35

That's great. And Anna and Brittany, I saw you both at the most recent PBSA meeting Anaheim. Anything you want to jump in and add?

SPEAKER_03 49:43

Well, I was actually just today working on my FCRA certificate. So there you go, PBSA. But I mean, like, seriously, the knowledge and resources made available through them have been a total game changer, at least for me. Like coming into it and being able to access all of that information and then go to those conferences and essentially get a crash course and all this invaluable data. It was so helpful.

SPEAKER_00 50:11

That's great. And and Brittany, we'll end with you on this one. Uh, anything you want to add?

SPEAKER_04 50:16

Yeah, I mean, I PBSA has had a huge role in my background screening career. And I I would just just say again, you know, be I recommend being involved as much as you can be. I know my team is very involved in PBSA and passionate about it. And and it the other thing, what Christina said, just the support that PBSA gives to what all of us are doing, and then also the information that they give to us that, you know, we might not know without their, you know, letting us know. And so there's just a lot of back and forth and engagement. And I think that's I I don't know. I think that that's pretty unique and and special for an industry that is constantly changing depending on the administration or the state you're talking about or the county itself. So yeah, it's we're we're lucky to have that governing body for sure.

SPEAKER_00 51:13

And and a shout out to Mary Pouquet, who was the second chair of PBSA, second co-chair. Also one of the early women pioneers. So so we're gonna go a little bit over the hour, but I don't want to, if you have time, as long as we have our panel here, we want to make sure we play fun facts and life beyond screening. And so we'll just start at the top of the order. Kind of lost track of where we are. We'll start with Anna and just go back down the order again. But before we sign off, what do you what do you do outside of background screening? And what is a fun fact that people may not know about you that once revealed will come back to haunt you at future PBSA conferences. And uh let's start with Anna. Anna, what's uh what do you do outside of it other than yoga and and what's a fun fact that no one suspects?

SPEAKER_03 52:01

Well, outside of yoga, I love hiking, but I am in Texas, so I can only do it at certain times of the year unless I travel a bit. And so I dabble in a little bit of gardening. But honestly, my free time is mostly spent with my family, my husband, my two kids. They're preteens, so they're a little hit or miss sometimes as to how much they want to hang with me right now, but I take it when I can get it. And then let's see, I'm actually surprised nobody's made themselves aware. So a little fact about me is I have a really hard time turning down animals in need. So because of that, I have six pets. So it's a little too much, but I know, I know. I have two large dogs who I locked out so they wouldn't try to interrupt, and then I have four cats, and it's kind of a miracle they haven't tried to join this podcast at this point. So it's so funny.

SPEAKER_00 52:54

There you go. All right, so so so you you might get adopted at a conference by Anna if she thinks you're right.

SPEAKER_01 53:00

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 53:00

That that that you're that you need some some help. Brittany, what about you? What do you do outside of background screening? And what's a fun fact that no one knows about or suspects?

SPEAKER_04 53:10

Yeah. Well, I I am a mom of two blended families, so we have four all together. So we have 10, 12, 14, and 17. So very long spectrum here. But that keeps me pretty busy. But outside of that, I try to keep a balance for myself with exercise and yoga and meditation as well. And I just I just took up belly dancing. I highly recommend it. Oh, yes. And it's it's a fun one. It's once a week and it it it really yeah, it lifts my spirits every time. And then I would say probably a there's a you know, what do I say? A fun fact for me is that I also have been remote for for many years, and throughout my life, I've lived in 10 states, never outside of the country, and two of those states twice. And it's been like all over the country. It started in the Midwest in Chicago. I've lived in Texas in the woodlands, for those of you who are aware, and then Florida a couple times. I went to Virginia Tech. I've lived all over the East Coast. I was in San Diego for six years and then made it up this way. So yeah, I've had a little taste of the entire country.

SPEAKER_00 54:19

So you're a vagabond.

SPEAKER_04 54:21

I mean, I guess so. And I don't know where it's gonna end up, but yeah.

SPEAKER_00 54:25

You don't know where you'll end up. That's all right. Well, there you go. Brittany Adams, belly dancer, vagabond extraordinaire.

SPEAKER_04 54:32

So I don't know if I call myself a belly dancer, but I'm I'm trying. It's harder than a horse.

SPEAKER_00 54:38

That's all that's all we can do. Right. And Christina, what about you? What do you do for fun? And what what would people be surprised to hear?

