Meeting Title: Brainforge Recruiting Process Discussion Date: 2026-02-24 Meeting participants: Amber Lin, Kaela Gallagher
WEBVTT
1 00:00:19.900 ⇒ 00:00:27.179 Kaela Gallagher: Hey, Amber, so sorry, I have been running eternally late today.
2 00:00:27.680 ⇒ 00:00:31.019 Amber Lin: All good. I know you were in a lot of calls today.
3 00:00:31.020 ⇒ 00:00:43.860 Kaela Gallagher: Yes, I am just trying to get to know everybody, and trying to grasp all the information that is Brainforge, and all the good things on Day 2, so… Oh, wow.
4 00:00:43.860 ⇒ 00:00:45.320 Amber Lin: Oh, it’s only day 2.
5 00:00:45.540 ⇒ 00:00:47.590 Amber Lin: Yes, yes. Wow.
6 00:00:47.590 ⇒ 00:00:54.240 Kaela Gallagher: Yeah, so started yesterday, did a little bit of, like, a recruiting handoff with
7 00:00:54.370 ⇒ 00:01:00.039 Kaela Gallagher: Rico and Utam. Okay. And then today, just trying to, like.
8 00:01:00.270 ⇒ 00:01:04.480 Kaela Gallagher: meet everybody, and learn about everything, and…
9 00:01:04.480 ⇒ 00:01:05.340 Amber Lin: It’s part of it.
10 00:01:05.349 ⇒ 00:01:06.019 Kaela Gallagher: So…
11 00:01:06.300 ⇒ 00:01:11.450 Amber Lin: Okay. Wait, I have a question. What year did you graduate from WVV?
12 00:01:11.450 ⇒ 00:01:13.150 Kaela Gallagher: 2022!
13 00:01:14.570 ⇒ 00:01:16.230 Kaela Gallagher: Were you 23?
14 00:01:16.230 ⇒ 00:01:17.930 Amber Lin: 24, so…
15 00:01:18.030 ⇒ 00:01:18.620 Kaela Gallagher: Oh!
16 00:01:19.670 ⇒ 00:01:28.329 Amber Lin: Wait, if we’re two years apart, were you in Hong Kong for your… oh, you were in U.S. for your fourth year.
17 00:01:28.650 ⇒ 00:01:31.630 Kaela Gallagher: No, I actually stayed in Italy.
18 00:01:31.630 ⇒ 00:01:33.310 Amber Lin: That’s so cool!
19 00:01:33.530 ⇒ 00:01:36.790 Kaela Gallagher: Yeah, yeah. Where did you end up doing your fourth year?
20 00:01:36.950 ⇒ 00:01:45.630 Amber Lin: I did USC, because first year was COVID for me, so I… I… like, I wasn’t in USC for my first year, so I had to come here.
21 00:01:45.630 ⇒ 00:01:51.680 Kaela Gallagher: Oh my gosh, yeah, okay, that makes sense, totally. Okay, cool. And,
22 00:01:52.010 ⇒ 00:01:58.009 Kaela Gallagher: Did, like, a good amount of your cohort stay in LA, or you guys kind of split up?
23 00:01:58.010 ⇒ 00:02:02.089 Amber Lin: I… I think there’s… there’s, like, 5?
24 00:02:02.340 ⇒ 00:02:06.119 Amber Lin: 8 people in… in LA. Okay.
25 00:02:06.120 ⇒ 00:02:06.820 Kaela Gallagher: Same for us.
26 00:02:06.820 ⇒ 00:02:17.390 Amber Lin: The Europeans are in Europe. The… I think most of the Asian folks went back to… no, I think they’re still in the US, but not in the… not in LA.
27 00:02:17.560 ⇒ 00:02:18.040 Kaela Gallagher: Okay.
28 00:02:18.040 ⇒ 00:02:31.719 Amber Lin: Because when they… when they take mostly banking and then mostly consulting jobs, they fly to New York, they go to other spots, where my friend is in Dubai, so they’re… they’re just all over.
29 00:02:31.720 ⇒ 00:02:48.500 Kaela Gallagher: Alright, cool. Yeah, there’s… there’s probably, like, 6 of us from my cohort in… in LA. We actually just had that happy hour last week when Nason was in town.
30 00:02:48.500 ⇒ 00:02:49.620 Amber Lin: Oh!
31 00:02:49.620 ⇒ 00:02:53.710 Kaela Gallagher: Though I got to see a couple people from my cohort I hadn’t seen in years.
32 00:02:53.710 ⇒ 00:03:02.819 Amber Lin: Wow. Do you still… do you still talk with the people from, from, from your cohort? I don’t really. I talk, like, two…
33 00:03:02.820 ⇒ 00:03:15.859 Kaela Gallagher: I have, like, my two closest friends from WBB. One is in New York, and one is in Istanbul. The people in LA…
34 00:03:17.500 ⇒ 00:03:19.429 Kaela Gallagher: I’ve been in touch with, like, one of them.
35 00:03:19.710 ⇒ 00:03:26.460 Kaela Gallagher: like, regularly, the rest of them, not, like, a ton, but I’m really excited, like, that…
36 00:03:26.850 ⇒ 00:03:31.350 Kaela Gallagher: there’s many of us, or a few of us, at least, from Brainforge in.
37 00:03:31.350 ⇒ 00:03:31.900 Amber Lin: I know.
38 00:03:31.900 ⇒ 00:03:45.669 Kaela Gallagher: Like, honestly, I’m, like, such a people person. All of my jobs have always been in person, and so this being a remote role, I was, like, a little bit nervous until I found out all, like, there’s so many people in COVID, and I’ve not…
39 00:03:45.670 ⇒ 00:03:52.550 Amber Lin: You’ll make us come out of our… come out of our working home a lot more.
40 00:03:52.550 ⇒ 00:03:52.990 Kaela Gallagher: Yeah.
41 00:03:52.990 ⇒ 00:03:58.290 Amber Lin: We’ve been… we’ve been trying to meet up, and it just… it only happens when Robert comes into town.
42 00:03:58.290 ⇒ 00:04:08.639 Kaela Gallagher: Oh my gosh, no, I’m gonna make it happen. Like, we’ll do… we’ll do a WeWork, or I don’t know, your conference room again, or something like that.
43 00:04:08.640 ⇒ 00:04:09.140 Amber Lin: Okay.
44 00:04:09.140 ⇒ 00:04:10.679 Kaela Gallagher: Even if we do it, like.
45 00:04:11.370 ⇒ 00:04:16.980 Kaela Gallagher: I don’t know. Just Wednesday afternoons. Like, we just have, like, a regular situation.
46 00:04:17.140 ⇒ 00:04:19.760 Kaela Gallagher: I think that would be fun. We can get.
47 00:04:19.760 ⇒ 00:04:27.780 Amber Lin: That would be fun. When you say, when you say, even if we do it, I would say, okay, she’s gonna say every month. Like, every week.
48 00:04:29.950 ⇒ 00:04:47.660 Amber Lin: Okay, that would be really helpful, because I really need to, like, because I work from home, like, my… because I’ve only worked from home for all of my… for all of my careers. So, my main issue is that I get so numbed, because I… like, the only thing that’s changing is this screen.
