Meeting Title: Hannah Wang’s Zoom Meeting Date: 2025-10-21 Meeting participants: Hannah Wang, Kaela Gallagher
WEBVTT
1 00:01:13.090 ⇒ 00:01:15.169 Kaela Gallagher: Hey, Hannah, how’s it going?
2 00:01:15.580 ⇒ 00:01:17.010 Hannah Wang: Good, how are you?
3 00:01:17.010 ⇒ 00:01:21.240 Kaela Gallagher: I’m doing well, thanks for being flexible and getting this rescheduled and sending.
4 00:01:21.240 ⇒ 00:01:22.060 Hannah Wang: No worries.
5 00:01:22.060 ⇒ 00:01:24.150 Kaela Gallagher: Thanks, thank you so much.
6 00:01:24.150 ⇒ 00:01:29.259 Hannah Wang: Yeah, I… my brain… I, yeah, I, I…
7 00:01:29.910 ⇒ 00:01:37.170 Hannah Wang: Let me get my bearings straight, I don’t know why I can’t talk right now. I’m currently in New York, but I’m… I live in LA, so I’ve had, like.
8 00:01:37.420 ⇒ 00:01:42.189 Hannah Wang: travel days, and my flight actually made it on the news.
9 00:01:42.850 ⇒ 00:01:43.560 Kaela Gallagher: Why?
10 00:01:43.560 ⇒ 00:02:02.179 Hannah Wang: LA, basically, like, it took off… well, it got super delayed, and then it took off, and then we landed back at LAX, because apparently, like, peop… 7 passengers smelled fumes on the plane. I didn’t smell anything, so we had to emergency land, and then get towed to our gate.
11 00:02:03.570 ⇒ 00:02:10.879 Hannah Wang: That was… that was last week, so I’m actually heading back to LA tonight, so hopefully the same thing doesn’t happen.
12 00:02:10.880 ⇒ 00:02:15.029 Kaela Gallagher: What… are you, like, traveling for work in New York?
13 00:02:15.510 ⇒ 00:02:23.239 Hannah Wang: I’m… well, I’m here visiting a friend, well, I don’t know if you see those behind me, but I’m…
14 00:02:23.680 ⇒ 00:02:40.439 Hannah Wang: basically, I know Robert and his wife, so I hung out with her, this past weekend, and I’m at their place currently, so that’s why you see that’s not me. But yeah, so I came here last Wednesday, and then I’m going back today, back to LA.
15 00:02:40.440 ⇒ 00:02:40.830 Kaela Gallagher: Okay.
16 00:02:40.830 ⇒ 00:02:41.470 Hannah Wang: So…
17 00:02:41.470 ⇒ 00:02:43.559 Kaela Gallagher: What part of LA are you in?
18 00:02:43.910 ⇒ 00:02:48.330 Kaela Gallagher: I am in Culver City. I don’t know if you’re familiar… Me too!
19 00:02:48.330 ⇒ 00:02:51.350 Hannah Wang: I actually heard you live in Palms.
20 00:02:51.350 ⇒ 00:02:52.240 Kaela Gallagher: Yes!
21 00:02:52.380 ⇒ 00:02:55.019 Hannah Wang: I used to live there, actually.
22 00:02:55.020 ⇒ 00:02:56.110 Kaela Gallagher: Wow!
23 00:02:56.250 ⇒ 00:03:06.060 Hannah Wang: I lived on Bentley, right… super close to the 405 entrance, like, across from Michelle gas station.
24 00:03:06.060 ⇒ 00:03:08.819 Kaela Gallagher: We… I live across from the shell.
25 00:03:09.240 ⇒ 00:03:11.300 Hannah Wang: Like, on… on Ven… er.
26 00:03:11.300 ⇒ 00:03:15.830 Kaela Gallagher: Yes, on Venice and Sepulveda, like, next to the 7-Eleven.
27 00:03:16.830 ⇒ 00:03:20.600 Hannah Wang: what the… we’re just like, okay, cool.