SPEAKER_05 54:47

I think unfortunately or fortunately, my hobbies are my kids' hobbies. So I'm always, if I'm not sitting in front of the computer, I'm either at the baseball fields with my son or the horse stables with my daughter. Maybe that will change when they can transport themselves, but right now I'm just there ride. And so, but I do actually love it. I love watching my daughter on the horse. I love watching my son play baseball. Both of those are actually, I find much joy in them. And embarrassingly enough, I'm very loud. Like I never thought I was going to be like a loud, obnoxious sports mom, but I am. It's really bad. My dad half the time is like, dogs can hear you. Like, stop quiet down. It's not great. And I can't control it. I tried it, you know, it doesn't work. So I just embrace who I am. Unrelated to background screening, fact about me, it'll make sense once you hear it, but I was actually going to college to be an elementary school teacher. So that was my passion from the time I was five years old and I read the book Matilda. The teacher in the book Matilda, her name was Miss Honey, and she had no money and she ate bread for dinner and sat on cardboard boxes. And that was my dream. That like that, I that was my what I inspired to do was like have furniture made out of cardboard boxes. And that was wonderful. And shockingly, my career diverted. Thankfully, probably I have more than cardboard boxes to sit on. But I I still feel like I have an element of teaching. I found a way to bring teaching into my my career here. I love talking to people about the industry and and telling people new things to consider or new things to learn. So yeah, but I do a little bit of sometimes I have I love emojis, so I always bring a little incorporate a little elementary education-ness into I love it.

SPEAKER_00 56:39

Christina Taylor, crazy sports mom. And I'm not sure you move that far away from being an elementary school teacher. You lead a team, it doesn't matter what industry you're in, you lead a team. It's a little bit like hurting cats.

SPEAKER_05 56:50

Thankfully, my team's just slightly, you know, more um elevated than kindergartners. But you know, so shout out to them for that. But yes, it's it's great.

SPEAKER_00 56:59

Oh, this is a great group. Okay, Stacy, the the barrier has been set high. Your turn.

SPEAKER_02 57:05

So for fun, since we are in Puerto Rico, my husband and I love we call it chasing waterfalls. So we try to hike to as many waterfalls as we can on the island. Our latest adventure, I think we bit off a little bit more than we could chew. It was it was tough. It was really tough. But we made it to the top. Got to the waterfall, one of the highest waterfalls in Puerto Rico. So that was lovely. My husband is also a pilot, so we try to fly here and there to different places. Haven't been doing as much of that lately, but if we can, we try to go explore. The one fact that most people probably wouldn't know about me, they might know. I was in the Navy and I was a torpedoman in the Navy. I wanted a non-traditional female job when I went in.

SPEAKER_01 58:03

Well, you got it.

SPEAKER_02 58:04

Yeah, I got it. Yeah, I was on a submarine tender and deployed in the first Gulf War into Bell Ali and worked on nuclear weapons, and that was very exciting.

SPEAKER_00 58:19

Wow. Well, that's a stunner, and obviously, thank you for your service. And that's so you be between chasing waterfalls and and and and working right next to nuclear weapons, yeah. Which one I think waterfalls might be safer.

SPEAKER_02 58:32

I think so too. I think so too.

SPEAKER_00 58:35

Oh, that that that's that's tremendous. Well, all right. I mean, and all of this resonates with me. I mean, I you know, I we've done a number of these programs, and you know, a lot of people are in the situation that that's been described where you're you're like the sports mom, and and your whole whole life is taken up with the soccer and baseball schedule or whatever. So there's just so many things going on. It's just it's really great. Well, we're coming towards the end here, much as I hate to say that. So there is one question left that if you could bear with me a little while longer. I do like to ask for people to give their advice to newcomers. I think we've got a little bit of that. But is there anything that for you'd like to say for women entering the screening industry or working to get ahead? What skills or mindsets you think would matter, or what would what do you think they should focus on? I mean, and and we've had some illusions of that already, but I think I'll just start across the screen as I see it. We'll just do Brittany, Christina, Stacey, and Anna, and then we'll wrap up. So, Brittany, you want to take that one first?

SPEAKER_04 59:37

Sure. You know, just watching so many people and being a part of a lot of my team's growth throughout the years, what I've realized is, especially if you're new starting off your career, whether it's in background screening or any other industry, it's important to really find what drives you. And if you start an entry level and you work your way up in operations, or if you start an entry-level sales and you work your way up through sales, be able to identify when it doesn't feel aligned anymore, if you ever get to that point, and be authentic to yourself and look for opportunities within the same industry, using the same knowledge, but maybe in a different way that might be more suitable for you. I've seen some people start in one way and then end up in a different position and being so much happier and just being grateful that they've had opportunities to shift a little bit. And so I think that's very important as you, you know, go through your career.

SPEAKER_00 1:00:44

Very good. Thank you. Christina, what what uh what advice would you give?

SPEAKER_05 1:00:48

Well, I'd say before you enter the industry, make sure you're gonna you're interested in staying, make sure you understand because we don't want you leave. That's number one. True. And number two, you know, I think you never leave.

SPEAKER_00 1:01:00

I like that. It's like Hotel California. Exactly.