49 00:04:47.810 ⇒ 00:04:48.430 Kaela Gallagher: Yes.
50 00:04:48.430 ⇒ 00:04:51.079 Amber Lin: then I think I’m seeing new things, but it’s only
51 00:04:51.440 ⇒ 00:04:55.929 Amber Lin: like, my mind knows that this is just a screen, so… and then I get…
52 00:04:56.200 ⇒ 00:05:04.140 Amber Lin: And I get falsely depressed, and I go, I’m depressed, and I don’t know why. Because I don’t go outside, because it’s so tiring after work.
53 00:05:04.140 ⇒ 00:05:15.390 Kaela Gallagher: I know, I’m like, okay, I need to leave the house every day, like, I have to hold myself to that. If it’s a walk, it’s a walk. If it’s meeting up with Brainforged people, that’s what it is, like…
54 00:05:15.390 ⇒ 00:05:25.609 Kaela Gallagher: I’m… I need to leave my house every day. I can’t do this. So, okay, yeah, maybe next week we can… we can meet in person for the first time. Okay.
55 00:05:26.250 ⇒ 00:05:29.470 Kaela Gallagher: But I wanted to… I wanted to ask…
56 00:05:29.780 ⇒ 00:05:37.260 Kaela Gallagher: Well, I guess just a couple of questions about you, like, being a WPB person. Where did you grow up?
57 00:05:37.480 ⇒ 00:05:39.449 Amber Lin: I grew up in China, and then I.
58 00:05:39.450 ⇒ 00:05:39.890 Kaela Gallagher: Okay.
59 00:05:39.890 ⇒ 00:05:49.719 Amber Lin: I was in Canada for high school before I started this program, and I don’t have to explain this program to you, which I have to explain to every single other person.
60 00:05:51.290 ⇒ 00:05:54.639 Kaela Gallagher: When we were at the WBB happy hour.
61 00:05:56.090 ⇒ 00:06:11.589 Kaela Gallagher: last week, we all just looked at each other, and we were like, it’s so nice that we don’t have to explain where we went to school, you know? Like, it’s just, we’re all in the room of people that understand. Have you met Diana Young from my cohort?
62 00:06:11.590 ⇒ 00:06:12.230 Amber Lin: So…
63 00:06:12.230 ⇒ 00:06:23.849 Kaela Gallagher: Okay, she also, like, grew up in China, she’s, like, half Chinese, half Mongolian, and then… but then did high school in Canada, and then did WBB, like, she has kind of a similar…
64 00:06:23.850 ⇒ 00:06:34.469 Amber Lin: Okay, I mean, they look for the same people. You can always find someone that’s your duplicate, going up or going down. They have personas that they look for.
65 00:06:34.470 ⇒ 00:06:35.650 Kaela Gallagher: Oh, I know.
66 00:06:35.650 ⇒ 00:06:36.380 Amber Lin: So…
67 00:06:36.790 ⇒ 00:06:40.620 Kaela Gallagher: Okay, cool. And then you’ve been with Brainforge for, like, a year now?
68 00:06:40.620 ⇒ 00:06:44.290 Amber Lin: Yeah, I joined, last March.
69 00:06:44.290 ⇒ 00:06:47.319 Kaela Gallagher: So, almost a year, and this is by…
70 00:06:47.320 ⇒ 00:06:51.600 Amber Lin: First, I would say official U.S. job.
71 00:06:52.490 ⇒ 00:06:53.270 Kaela Gallagher: Okay!
72 00:06:53.270 ⇒ 00:06:56.060 Amber Lin: Okay, cool! .
73 00:06:56.090 ⇒ 00:07:01.309 Kaela Gallagher: how do you feel, I guess, this being, like, your first role about, like.
74 00:07:01.600 ⇒ 00:07:06.070 Kaela Gallagher: growth potential and, like, seeing yourself with Brainforge long-term.
75 00:07:06.810 ⇒ 00:07:08.870 Amber Lin: I…
76 00:07:09.300 ⇒ 00:07:20.470 Amber Lin: I think I… I see myself here for a reasonable amount of time, and I think in this pace of, like, especially for our type… type of roles, it…
77 00:07:20.500 ⇒ 00:07:34.569 Amber Lin: people switch roles very often, because that’s how they move up the career ladder, or how they get to access new things. But I do see, like, myself with Ranger for the reasonable amount of time, like, a few years at least.
78 00:07:34.670 ⇒ 00:07:49.719 Amber Lin: Because I do see that, okay, I’m able to try new things and learn new things, and I think the company has potential, especially in this… in this new era, in this new wave. Like, we’re doing the things that won’t leave our… won’t leave us behind.
79 00:07:49.810 ⇒ 00:08:05.950 Amber Lin: So, like, I mean, it checks all the box for me, so I don’t… I don’t necessarily have a particular reason that I would want to shift, unless it’s to shift to something that, like, the company doesn’t offer. For example, if I wanted some…
80 00:08:06.390 ⇒ 00:08:14.920 Amber Lin: If I magically wanted to go do accounting, which I don’t think I’ll ever do, then the company doesn’t have an accounting position, then I have to go do accounting.
81 00:08:15.120 ⇒ 00:08:24.080 Amber Lin: Right. Or maybe one day I get really tired of doing data stuff, and I’m like, I don’t want to do data stuff, and then I’ll have to think about, is this the way to go?
82 00:08:24.550 ⇒ 00:08:42.339 Kaela Gallagher: Okay, okay. That makes sense. Like, to start off, I’ll be focused a ton on, like, the recruiting side of things, but eventually I’ll also be doing, like, some people ops stuff, and kind of focused on, you know, like.
83 00:08:42.620 ⇒ 00:08:46.650 Kaela Gallagher: growth and retention and those kinds of things at Brainforge, so…
84 00:08:46.650 ⇒ 00:08:47.020 Amber Lin: Yeah.
85 00:08:47.020 ⇒ 00:09:02.420 Kaela Gallagher: if there’s ever any ideas that you have around people, or culture, or growth, anything like that, like, oh, I would love to do this certification, or I would love if Brainforge offered, like, this opportunity, definitely let me know. I’m all ears.
86 00:09:02.670 ⇒ 00:09:03.160 Amber Lin: Awesome.
87 00:09:04.430 ⇒ 00:09:12.679 Kaela Gallagher: I guess, like, moving into the recruiting side of the house, though, you’ve been involved in, like, the strategy side of recruiting, right?
88 00:09:13.340 ⇒ 00:09:22.409 Amber Lin: Yeah, I… I… my role in the company has changed quite a lot. I started out doing project management work, and about…
89 00:09:22.470 ⇒ 00:09:38.310 Amber Lin: I would say November or October last year, I switched to more on the strategy and data analysis side. So before, I was helping recruiting… recruit for PMs. We don’t have a technical… technically a PM role anymore.
90 00:09:38.310 ⇒ 00:09:44.339 Amber Lin: So I don’t think we recruit for PMs anymore, so right now, I’m helping with strategy and recruiting.
91 00:09:44.920 ⇒ 00:09:54.640 Kaela Gallagher: Okay, okay. And does that encompass, like, CSOs and EPs, or…
92 00:09:54.840 ⇒ 00:09:56.840 Amber Lin: It’s a lot of terms, I know.