28 00:03:20.600 ⇒ 00:03:25.840 Kaela Gallagher: Okay, wow, and now you just moved over to Culver, so, like, a few streets down. Okay.
29 00:03:25.840 ⇒ 00:03:33.619 Hannah Wang: Yeah, I live near the Westfield Mall, in Culver City, like, right off the 405, so… crazy, yeah.
30 00:03:33.620 ⇒ 00:03:34.080 Kaela Gallagher: Wow.
31 00:03:34.080 ⇒ 00:03:36.980 Hannah Wang: How did you end up in the Palms area?
32 00:03:37.740 ⇒ 00:03:45.410 Kaela Gallagher: Well, I moved to LA from out of the country, so when I first moved here, I was staying with some relatives and just kind of, like.
33 00:03:45.610 ⇒ 00:03:57.010 Kaela Gallagher: hanging out in different neighborhoods, figuring out where I wanted to move to, and my boyfriend was actually living in Culver at the time, closer to downtown Culver, but technically Palms.
34 00:03:57.030 ⇒ 00:04:08.229 Kaela Gallagher: And I was like, wow, I love this, like, I can walk to free yoga on Tuesdays, and I can walk to the bar, and I can, you know, it’s like… and it feels really safe. So I was like, okay, I’m moving here.
35 00:04:08.670 ⇒ 00:04:12.150 Hannah Wang: That’s crazy, and you’ve been there since you moved from…
36 00:04:12.150 ⇒ 00:04:16.600 Kaela Gallagher: Yeah, about 3 years now, yeah.
37 00:04:17.100 ⇒ 00:04:21.699 Hannah Wang: Cool. Did you do your education, like, where are you originally from?
38 00:04:21.700 ⇒ 00:04:34.080 Kaela Gallagher: Okay, so I’m a military kid, so I grew up moving around a ton, and then I did the same program as Robert in college, so we were moving around, and so that’s why I had moved, from Italy, where one of our schools.
39 00:04:34.080 ⇒ 00:04:34.680 Hannah Wang: Mmm.
40 00:04:34.680 ⇒ 00:04:37.490 Kaela Gallagher: was, once I graduated. Crazy.
41 00:04:37.640 ⇒ 00:04:40.000 Hannah Wang: Are you the same class as him, or…
42 00:04:40.000 ⇒ 00:04:40.400 Kaela Gallagher: No.
43 00:04:40.400 ⇒ 00:04:40.830 Hannah Wang: years.
44 00:04:40.830 ⇒ 00:04:43.279 Kaela Gallagher: He is a few years ahead of me.
45 00:04:43.280 ⇒ 00:04:43.850 Hannah Wang: Okay.
46 00:04:43.850 ⇒ 00:04:45.230 Kaela Gallagher: Yeah, yeah.
47 00:04:45.230 ⇒ 00:04:46.339 Hannah Wang: Cool. Wow.
48 00:04:47.190 ⇒ 00:04:55.560 Hannah Wang: Awesome! Well, yeah, this is, like, a super chill… it’s not gonna be, like, a technical interview, or anything, it’s just, like, I guess…
49 00:04:55.590 ⇒ 00:05:13.900 Hannah Wang: more of, like, the behavioral interview… inter… conversation, I just like to call it a conversation. So I’ll… I’ll kick things off, I’ll give a short intro, and then I’ll let you kind of intro, and then we’ll get into the questions. So, I’m Hannah, I joined end of January?
