Welcome to the Life at Procore blog! Today’s post features Ashley, a Ventura, California-based corporate campaign manager whose passion for marketing led her to Procore.
In this monthly blog series, we shine a light on Procorians across the globe who are living our values of ownership, openness and optimism as we work to improve the lives of everyone in construction. They are Groundbreakers in every sense of the word, and these are their stories.
Can you tell us a bit about yourself?
I’m originally from a small town in the Monterey, California area. I went to college at California State University, Chico, and settled in Sacramento for five years before my now-husband and I decided to move to Wylie, Texas, a month before our wedding. After our first baby, we moved back to sunny Southern California to be closer to family. We now live in Ventura with our two kids and dog, and we love it!
Ashley and her family watching her favorite baseball team, the Angels, play.
What is Groundbreak, and how have you been involved over the years?
Groundbreak is Procore’s annual conference. We call it “the construction event of the year” because it’s not a standard user conference—it’s intended to bring the entire construction industry—from our customers and prospects to trade associations, media and partners—together under one roof. We also spotlight the great work our customers are doing, whether it’s a thought leadership topic like diversity, inclusion, equity and belonging or how they are leveraging Procore Analytics for a safer jobsite. Our partners also attend to show how we are part of a larger ecosystem and how Procore teams up with these companies—not competes with—to ensure our customers are taken care of.
The event happens over a few days, and this year (2022) it will take place in New Orleans from November 7-9. We are anticipating more than 70 breakout sessions, over 3,000 attendees and 20 countries represented. As a global company, we recognize people can’t always travel from wherever they are in the world, so we also offer a virtual version of the event by live streaming the opening day keynote and making some of the most popular sessions available on demand.
My involvement in Groundbreak has really grown over the years, and it’s been fun to watch the event evolve in my time at Procore too. I've seen Groundbreak go from being an in-person event to pivoting to a virtual event during the height of the pandemic to expanding to a global event reaching all corners of the world. This year, I'm fully immersed and directly responsible for all campaign efforts surrounding Groundbreak.
Ashley at the last in-person Groundbreak (Phoenix in 2019) with racecar driver Matt Dibenedetto.
What does a typical workday look like for you as a corporate campaign manager?
At Procore, we have campaign managers dedicated to specific regions and audiences, but my role is unique because I work with many different teams and audiences. At a high level, I carry out our corporate needs to appeal to a global audience while supporting brand activities.
Right now, I’m laser-focused on Groundbreak, so a typical day includes answering a thousand Slack questions, filling out decks, giving presentations, checking registration numbers, attending meetings, planning and more. Outside of the heavy Groundbreak season, a lot of my time goes into planning and promotion around Procore’s larger corporate initiatives. This can range from marketing efforts around construction safety to supporting our Procore.org team with projects like our Foundations for Progress webinar series or building a strategic campaign framework.
What made you decide to apply to Procore?
I’ve always been in the marketing world, even though my career brought me to a lot of different places. I started at a PR agency, went to an advertising agency, then joined an association management company before switching to a publishing house. After I left my last job, I knew I wanted to expand and grow something new for myself, which is when I stumbled across a job posting on Procore’s career site. At the time, I wasn’t familiar with Procore—I was new to the area, had been working remotely and didn’t have a strong social network for referrals. The position was for a global project management role in the marketing department, and I thought it was something fun that I had the experience to do.
Before I applied, I spent a significant amount of time learning about Procore as a company—what it had to offer and what the workplace culture was like. I know everyone likes to talk about the culture here, but it was a huge deciding factor for me. I found the Life at Procore Instagram and saw a post about people spending their day volunteering and cleaning up beaches. The fact that Procore supports giving back drew me in because my previous company didn’t have those types of opportunities. I wanted to move away from something where I felt like just a number, so I applied for the role, got it, and it’s been a wild journey ever since!
Who or what inspires you in your career?
I’m inspired by many of the people I work with each day for so many reasons. One person may be inspiring because they are cool, calm and collected in just about any situation you throw them in. Another reason may be because someone comes into everything with a specific point of view and are ready to take charge. Or I also appreciate the type of personality that can step back, make an observation and think about how they want to move forward. I take little tidbits from everybody because I believe there’s something to be learned from every new manager, leader and teammate. Procore is full of amazing professionals who are easy to look to for guidance.
What makes Procore a great place to work?
At Procore, your role can be what you make it. Of course, there are guardrails since you have to do the job you were hired for, but there isn’t anyone telling you that you can’t go beyond that and grow into something new. That’s a massive shift from other companies I’ve worked at, where you are put into a box to execute or plan something. At Procore, you can stay in that box if you want to and be very successful, or you can grow it, change it and own your career. I don’t think many companies offer that same level of support, and it’s something I love about working for Procore.
What is your reaction to being called a Groundbreaker?
I’m very flattered—it’s so kind, sweet and unexpected. I hesitate to call myself a Groundbreaker only because I feel like I’m doing the same stuff other people are doing. I’m part of a great team and don’t necessarily think it’s the individual that makes anything successful but the collective group. It takes a circus of people and departments to execute an event like Groundbreak from beginning to end, so I feel very fortunate to be surrounded by many incredible Groundbreakers.
Any tips for aspiring Procorians?
If you want to grow your career and see a role that interests you, go for it! The people here are very encouraging and supportive of helping people own their careers. If you’re looking for a change or something new where you don’t want to be a number or a face in a Zoom box, Procore will honor and recognize you as a person and provide the tools and resources you need to succeed.
Conclusion
A big thank you to Ashley for walking us through her story!
We’re always looking for Groundbreakers like Ashley to help us continue to improve the lives of everyone in construction. Explore a career with Procore today, or join our Talent Community to stay connected.
Kiersten Albert
Talent Brand Communications Specialist
- Groundbreakers
- Marketing
- Working Parent