93 00:09:57.450 ⇒ 00:10:00.160 Amber Lin: So… I… I think…
94 00:10:01.050 ⇒ 00:10:10.200 Amber Lin: You mean, does that include it when I’m recruiting for strategy? Do I also look for that… those type of qualities, or what is exactly the question?
95 00:10:10.650 ⇒ 00:10:16.110 Kaela Gallagher: like… When I go to our, like, hiring
96 00:10:16.130 ⇒ 00:10:21.080 Kaela Gallagher: page, like, Brainforge Careers. Okay, so we have postings for, like.
97 00:10:21.090 ⇒ 00:10:39.790 Kaela Gallagher: a senior associate of data and insights, or a product analyst. Those are the kinds of roles that you’re recruiting for, right? But then, like, once they’re in the door and they’re in the recruiting process, are you then funneling them into, like, CSO, EP.
98 00:10:39.790 ⇒ 00:10:57.779 Amber Lin: That would be U-Tam or someone more senior. They would… they would do that selection, because internally, I believe they call them these EP, SL, CSL leadership roles, so they need to be someone more senior. I think EP is an easier way to start.
99 00:10:57.780 ⇒ 00:10:58.170 Kaela Gallagher: Yeah.
100 00:10:58.170 ⇒ 00:11:04.949 Amber Lin: And usually, we do have more junior folks doing EP, because it’s more aligned with project management, coordination work.
101 00:11:04.970 ⇒ 00:11:13.920 Amber Lin: Cso, you need to have more, better communication, you need to handle difficult clients, handle the roadmap, handle renewals, so…
102 00:11:13.920 ⇒ 00:11:34.049 Amber Lin: a lot of communication and some sales, skills needed there, and the service leader just needs to be someone really, really technical architect, that be able to architect things, be able to lead things on a specific service, such as, data analysis or strategy, or, on AI, or on.
103 00:11:34.050 ⇒ 00:11:40.659 Amber Lin: Data pipelines and warehousing. So, those are, I think.
104 00:11:41.560 ⇒ 00:11:46.510 Amber Lin: additions to their original role. So, say this person’s a product analyst.
105 00:11:46.550 ⇒ 00:12:03.940 Amber Lin: And then Utam says, oh, this person is really good at communication, handling clients. Let’s have him try the CSO role on this client. I think that’s, for example, for Greg. Like, he came in as a product analyst, now they have him handle the relationship, with
106 00:12:04.080 ⇒ 00:12:05.810 Amber Lin: One of our clients’ default.
107 00:12:06.440 ⇒ 00:12:19.529 Kaela Gallagher: Okay, okay, got it. Okay, so you’re… you’re hiring either product analysts or senior data associates, and then if they show extra potential.
108 00:12:19.760 ⇒ 00:12:22.340 Kaela Gallagher: We’re giving them a leadership title.
109 00:12:22.820 ⇒ 00:12:29.489 Kaela Gallagher: Okay, okay. And, like, a product analyst is not gonna have, like, an SL title, because they’re not technical, right?
110 00:12:30.280 ⇒ 00:12:31.090 Amber Lin: Oh…
111 00:12:32.000 ⇒ 00:12:36.129 Kaela Gallagher: Like, they wouldn’t… I think more likely be in…
112 00:12:36.130 ⇒ 00:12:53.259 Amber Lin: They could… they could be an EP or CSO. I think, if someone can be a service leader, because we only have that many services, it depends on what service we offer officially. Because right now, our biggest areas are AI,
113 00:12:53.260 ⇒ 00:13:03.070 Amber Lin: data and strategy, right? If we, in the future, where it becomes so strong product analytics, it becomes its own division, per se, then we need a service leader for that division.
114 00:13:03.360 ⇒ 00:13:03.840 Kaela Gallagher: Right now…
115 00:13:03.840 ⇒ 00:13:16.940 Amber Lin: It’s just, like, a one-off thing. We kind of do it for a few clients. So, if it… product analytics becomes its own section, then Greg will probably be ESL, if he’s the most senior there.
116 00:13:17.200 ⇒ 00:13:19.310 Kaela Gallagher: Okay, okay. Yeah, that makes sense.
117 00:13:19.310 ⇒ 00:13:28.509 Amber Lin: experience. Doesn’t need to be too technical, but they just need to be very experienced, very knowledgeable, and be able to help the junior people figure out what to do.
118 00:13:28.670 ⇒ 00:13:31.499 Kaela Gallagher: Okay, yeah, they need to be, like, our in-house expert of that.
119 00:13:32.030 ⇒ 00:13:35.410 Kaela Gallagher: Yeah, okay. Okay, that makes sense.
120 00:13:35.920 ⇒ 00:13:41.390 Kaela Gallagher: As you’ve been doing interviews, I’m curious what backgrounds you’ve seen
121 00:13:42.150 ⇒ 00:13:51.580 Kaela Gallagher: have worked, whether it’s, like, industries that people come from, or company size, like, what people have you talked to that have, like, performed the best?
122 00:13:51.580 ⇒ 00:14:06.719 Amber Lin: Let’s see. We talked to a lot of people offshore, because that’s part of our recruiting strategy, to contain our margins and be more competitive. And we’ve also talked to some U.S. folks.
123 00:14:07.040 ⇒ 00:14:09.929 Amber Lin: I would say that…
124 00:14:10.050 ⇒ 00:14:18.410 Amber Lin: when I talk to offshore people, the chance of finding someone that matches is slightly lower.
125 00:14:18.410 ⇒ 00:14:34.920 Amber Lin: Not because they’re less talented, but because we’re from different cultures. And even though I am from China, I know the culture required to do business here is different. Your personality, how you communicate with clients, how you… what they value.
126 00:14:34.950 ⇒ 00:14:39.989 Amber Lin: You can’t… sometimes we can’t even write it out, it’s just implicit of who… how you do things.
127 00:14:40.240 ⇒ 00:14:40.870 Kaela Gallagher: Yeah.
128 00:14:40.870 ⇒ 00:14:46.530 Amber Lin: And then in a foreign country, their defaults are very different, so…
129 00:14:46.630 ⇒ 00:14:51.449 Amber Lin: A lot of times, why foreign candidates fail is just…
130 00:14:51.630 ⇒ 00:14:55.170 Amber Lin: They’re… the personality just doesn’t work.
131 00:14:55.290 ⇒ 00:14:57.930 Amber Lin: That well, or the communication is subpar.
132 00:14:58.390 ⇒ 00:15:08.080 Amber Lin: And so, other than that, if the communication works, if the personality works, then I would say the background,
133 00:15:08.860 ⇒ 00:15:19.120 Amber Lin: I haven’t… I haven’t really seen, say… I wouldn’t say, oh, this person’s startup enterprise background made a difference.
134 00:15:19.520 ⇒ 00:15:23.640 Amber Lin: Let’s see… Huh.
135 00:15:25.260 ⇒ 00:15:28.019 Amber Lin: Yeah, I… I don’t think I can give you…
136 00:15:28.170 ⇒ 00:15:38.390 Amber Lin: more answer than that. Like, my main judgment is, okay, is this person a fit for the culture? Because I’m not senior enough to judge their technical abilities.