50 00:05:13.900 ⇒ 00:05:29.610 Hannah Wang: this year, through Robert, he’s the one who kind of introed me to this company. I essentially lead design, so we’re not… I feel like most data consultancies don’t have, like, a super tight, like, design
51 00:05:29.620 ⇒ 00:05:44.999 Hannah Wang: team or anything, but I’m the lead design, and there’s another designer, and she’s… she’s awesome. And, I also not only with design, help with design, but I also help with go-to-market initiatives, as of
52 00:05:45.230 ⇒ 00:05:52.930 Hannah Wang: a couple months ago, so I help with the partnership side, so, like, Brainforge partnering with other vendor
53 00:05:52.930 ⇒ 00:06:16.819 Hannah Wang: companies or other agencies. I also am starting to help with sales, so helping out with kind of nurturing leads, and kind of getting them from the top of the funnel to the middle to eventually help, hopefully, signing them as our clients. So yeah, I feel like at a start… smaller company like this, you tend to wear multiple
54 00:06:16.820 ⇒ 00:06:23.530 Hannah Wang: hats, so I feel like that’s what I’ve found myself doing. So it’s been interesting. My background…
55 00:06:24.240 ⇒ 00:06:36.129 Hannah Wang: I come from a large company. I worked as a software engineer initially, at Amazon, so you can see that the difference between those
56 00:06:36.290 ⇒ 00:06:41.509 Hannah Wang: Those two companies, so yeah, I never thought I’d be doing, like.
57 00:06:41.680 ⇒ 00:07:01.189 Hannah Wang: Well, I initially wanted to do UX design, I don’t know if you’ve heard of that, but I wanted to do that, so I kind of pivoted from dev to that, and now I’m here doing a bunch of other things, so that’s kind of my role. So yeah, curious to hear kind of your background and kind of what you do now.
58 00:07:01.460 ⇒ 00:07:08.919 Kaela Gallagher: Yeah, well, it’s funny that you bring up UX design, because I’m hiring a UX designer right now.
59 00:07:08.920 ⇒ 00:07:09.650 Hannah Wang: Okay.
60 00:07:09.650 ⇒ 00:07:13.330 Kaela Gallagher: I… so, right now, I’m working in recruiting for…
61 00:07:13.330 ⇒ 00:07:13.800 Hannah Wang: any age.
62 00:07:13.800 ⇒ 00:07:33.090 Kaela Gallagher: And, working with a lot of different clients, like Disney and Sony and Boeing, and some larger names, and that’s been really cool because I’ve gotten a lot of exposure to different parts of, like, the technical industry, since I’m in technical recruiting overall.
63 00:07:33.090 ⇒ 00:07:40.559 Kaela Gallagher: Also have gotten to wear, like, a lot of hats and take on a lot of, like, leadership initiatives in my current role, which I’ve loved.
64 00:07:40.560 ⇒ 00:07:46.889 Hannah Wang: Prior to this, I was with Target and Management, actually, so.
65 00:07:47.010 ⇒ 00:07:56.489 Kaela Gallagher: had a team of 75, ran businesses, and kind of consulted throughout, like, the LA area at different Target stores.
66 00:07:56.490 ⇒ 00:08:14.660 Kaela Gallagher: So that was really cool, loved the leadership aspect of that, loved, you know, building my own team through that. And then, yeah, prior to that, like I mentioned, like, grew up as a military kid and moved around a lot through, the college program that Robert and I did, so,
67 00:08:14.660 ⇒ 00:08:25.770 Kaela Gallagher: just really love, like, connecting with people and, you know, traveling and meeting lots of new people around the world. So, that’s kind of… kind of my background, yeah.
68 00:08:25.770 ⇒ 00:08:32.670 Hannah Wang: You did, like, an interesting jump from, I guess, like, managing a target to… what made you get into recruiting?
69 00:08:33.049 ⇒ 00:08:35.219 Kaela Gallagher: Well, at Target.
70 00:08:35.219 ⇒ 00:08:53.359 Kaela Gallagher: One of my favorite parts of the role was building my own team, and I got to, like, interview and, you know, source for my team, and I loved doing that, so I was like, okay, let me explore doing this full-time. So that’s kind of what took me into the recruiting world.
71 00:08:53.359 ⇒ 00:08:53.869 Kaela Gallagher: Yeah.
