Tiana Oletzke

What do you do for memoryBlue? Tell us about your current position.

I focus exclusively on internal hires, which includes all of the Account Executives. Every month, memoryBlue has new clients coming on board, and their needs vary. So I’m always looking for new people. Sometimes I’m searching on various Internet sites like Monster.com, and sometimes I use college job boards. Mostly, I’m looking at resumes and reaching out to potential candidates who look like a good fit.

I see myself almost as a mediator. I’m in the middle, the in-between person helping candidates understand both sides of the story. I use Salesforce to upload resumes, send messages to potential candidates, and track the communications. I do the initial phone interview and if there is mutual interest, the candidate moves on to take our assessment, which I schedule and deliver.

After the assessment, I have a follow-up conversation with each candidate and try to get his or her honest feedback. If a candidate is still interested, and we’re still interested, I move the person on to the next part of the interview process, which is a face-to-face meeting with one of the Delivery Managers at our office. This gives the candidate an opportunity to learn more about memoryBlue and our culture, and it gives us the chance to get to know what is important to the candidate.

Your job involves reading people and figuring out who’s a good fit. What strategies do you employ to help you do your job?

Interestingly, I make a point of not coaching candidates for any part of the interview, whether for the assessments, interview, or the role-play. To the extent possible, we want to evaluate candidates “in the raw” because there can be a difference between what someone tells us in an interview and what’s really going on. It’s my job to get the real story. This search for the truth is a two-way street. It’s my responsibility to give people the most accurate portrayal of what it’s like to work at memoryBlue. Since I actually did the exact job the candidate is interviewing for, I feel I can share all the great things about the company, as well as all the challenges. In fact, I left memoryBlue for a couple of months and after seeing that the grass isn’t always greener, I returned.

No job, no company, and no person is perfect. I think that candidates like how I can “get real” with them. If things do not go well at any stage, I might be able to find out why. By gathering information, I can make sure that I portray the candidate in the best light possible to the decision makers. Alternatively, I can provide the candidate with additional information about working at memoryBlue, so they can make an informed decision.

What initially brought you to memoryBlue? How did your job as an Account Executive fit into your long-term career goals?

When I finished college, I interviewed with quite a few companies, hoping to find a place that would lead somewhere and allow me to grow. Most of the companies I interviewed with, though, couldn’t say much (or anything) about where the position might lead.

My goal was to do outside sales, and high tech seemed like an exciting, lucrative sales area in which to build a career. I had another offer at the time but got along really well with Marc, and when I thought about my future, I saw far more opportunity and potential with memoryBlue than any other company. I liked the “get in, get out” model, and that I could work there, get some good experience, and then go work for another company.

Why did you stay on with memoryBlue?

When I started, there were no internal positions, and I figured I would move on to another company at some point. A part of me always wanted to stay with the company, but I also was ready for a change.

Then, when the opportunity to move over to the search side of the business presented itself, it seemed like a really good option. From day one, Chris Corcoran, our other founder, took me under his wing and spent a lot of time personally training me. He would sometimes ride shotgun with me on the calls, and I was proactive with my learning. When I didn’t know how to handle something on a call, I’d write it down and then have a long list of questions for Chris. We’d go through them and troubleshoot.

Everyone at memoryBlue works as a team. Anytime I run into a problem, someone is there to help. The team offers constant support and is overwhelmingly positive. The morale is great, and the company is made up of good people. Now it’s my responsibility to make sure we continue to bring in good people.

You work remotely from Florida. How did that happen, and how do you make it work?

I honestly did not think that keeping my job was going to be an option when my boyfriend and I decided to move back to Florida. (He had received a job offer that he couldn’t turn down) Through my hard work, I had come to earn the trust of Marc and Chris. I was ecstatic and honored that memoryBlue wanted to keep me on and let me work remotely. They were growing the business and thought I had the personality and discipline to work remotely as a recruiter.

The remote arrangement has worked out really well on both ends. I’m a fitness addict and like to get my workout in during the middle of the day, and cook healthy meals. I couldn’t do this in a standard office job.

I’m not at memoryBlue to take advantage of the game room, the fantasy football, and the other fun stuff, but I still go there about twice a year for college career fairs — and even from Florida feel like a valuable member of the team.