137 00:15:38.740 ⇒ 00:15:39.090 Kaela Gallagher: Yeah.
138 00:15:39.090 ⇒ 00:15:42.830 Amber Lin: interviews are usually the first round. They’ll qualify if they will fit.
139 00:15:43.150 ⇒ 00:15:54.470 Kaela Gallagher: You’ll do a lot of, like, the culture… culture side, yeah. Yeah. Okay. I’m gonna start sitting in on, like, interviews, just, you know, camera off, just to fly on the wall to kind of.
140 00:15:54.470 ⇒ 00:15:59.650 Amber Lin: Yeah. There’s a final interview for someone this Friday, actually.
141 00:15:59.650 ⇒ 00:16:02.740 Kaela Gallagher: Yes. Would you be willing to add me to…
142 00:16:02.740 ⇒ 00:16:07.980 Amber Lin: Yeah, I… Robert owns that, so I… let me send you the screenshot.
143 00:16:08.210 ⇒ 00:16:15.070 Amber Lin: of that, and then you can ask him to add you, because I don’t have her…
144 00:16:15.810 ⇒ 00:16:18.030 Amber Lin: I don’t have access for that.
145 00:16:18.030 ⇒ 00:16:27.810 Kaela Gallagher: Okay, no worries. Yeah, I think we have, like, 3 interviews going off this week. One is the first round, one’s a second, one is a final, so I’m like, oh, perfect, I can see all of it in a week.
146 00:16:27.810 ⇒ 00:16:39.780 Amber Lin: Cool. I would say our interview process would love some more work. We… we try to standardize it a lot, like, we have, as you see, the first, second, final round, but…
147 00:16:40.470 ⇒ 00:16:52.750 Amber Lin: I just… I just still feel like it’s a little bit disjointed, and I’m usually… I’m just assigned a interview. And it matters less for me, because I’m the first round, so I just go see what this person is like, but…
148 00:16:52.750 ⇒ 00:17:00.559 Amber Lin: Like, I go in, I’m usually 5 minutes before the interview, and say, what is this person? What are they replying to? I don’t know what they’re about. So…
149 00:17:00.630 ⇒ 00:17:05.940 Amber Lin: I think with you here, that process will get more…
150 00:17:06.690 ⇒ 00:17:12.900 Amber Lin: unified, it’ll get more polished, I think it’ll just become a little bit easier.
151 00:17:13.460 ⇒ 00:17:14.050 Kaela Gallagher: Yeah.
152 00:17:14.050 ⇒ 00:17:15.380 Amber Lin: Judge if they’re a fit.
153 00:17:15.900 ⇒ 00:17:21.230 Kaela Gallagher: Okay, okay, it… I guess…
154 00:17:21.339 ⇒ 00:17:24.359 Kaela Gallagher: What part of that can I, like.
155 00:17:25.300 ⇒ 00:17:37.319 Kaela Gallagher: help with? Like, okay, so 5 minutes, you just get interviews added to your calendar, basically, and then right before the interview, you’re going in, pulling up the Notion profile, and the resume.
156 00:17:37.320 ⇒ 00:17:46.260 Amber Lin: I mean, Rico tells me, hey, this is the person you’re gonna interview. We do have stuff in Notion, which is a huge improvement, but…
157 00:17:46.560 ⇒ 00:17:55.649 Amber Lin: like, still, I’m not the most familiar with all the positions that we’re interviewing for, what we’re trying to qualify for,
158 00:17:56.060 ⇒ 00:18:14.249 Amber Lin: And, I mean, I ask my own kind of questions that somewhat I help standardize for the company, but they… they’re still… like, candidates get different experiences. I don’t think that’s always the fairest thing, if, like, I interview someone versus, say, I did an engineer versus interview… sorry.
159 00:18:14.250 ⇒ 00:18:20.100 Amber Lin: Or someone else interviews, and even if we’re trying to qualify for the same score.
160 00:18:20.140 ⇒ 00:18:28.299 Amber Lin: We ask different things, because we don’t have a standardized question, so we’re just asking what we feel like we should ask.
161 00:18:28.420 ⇒ 00:18:33.349 Amber Lin: So, we may miss out on someone if… if we’re…
162 00:18:34.090 ⇒ 00:18:41.369 Amber Lin: I guess missing out on someone is not the concern. I guess we just don’t have a very standardized assessment, and I know.
163 00:18:41.370 ⇒ 00:18:41.780 Kaela Gallagher: Okay.
164 00:18:41.780 ⇒ 00:18:48.470 Amber Lin: that Utam and the team is trying to work towards, so you will get more context from that eventually, I think.
165 00:18:48.890 ⇒ 00:18:50.770 Amber Lin: board car they’re working towards.
166 00:18:50.960 ⇒ 00:18:58.730 Kaela Gallagher: Yeah, okay, so, like, having a scorecard for you, or having, like, a list of questions for you, like, those things would be helpful.
167 00:18:59.580 ⇒ 00:19:11.820 Amber Lin: Yeah, and I think that lets more people do the interviews, because when I… when I get 3 interviews put on my calendar per week, it takes a lot from, my focus worker being able to deliver
168 00:19:12.180 ⇒ 00:19:13.540 Amber Lin: On the clients.
169 00:19:13.540 ⇒ 00:19:17.839 Kaela Gallagher: Yeah, yeah, and as we… Hire, too, like…
170 00:19:18.370 ⇒ 00:19:23.529 Kaela Gallagher: we’re gonna have, I think, more options of people that can conduct interviews, yeah.
171 00:19:23.530 ⇒ 00:19:27.400 Amber Lin: Would you be the one doing, say, qualifying calls?
172 00:19:28.100 ⇒ 00:19:29.040 Kaela Gallagher: I…
173 00:19:29.340 ⇒ 00:19:48.390 Kaela Gallagher: I’m not sure. I’m not sure yet. like, if I’m kind of breaking down the process with Utam, and we decide that I can do, like, a culture fit call, I’m more than happy to do that, and kind of be a part of the process with people.
174 00:19:49.890 ⇒ 00:19:57.520 Kaela Gallagher: And then, I don’t know, like, for strategy roles, maybe then the second round is you and…
175 00:19:57.760 ⇒ 00:20:00.789 Kaela Gallagher: Who’s doing the second row? No. Greg.
176 00:20:00.790 ⇒ 00:20:02.910 Amber Lin: So then maybe it’s, like, you…
177 00:20:02.980 ⇒ 00:20:14.810 Kaela Gallagher: and Greg are both the second round, or you’re already part of the final round, so maybe you don’t need to do the first round, because you’re already in the final, you know? Like, maybe it’s a redundancy to have you in the process twice.
178 00:20:15.810 ⇒ 00:20:16.849 Kaela Gallagher: Sort of thing.
179 00:20:16.850 ⇒ 00:20:18.399 Amber Lin: Makes sense, yeah.
180 00:20:18.400 ⇒ 00:20:30.749 Kaela Gallagher: So we can look into that. Okay, yeah, this is all super helpful feedback. I know you mentioned, like, you don’t think having a startup background is necessarily…
181 00:20:31.020 ⇒ 00:20:32.270 Kaela Gallagher: a benefit?
