Dandy Career Growth & Development

Describe your career journey so far. What skills and experiences have you acquired along the way that have helped you get to where you are now?

I started my career in data at a Fortune 500 company, but quickly realized I wanted to do more than analyze numbers — I wanted to act on them. That shift led me into product management and then into the fast-paced world of startups, where I’ve built teams, partnerships and processes from the ground up. 

Now at Dandy, I’ve worked across go-to-market, operations and product. Each chapter built on the last. Data taught me precision, operations taught me resilience and product keeps me focused on impact. To truly own a product, you have to understand it inside and out — talk to customers, use it yourself and get your hands dirty.

What support did you receive from individuals or resources that helped you step into a leadership role?

I’ve been fortunate to work with mentors who modeled clear, decisive leadership and managers who trusted me with messy, high-impact projects. They pushed me to articulate why something mattered, not just what to do. Along the way, peers offered the kind of honest feedback — calling out blind spots and reinforcing strengths I hadn’t recognized — that helped me grow faster than any formal training ever could.

It wasn’t one big moment that made me a leader — it was a series of small ones where someone said, “I trust you to figure this out.”

How do you encourage other women on your team to become leaders themselves? Are there any stories you can share that showcase how you’ve done this?

For me, leadership isn’t something you earn later — it’s something you practice now. I try to help women on my team see that they’re already leading when they take initiative, give feedback or make decisions that raise the bar for quality.

One story that stands out: A designer on my team used to hesitate to speak up in cross-functional meetings, even when her perspective was exactly what was missing. We worked on how to frame her insights with context and confidence and I made a point to highlight her contributions publicly. Within a few months, she was leading those same discussions, mentoring others and shaping our design standards in the process.

Moments like that are what leadership is about for me — helping people see their own capability before they fully believe it themselves.