SPEAKER_05 1:01:02

You're in. We're keeping you. You know, the the industry is is moving so fast. Our expectations are always growing. We're there's more automation, there's more legal scrutiny, there's more, there's higher expectations for accuracy and speed and fairness. And I think my advice would be be a sponge, ask questions, learn, absorb, you know, communicate very clearly, be loud, uh, surface trade-offs. Don't be afraid to raise your hand and say, you know, I think this is a little bit above my reach, but I'm gonna try it anyways, and and just dive headfirst in and don't wait. Just go and learn and do everything you can and and make an impact. And I think, you know, Les, you said this a little bit ago. You said somebody will say, Well, why don't we do this way? We well, that's just how we do it. Don't ever accept that as reality because you never know when your new idea as a new perspective or a new insight into something could completely change the game. And and so I think we should all, whether whether you're a female entering the screening business or anybody, don't be afraid to challenge the status quo and and dive right in.

SPEAKER_00 1:02:20

Oh, great advice. Stacey, what what would you tell people?

SPEAKER_02 1:02:24

I would say find a mentor, whether it or a group of mentors, whether it's you're out on LinkedIn and you're communicating with people that way or through a PBSA conference, they don't have to be within your specific organization. Find people that are willing to share information with you, and everybody does. Everybody wants to talk about what they know and how they got there, and everybody has advice. Listen to that, grab on to that. There's a lot of us out there that would love to help the next generation, you know. And like Christina said, we're not gonna let you leave. So just good, just kind of get used to it and you know, welcome to the party.

SPEAKER_00 1:03:08

I I I think maybe there's an implant. I got into the screening industry accidentally, and I I never left. And and I you know, how did that happen? And so someone must have implanted something in me, but I'm not really sure. But that's great advice. And and Anna, what uh what would your advice be?

SPEAKER_03 1:03:23

Very similar to Stacy, it's just take advantage of how friendly and welcoming the background checking industry is. You know, go to that PBSA conference, meet some people, ask your questions. I mean, if they don't know the answer, like if somebody I've gone up to people and been chatting and they've been like, oh, you don't know how to this. Oh, well, I don't know how to do that, but you know, you need to talk to this person. And I haven't run into that anywhere else I've been. It's just so great. So take advantage of people's kindness and get out there.

SPEAKER_00 1:03:54

Fantastic. Well, this has been such a great panel, and I really appreciate you all being here. Before we sign off, there's just one question left. I call it the last word. And if you have any closing thoughts or anything else you'd like to share, the floor is all yours. So let's do we'll do Christina, Stacy, Anna, and we'll end with Brittany. So Christina, the floor is yours.

SPEAKER_05 1:04:15

I would say I am so excited to continue to see how this industry evolves and how women continue to, you know, selfishly, we want to dominate, right? So I think that we as a industry, we recognize that our work is never done. There's always going to be problems to solve, and I can't wait to see what comes next. Thank you for having me.

SPEAKER_00 1:04:39

Oh, it's a pleasure to have you. And Stacy.

SPEAKER_02 1:04:42

I would say that I am so inspired by new women coming into this industry. The the women that I've seen that are up and coming, I think are amazing. They have so much to offer. They're inspiring me. They are rejuvenating me, if you will. And I look forward to the next couple of years. I think it's going to be really exciting.

SPEAKER_00 1:05:07

Fantastic. And Anna, anything you want to add? The floor is yours.

SPEAKER_03 1:05:11

Well, I think these lovely ladies have really covered it. I feel like I've learned so much today just by listening to the expertise in this room. And uh yeah, thank you so much for having me. It's been great.

SPEAKER_00 1:05:24

Oh, it's been it's been a pleasure having the whole the whole panel. And Brittany, we'll give you the last word to wrap it up.

SPEAKER_04 1:05:30

All right. Well, thanks, Les. I would say I agree with Anna. Everybody is saying all the right things. If you have the opportunity to be on the Less Rosen podcast, do it. And if you're asked to do, you know, anything in the industry, do it. People recognize, you know, really valuable people in this industry and want to help elevate you. So yeah, tackle those new challenges, step outside your comfort zone a little.

SPEAKER_00 1:05:59

Well, let me just say, Anna Jeff Coat, Brittany Adams, Christina Taylor, Stacey Laird, this has been a fantastic show, really wonderful, and I really appreciate your time. So thank you so much.

SPEAKER_04 1:06:11

Thank you, thank you, Les.

SPEAKER_00 1:06:13

Oh, my pleasure. So on behalf of the Behind the Screens broadcast, again, our sponsor, the pre-employment directory, is Barry Nixon. Another shout out again to Andrew Cashman for helping to arrange this. And we'll be back at a future time with more guests. And I'm not sure how future guests will top this show, but we'll find out. Thank you very much. All right, that was yet another wonderful conversation with a background screening pro. If you enjoyed today's episode, don't forget to hit subscribe so you never miss an update. And hey, if you got a moment, we'd love for you to leave us a review. It really helps get the word out. For more info or to catch up on past episodes, or to make suggestions, or to suggest possible future guests, head over to our website. Once again, this is your host Les Rosen, and it's been a pleasure to bring you another episode. See you on the next episode. Thanks.