182 00:20:33.540 ⇒ 00:20:36.939 Amber Lin: I will say it’s not necessarily a differentiator.
183 00:20:36.940 ⇒ 00:20:37.530 Kaela Gallagher: Okay.
184 00:20:37.530 ⇒ 00:20:39.240 Amber Lin: And it could be…
185 00:20:39.460 ⇒ 00:20:49.310 Amber Lin: beneficial in terms of, being more scrappy, doing this, but then we… I think having a…
186 00:20:49.580 ⇒ 00:21:03.630 Amber Lin: formal training, which you don’t get at startups, is also very helpful, because as we grow bigger… I was just talking with Robert, and we are trying to become more polished, and people from startups will work as scrappy as we were before, so…
187 00:21:04.050 ⇒ 00:21:15.220 Amber Lin: if we want to be more polished, then we need people who have been trained in standards to… to show us what those standards look like, so I don’t think it really matters. I really think…
188 00:21:16.400 ⇒ 00:21:27.589 Amber Lin: a lot of people have technical expertise, but the personality fit of how they work with other folks in the company is very important, because I think we already have a group of
189 00:21:27.930 ⇒ 00:21:44.749 Amber Lin: people that have specific personalities, or specific values, or how people work together, and I think it’s very harmonic, I think it’s very nice, I think they’re very nice people. So, it’s selecting for the people that likes the same type of thing, or works the same type of way,
190 00:21:45.070 ⇒ 00:21:49.920 Amber Lin: willing to learn the agility to switch things, I think that’s what…
191 00:21:50.440 ⇒ 00:21:57.840 Amber Lin: That’s what we’re actually looking for, because people, if they learn fast, like, it doesn’t really matter what
192 00:21:57.990 ⇒ 00:21:58.920 Amber Lin: they’ve…
193 00:21:59.220 ⇒ 00:22:07.020 Amber Lin: done before, they just need to have some background, in my opinion. For more junior roles, especially. For more senior roles, then yes, they…
194 00:22:07.280 ⇒ 00:22:09.769 Amber Lin: Then… then it’s not up to my discretion.
195 00:22:09.770 ⇒ 00:22:10.440 Kaela Gallagher: Because.
196 00:22:10.440 ⇒ 00:22:11.509 Amber Lin: They’re too senior for me.
197 00:22:11.510 ⇒ 00:22:12.990 Kaela Gallagher: to judge them.
198 00:22:13.170 ⇒ 00:22:22.419 Kaela Gallagher: Okay, yeah, for junior roles, yeah, it really comes down to personality at the end of the day, that makes sense. Okay. Okay.
199 00:22:23.170 ⇒ 00:22:24.420 Kaela Gallagher: What’s the…
200 00:22:24.810 ⇒ 00:22:28.410 Amber Lin: Biggest, like, reason that you’ve said no…
201 00:22:28.410 ⇒ 00:22:34.780 Kaela Gallagher: to candidates. I’m assuming you’re saying no more so in the first round, rather than, like, the final panel?
202 00:22:34.780 ⇒ 00:22:40.589 Amber Lin: Yeah, we haven’t really had, like, that was… that’s my… the coming up one is my first panel interview.
203 00:22:40.590 ⇒ 00:22:42.260 Kaela Gallagher: Oh, okay!
204 00:22:42.260 ⇒ 00:22:51.589 Amber Lin: know how it works. But I would say how… my biggest reason saying no is, this person…
205 00:22:52.450 ⇒ 00:23:03.149 Amber Lin: So, it’s on communication. So, not just language bears, I don’t… like, accents is… it’s whatever, unless it’s too bad. So, can I understand them?
206 00:23:03.260 ⇒ 00:23:14.919 Amber Lin: Can they illustrate their story when I ask them about their experience, which everybody who interviews have practiced before, so can you even answer a question that you are.
207 00:23:14.920 ⇒ 00:23:15.440 Kaela Gallagher: There’s no permission.
208 00:23:15.440 ⇒ 00:23:21.110 Amber Lin: prepare for. Can you talk about it in a reasonable, structure?
209 00:23:21.110 ⇒ 00:23:21.460 Kaela Gallagher: Yeah.
210 00:23:21.460 ⇒ 00:23:22.319 Amber Lin: your thoughts?
211 00:23:22.580 ⇒ 00:23:28.560 Amber Lin: some people are very scattered. I don’t really know what they’re talking about. If I asked, a…
212 00:23:28.990 ⇒ 00:23:34.880 Amber Lin: a question that’s a little bit harder. I usually ask someone, how would your boss rate you? How would your boss
213 00:23:35.260 ⇒ 00:23:51.130 Amber Lin: asked him to… it’s from the book that Utam introduced to me. I was like, how… would you spell out your boss’s full name? How would they rate you? Why? Why would you… why would they rate you slightly lower than, like, out of 10? Why is it not a full 10?
214 00:23:51.240 ⇒ 00:23:52.440 Amber Lin: So…
215 00:23:52.590 ⇒ 00:23:58.080 Amber Lin: That kind of puts them on the spot, and they have to answer those questions, and if they can’t.
216 00:23:58.560 ⇒ 00:24:13.259 Amber Lin: answer what I’m asking about, that’s an issue, because why can’t you understand what I’m trying to get at? And that will be a problem if the client wants to know something, and you’re not talking about what they’re asking about. The client’s gonna get angry.
217 00:24:13.460 ⇒ 00:24:17.390 Amber Lin: So I’m mostly qualifying for that, and I asked them about
218 00:24:17.630 ⇒ 00:24:22.910 Amber Lin: what motivates you, what you care about. I try to assess if they’re just…
219 00:24:23.020 ⇒ 00:24:31.769 Amber Lin: if they’re being honest, or just giving me formulaic answers. Because you can say, oh, I… I want to…
220 00:24:31.950 ⇒ 00:24:38.040 Amber Lin: learn new… like, the only thing I want is to work on something that makes a difference. I’m like, okay, yes, but…
221 00:24:39.820 ⇒ 00:24:56.519 Amber Lin: Okay, you can… you can tell me… most people won’t say I want the money, or they won’t… some people would say, I want to work with certain people, some people would say, I want to learn new things, but even hearing what they would come up with.
222 00:24:56.610 ⇒ 00:25:01.800 Amber Lin: Is an indication of what… what has ever made appearance in their minds.
223 00:25:01.950 ⇒ 00:25:02.390 Amber Lin: So…
224 00:25:02.540 ⇒ 00:25:10.319 Amber Lin: If it’s all formulaic answers, then I’m not that interested, because we have so many candidates that would say the same thing.
225 00:25:10.740 ⇒ 00:25:16.800 Kaela Gallagher: Okay, okay, that makes sense. What has been, like, the hardest
226 00:25:17.360 ⇒ 00:25:21.589 Kaela Gallagher: Position for you guys to fill so far?
227 00:25:23.940 ⇒ 00:25:35.489 Amber Lin: I can’t answer on the data… I think we don’t have too much trouble on the more technical side, so data engineers, analytical engineers, those we have less problems for.
228 00:25:35.490 ⇒ 00:25:35.910 Kaela Gallagher: Yeah.
229 00:25:35.910 ⇒ 00:25:39.760 Amber Lin: Because the only requirement is that you’re very technical.
230 00:25:40.310 ⇒ 00:25:42.580 Amber Lin: That’s easier to select.
231 00:25:42.720 ⇒ 00:25:45.970 Amber Lin: And… easier to not…
232 00:25:46.670 ⇒ 00:25:54.909 Amber Lin: make mistakes when selecting, because if you’re either technical or you’re not. But for rules, I would say…
233 00:25:56.170 ⇒ 00:26:08.949 Amber Lin: I’ve… I’ve had issues hiring for project managers, probably because I was still early in my hiring process, and I still am, but my hire for PM coordinator was awful, so…
234 00:26:10.410 ⇒ 00:26:21.349 Amber Lin: I guess… but we’re no longer hiring for that. So I guess it would be… we’re trying on a strategy role. We’ve been trying to get a senior analyst
235 00:26:21.860 ⇒ 00:26:23.170 Amber Lin: that can…
236 00:26:23.460 ⇒ 00:26:35.790 Amber Lin: help architect, essentially a service lead on the strategy side to replace Robert, so he does… he can spend more time on sales. We have someone right now that we’re doing a trial with.
237 00:26:35.940 ⇒ 00:26:46.010 Amber Lin: But if she doesn’t work out, then we’ll have to go back to the hiring process. And as the strategy branch grows, I think you will also start
238 00:26:46.220 ⇒ 00:26:51.519 Amber Lin: Hiring for strategy folks, analysts, and that side.
239 00:26:51.630 ⇒ 00:27:05.269 Amber Lin: Because we’ve started out as a data company, we introduced AI, but strategy is still relatively young, because it grew off of data. So we’re still… and…
240 00:27:05.380 ⇒ 00:27:12.210 Amber Lin: I think for our relationship with clients, because we’re not BCG, we’re not Bain, we don’t have the big name, they usually come to us
241 00:27:12.820 ⇒ 00:27:30.169 Amber Lin: for a data thing, or for an AI thing, and as we work with them, as we got into their system, and we say, hey, this is an opportunity for strategy, this is an opportunity for analysis, so then we need strategy folks to fill in. So there’s always a second step, and that’s why.
242 00:27:30.170 ⇒ 00:27:30.650 Kaela Gallagher: Yeah.
243 00:27:30.650 ⇒ 00:27:32.389 Amber Lin: Our team is still so small.
244 00:27:32.560 ⇒ 00:27:35.679 Kaela Gallagher: Okay. Is Jasmine the one that’s on the trial right now?
245 00:27:35.680 ⇒ 00:27:37.479 Amber Lin: Okay. Yeah. Okay.
246 00:27:37.920 ⇒ 00:27:44.270 Kaela Gallagher: Okay, so in theory, we’re putting a pause on hiring for that senior strategy person.
247 00:27:44.420 ⇒ 00:28:01.070 Amber Lin: See if she works out? So, I believe our hiring always continues. We would just keep them warm if we have already qualified them and think they’re pretty good. We would just keep them in the pipeline to keep warm, because as we expand, we would need more people.
248 00:28:01.380 ⇒ 00:28:07.509 Kaela Gallagher: Okay. Okay. Okay, that makes sense. I know we’re at time, but do you have a few more minutes?
249 00:28:08.070 ⇒ 00:28:12.619 Kaela Gallagher: Okay, cool. What is, like, slowing down
250 00:28:12.970 ⇒ 00:28:35.049 Kaela Gallagher: the hiring process for you the most right now? Like, on… at least on the recruitment side of things, from my perspective, the candidate experience is super important, and, like, having, you know, a speedy hiring process where we can compete or get ahead of the other offers that they might have is going to be super important.
251 00:28:35.050 ⇒ 00:28:39.270 Kaela Gallagher: So I’m just curious, like, what might be slowing down the process the most right now.
252 00:28:39.270 ⇒ 00:28:50.419 Amber Lin: I see. I think we’ve improved significantly, when we first started. People get a response, either yes or no, regardless. I think our…
253 00:28:51.460 ⇒ 00:28:55.729 Amber Lin: We don’t have 10 interviews, we only have 3, which is nice.
254 00:28:55.760 ⇒ 00:29:14.710 Amber Lin: And also before, candidates weren’t really informed of what they would face, so I believe in their first email, they do get told that these are the interviews you would get if you progress. So, I do think we’ve improved on that. The only thing… if we have to find something that will slow it down, is the scheduling process.
255 00:29:14.760 ⇒ 00:29:18.129 Amber Lin: of, candidate schedules.
256 00:29:18.270 ⇒ 00:29:22.279 Amber Lin: And then we take the call, and then we send it back, and the candidate has to schedule again.
257 00:29:22.750 ⇒ 00:29:27.659 Amber Lin: Because there’s a lag time before. I take the meeting
258 00:29:28.000 ⇒ 00:29:32.159 Amber Lin: we group decision, and then Rico sends an email.
259 00:29:32.320 ⇒ 00:29:36.640 Amber Lin: And then a candidate had to see the email and then book. So…
260 00:29:37.650 ⇒ 00:29:42.760 Amber Lin: I don’t really know what can make that bastard. That’s, that’s… like, that’s…
261 00:29:43.110 ⇒ 00:29:46.139 Amber Lin: It seems like that’s how interviews have always worked.
262 00:29:46.360 ⇒ 00:29:50.900 Amber Lin: Perhaps there are some automations the team can help make, but that would be…
263 00:29:51.040 ⇒ 00:30:02.719 Amber Lin: That would perhaps help for, like, half a day or a day. We don’t really drag out for months, so it’s not… I don’t think we can go any much faster without losing quality.
264 00:30:02.940 ⇒ 00:30:18.770 Kaela Gallagher: Yeah, I was going through, our, like, pipeline today, and I noticed that there was a final round scheduled for, like, over a month away, and I was like, no! So, it seemed like that kind of scheduling thing could be…
265 00:30:19.170 ⇒ 00:30:27.869 Kaela Gallagher: an issue, even… even some of, like, the first and second rounds, where it’s like, we only need one interviewer, you know, on the call.
266 00:30:28.720 ⇒ 00:30:37.109 Kaela Gallagher: the candidates are scheduling over a week out, and so it’s like, okay, if every step of our process is taking a week and a half.
267 00:30:37.320 ⇒ 00:30:44.220 Kaela Gallagher: then this is over a month-long recruiting process, and at that point, they have other offers. So…
268 00:30:44.220 ⇒ 00:30:54.580 Amber Lin: Do you think we could… that’s a requirement we put on us, or put on the candidates? Because we don’t manage when the candidates schedule, so it’s up to their free will.
269 00:30:54.830 ⇒ 00:31:04.450 Kaela Gallagher: Exactly. So I think it needs to be an expectation set with the candidate of, like, hey, you’re moving to the next round, and you need to schedule this in the next 5 business days, or something like that.
270 00:31:04.760 ⇒ 00:31:06.110 Amber Lin: That makes sense, yeah.
271 00:31:06.110 ⇒ 00:31:09.019 Kaela Gallagher: Especially for, like, those first two rounds where, like.
272 00:31:09.320 ⇒ 00:31:25.999 Kaela Gallagher: we know it’s only one person that they’re meeting with, and that person does have availability on their calendar. Like, we know that that candidate has times to choose from in the next week, and if they’re interested and excited, like, they should be able to kind of make that work.
273 00:31:26.000 ⇒ 00:31:29.679 Amber Lin: That makes sense. So they either schedule or they reach out, and
274 00:31:30.040 ⇒ 00:31:33.489 Amber Lin: Through email with extra effort to say, I can’t do this.
275 00:31:33.640 ⇒ 00:31:35.370 Kaela Gallagher: Right, right, like…
276 00:31:35.870 ⇒ 00:31:46.889 Kaela Gallagher: yeah, if we’re like, hey, schedule this in the next 5 business days, and if there’s no times that work, like, reach out to us, like, let’s make something work. I don’t know. Just brainstorming, obviously.
277 00:31:46.890 ⇒ 00:31:48.690 Amber Lin: Yeah, that’ll be helpful.
278 00:31:48.690 ⇒ 00:31:56.889 Kaela Gallagher: Yeah, yeah, I think setting that expectation could be good, in terms of just moving… moving people through the pipeline a little bit quicker.
279 00:31:57.320 ⇒ 00:32:01.450 Kaela Gallagher: What’s, like, most frustrating to you about the recruiting process right now?
280 00:32:02.720 ⇒ 00:32:13.339 Kaela Gallagher: I know you mentioned, kind of, it feels a little bit disjointed, and, like, you don’t have a lot of information before you’re going into an interview, but I’m curious if there’s, like, anything else that you’d want to see improved.
281 00:32:14.410 ⇒ 00:32:16.090 Amber Lin: Let’s see…
282 00:32:16.790 ⇒ 00:32:29.080 Amber Lin: Not necessarily yet. And also, sometimes if I go in not knowing anything, it’s also okay, because I don’t have a bias or any preconception of who they are.
283 00:32:29.130 ⇒ 00:32:43.019 Amber Lin: I guess it’s not my pain point, but perhaps we can do more of a pre-qualification now that we have people, that can do that, because when we watch videos, we ask them to record a clip.
284 00:32:43.020 ⇒ 00:32:44.929 Kaela Gallagher: Yes. In the application.
285 00:32:44.930 ⇒ 00:32:45.680 Amber Lin: But…
286 00:32:46.050 ⇒ 00:32:57.999 Amber Lin: for those who screen it, I believe Rico is screening it for now. I do think he also lacks a bit of context of the U.S. customers that we’re working with, so…
287 00:32:59.050 ⇒ 00:33:04.499 Amber Lin: If we can have someone screen up, perhaps that would be you, perhaps that would be someone else.
288 00:33:04.630 ⇒ 00:33:14.830 Amber Lin: Screening that better would… would help filter out some candidates that would not qualify. So that’s… I would say that’s my,
289 00:33:14.870 ⇒ 00:33:25.740 Amber Lin: pain point as a first-round interviewer. Like, I would… now I am the person who spends 30 minutes to qualify something that perhaps has to be… would be qualified
290 00:33:25.810 ⇒ 00:33:28.250 Amber Lin: In 5 minutes or less.
291 00:33:28.250 ⇒ 00:33:32.240 Kaela Gallagher: Yeah, yeah. I don’t know how recent this…
292 00:33:33.000 ⇒ 00:33:37.290 Kaela Gallagher: processes, but I know that Utom is doing the Loom videos now.
293 00:33:37.290 ⇒ 00:33:41.429 Amber Lin: Oh, okay, so then, like, that wouldn’t be an issue.
294 00:33:41.590 ⇒ 00:33:43.999 Kaela Gallagher: Yeah, hopefully, hopefully. And that’s something…
295 00:33:44.000 ⇒ 00:33:44.600 Amber Lin: He has time.
296 00:33:44.930 ⇒ 00:33:45.720 Amber Lin: of them.
297 00:33:45.950 ⇒ 00:33:52.180 Kaela Gallagher: Yeah, that’s something eventually that I might, take over, just get off his plate, but he’s like.
298 00:33:52.560 ⇒ 00:33:56.370 Kaela Gallagher: It takes me, like, 10 minutes a week, like, it’s not that… it’s not the most.
299 00:33:56.370 ⇒ 00:34:13.859 Amber Lin: Yeah, but then he reads it on, like, four times speed, and the candidates are speaking, like, as he scrolls through all the videos. I don’t think it captures how they talk. Like, if you… if I talk on 4x speed, it wouldn’t change how I present.
300 00:34:13.900 ⇒ 00:34:18.040 Amber Lin: Because you just hear squeaks, and you’re like, okay, this is what they’re saying.
301 00:34:18.040 ⇒ 00:34:34.129 Kaela Gallagher: Okay, that makes sense. Okay, that’s good feedback. I guess, like, moving forward, in terms of, like, having a recruiting partner on your side, like, what can I do on my end to support you, or, like, for us to have a good partnership?
302 00:34:35.050 ⇒ 00:34:42.410 Amber Lin: Let’s see… I think for…
303 00:34:43.540 ⇒ 00:35:00.620 Amber Lin: Because I don’t interact with recruiting or operations much, I just see an interview, I do interview, I send interview note, like, that’s it. So… perhaps it would be helpful for the recruiting team if our feedback or notes are more…
304 00:35:00.880 ⇒ 00:35:02.450 Amber Lin: Centralized?
305 00:35:02.900 ⇒ 00:35:03.760 Amber Lin: But…
306 00:35:04.290 ⇒ 00:35:11.089 Amber Lin: I think I don’t have too much input, because I don’t use other people’s notes. I am other people’s notes for Greg or Robert to use.
307 00:35:11.300 ⇒ 00:35:12.120 Kaela Gallagher: Yeah.
308 00:35:12.120 ⇒ 00:35:15.949 Amber Lin: Perhaps if they have issues, once you talk to them, like, if they think.
309 00:35:16.060 ⇒ 00:35:23.030 Amber Lin: I don’t really understand what Ember’s notes mean, then, like, having someone to
310 00:35:23.590 ⇒ 00:35:29.950 Amber Lin: Communicate between us, or at least make sure that they do communicate that to me, would be helpful.
311 00:35:30.110 ⇒ 00:35:42.150 Amber Lin: So overall, like, I guess, standard setting for the recruiting side, making sure that we do communicate within each other, so more, like, making… managing the process, managing the team type deal.
312 00:35:42.680 ⇒ 00:35:43.950 Kaela Gallagher: Okay. Okay.
313 00:35:44.120 ⇒ 00:35:59.379 Amber Lin: Because people forget, and because we all do our client work, and then recruiting just… recruiting is always a third… second or third thought, so if you can… just having someone to bring it forefront, because it is important, would be helpful.
314 00:35:59.650 ⇒ 00:36:01.569 Kaela Gallagher: Yeah, okay, okay.
315 00:36:01.780 ⇒ 00:36:08.249 Kaela Gallagher: Cool, that sounds good. I think those are all the questions I have for you. Do you have anything for me?
316 00:36:08.250 ⇒ 00:36:21.749 Amber Lin: I don’t think so. I would love to meet up soon. Are you in Culver? Where in Culver are you? I am in… technically, I’m in Palms. If I cross the street, I’m in Culver. Okay, are you right next to Luke? He is…
317 00:36:21.750 ⇒ 00:36:22.450 Kaela Gallagher: I’m…
318 00:36:22.450 ⇒ 00:36:31.150 Amber Lin: He told me the same thing, that he is one street away from Culver. Yes, so him and I live, like, 3 blocks away from each other. Okay, I… I am…
319 00:36:31.370 ⇒ 00:36:33.259 Amber Lin: If you can… oh, you can’t see my.
320 00:36:33.260 ⇒ 00:36:34.680 Kaela Gallagher: Well, I went to your.
321 00:36:34.680 ⇒ 00:36:37.349 Amber Lin: Oh, yes, you do know where I am. Yay!
322 00:36:37.350 ⇒ 00:36:45.400 Kaela Gallagher: I’m, like, 5 minutes away. I’m at the… I’m, like, right next to the 405 where the 7-Eleven and the Shell gas station are.
323 00:36:45.400 ⇒ 00:36:52.910 Amber Lin: Oh, are you towards… sorry, are you towards Ralph’s, or are you towards…
324 00:36:53.250 ⇒ 00:37:02.510 Amber Lin: covert downtown, like, which direction from me? Right. Okay, so that way… And then… Oh, okay.
325 00:37:02.960 ⇒ 00:37:03.550 Amber Lin: Okay.
326 00:37:03.550 ⇒ 00:37:03.900 Kaela Gallagher: Like…
327 00:37:03.900 ⇒ 00:37:04.520 Amber Lin: No.
328 00:37:04.790 ⇒ 00:37:05.449 Kaela Gallagher: It’s fine, like.
329 00:37:05.450 ⇒ 00:37:06.519 Amber Lin: Know where you are.
330 00:37:06.520 ⇒ 00:37:11.469 Kaela Gallagher: I’m right next to the 405, and if I go to the other side of the 405, it’s Mar Vista.
331 00:37:12.250 ⇒ 00:37:14.810 Amber Lin: Marvista. Oh, okay.
332 00:37:15.110 ⇒ 00:37:15.620 Kaela Gallagher: So I’m like…
333 00:37:15.620 ⇒ 00:37:23.219 Amber Lin: Can you give me, like, a coffee shop name that’s near you, so I can go check it out? Maybe we can meet up there sometime?
334 00:37:23.220 ⇒ 00:37:28.230 Kaela Gallagher: Oh, yeah. The closest one is called Kind Grounds.
335 00:37:28.540 ⇒ 00:37:34.040 Kaela Gallagher: But… there’s one actually right next to you that I’ve really been wanting to try.
336 00:37:34.040 ⇒ 00:37:34.730 Amber Lin: Huh.
337 00:37:34.950 ⇒ 00:37:37.420 Kaela Gallagher: It’s called… let me pull it up…
338 00:37:41.230 ⇒ 00:37:42.410 Kaela Gallagher: Laylo?
339 00:37:42.780 ⇒ 00:37:47.420 Kaela Gallagher: Lilo? L-E-I… L.O. Coffee?
340 00:37:48.180 ⇒ 00:37:54.460 Amber Lin: L… E… Aye.
341 00:37:54.460 ⇒ 00:37:55.570 Kaela Gallagher: L.O.
342 00:37:55.570 ⇒ 00:37:56.640 Amber Lin: L-O.
343 00:37:56.920 ⇒ 00:37:59.760 Kaela Gallagher: I think this is, like, a block away from you.
344 00:38:01.040 ⇒ 00:38:03.330 Amber Lin: Oh yeah, that does look very nice.
345 00:38:03.770 ⇒ 00:38:09.910 Amber Lin: Okay, I’m down. I think I’ve always walked past, but I’ve always walked past when it’s closed.
346 00:38:09.910 ⇒ 00:38:11.520 Kaela Gallagher: Okay, okay.
347 00:38:11.520 ⇒ 00:38:12.350 Amber Lin: Cool. Okay.
348 00:38:12.770 ⇒ 00:38:16.480 Amber Lin: Yeah, this is right next to me. I mean, this is on the other side of Sony, but…
349 00:38:17.090 ⇒ 00:38:17.480 Kaela Gallagher: Yeah.
350 00:38:17.480 ⇒ 00:38:24.150 Amber Lin: We can go there. I mean, I’m down to go this week, even just for a coffee break, if you’re down.
351 00:38:24.150 ⇒ 00:38:26.109 Kaela Gallagher: Yeah, let’s do it.
352 00:38:26.110 ⇒ 00:38:26.760 Amber Lin: Okay.
353 00:38:27.410 ⇒ 00:38:29.470 Kaela Gallagher: I’m like… Right?
354 00:38:29.880 ⇒ 00:38:34.829 Kaela Gallagher: At the intersection here. And then that’s the coffee shop, and then you’re, like, over here.
355 00:38:35.680 ⇒ 00:38:41.579 Amber Lin: Oh, wait, that’s so much closer than Cotton Grounds. I looked at it, I was like, oh no, I cannot walk there.
356 00:38:41.710 ⇒ 00:38:49.630 Kaela Gallagher: No, I mean, we’re probably, like, a mile away from each other, but… I see. I see.
357 00:38:49.630 ⇒ 00:38:55.350 Amber Lin: Cool! Let’s see, I, I mean, I’m free tomorrow, if you want to do tomorrow.
358 00:38:55.740 ⇒ 00:38:59.610 Kaela Gallagher: Yeah, let me pull up my… Calendar.
359 00:39:00.160 ⇒ 00:39:05.950 Kaela Gallagher: I have… A 9am and a 10.30am tomorrow.
360 00:39:06.150 ⇒ 00:39:07.799 Kaela Gallagher: So I could do…
361 00:39:07.920 ⇒ 00:39:12.190 Amber Lin: I see. You’re talking with Braille at, like, 1PM?
362 00:39:12.190 ⇒ 00:39:14.529 Kaela Gallagher: Maybe we can do, say.
363 00:39:14.810 ⇒ 00:39:18.819 Amber Lin: After-lunch coffee, so we wake up for the afternoon.
364 00:39:19.140 ⇒ 00:39:19.910 Kaela Gallagher: Okay.
365 00:39:20.770 ⇒ 00:39:22.680 Kaela Gallagher: Do you want to do, like, a noon?
366 00:39:23.010 ⇒ 00:39:26.709 Amber Lin: Sure, yeah, let’s do that. My lunch break ends at 12, so that’s perfect.
367 00:39:26.920 ⇒ 00:39:28.819 Kaela Gallagher: Okay, okay, perfect.
368 00:39:28.820 ⇒ 00:39:32.679 Amber Lin: Cool, okay, so I’ll put it… I’ll put it on the… On our calendar.
369 00:39:32.680 ⇒ 00:39:36.059 Kaela Gallagher: Okay, yay! Exciting!
370 00:39:36.410 ⇒ 00:39:37.659 Amber Lin: Exciting. All right.
371 00:39:37.660 ⇒ 00:39:40.150 Kaela Gallagher: Alrighty! Well, I will see you tomorrow.
372 00:39:40.150 ⇒ 00:39:41.329 Amber Lin: Yeah, I’ll see you then.
373 00:39:41.330 ⇒ 00:39:42.130 Kaela Gallagher: Alrighty.