72 00:08:53.870 ⇒ 00:09:00.250 Hannah Wang: And then, what is taking you from that recruiting role to, I guess, interviewing with Brainforge now?
73 00:09:00.250 ⇒ 00:09:11.690 Kaela Gallagher: Yeah. Well, Robert and I reconnected, and I mentioned to him I was looking into more, like, consulting, or project management, or, kind of, like, the strategy side.
74 00:09:11.690 ⇒ 00:09:12.250 Hannah Wang: I mean…
75 00:09:12.830 ⇒ 00:09:37.770 Kaela Gallagher: I think my… my position right now is really interesting, really fun. I get to talk to a lot of people, but, I want to be kind of, you know, thinking higher level and going more into the strategy side of things, which I feel like is what my, degree kind of trained me to do, and also maybe what I’m missing from, when I was at Target. So, yeah, definitely, like, looking
76 00:09:37.770 ⇒ 00:09:42.169 Kaela Gallagher: get back into… The… this side of things, for sure.
77 00:09:42.170 ⇒ 00:09:44.269 Hannah Wang: The strategic thinking. Okay, cool.
78 00:09:44.990 ⇒ 00:09:52.330 Hannah Wang: Awesome. Yeah, so kind of jumping into the questions, I kind of want to know, like.
79 00:09:53.560 ⇒ 00:10:08.940 Hannah Wang: I guess, tell me something… tell me about something outside of work that you’ve gotten, like, really good at, either, like, a craft or, like, a hobby or a sport, and I guess, like, tell me the process that you took to get to that level of…
80 00:10:08.940 ⇒ 00:10:14.050 Hannah Wang: I guess excellence. I guess excellence is, you know, subjective, but anyway, yeah.
81 00:10:14.050 ⇒ 00:10:33.859 Kaela Gallagher: Yeah, yeah. Well, the most recent one that I can think of, started out with an unfortunate situation. I injured my knee, and this was almost 2 years ago, and it’s been such a crazy process. I’ve been to, like, 4 or 5 different doctors, no one can figure out what’s going on.
82 00:10:33.860 ⇒ 00:10:37.679 Kaela Gallagher: And… I started doing PT for it.
83 00:10:37.680 ⇒ 00:10:43.689 Hannah Wang: Just trying to get back to, like, a normal level of functioning, and…
84 00:10:43.690 ⇒ 00:10:59.880 Kaela Gallagher: 2 years… almost two years ago, my PT, when I first started, asked me, like, what… what do you want to accomplish out of this? Like, what is your goal? Your end goal? What do you want to be able to do that you can’t do right now? And… are you familiar with the Culver Stairs?
85 00:11:00.250 ⇒ 00:11:05.069 Kaela Gallagher: Yes. Okay. I was like, I really want to do the Culver Stairs, like, I…
86 00:11:05.070 ⇒ 00:11:05.400 Hannah Wang: I love that.
87 00:11:05.400 ⇒ 00:11:24.830 Kaela Gallagher: do those pre-injury and with the knee, like, that was just not something that was doable, and so I worked really hard. I, like, started doing the StairMaster and, like, did strength training, three to four days a week for my knee, and this past weekend, I accomplished the stairs, so that was…
88 00:11:24.830 ⇒ 00:11:25.650 Hannah Wang: Let’s go.
89 00:11:25.650 ⇒ 00:11:36.619 Kaela Gallagher: Yeah, that was something that I worked really hard for, and that was just a huge personal win. So I wouldn’t say I’m an expert at the stairs by any means, but I’m getting… I’m getting to it.
90 00:11:36.620 ⇒ 00:11:48.560 Hannah Wang: Those stairs are brutal, and there’s always so many people there at any given time, and it’s like… it’s just, you have to bi-directionally, like, I don’t know, it’s…
91 00:11:49.550 ⇒ 00:11:50.569 Hannah Wang: It’s crazy.
92 00:11:50.570 ⇒ 00:11:57.739 Kaela Gallagher: Yes, totally. And, well, like, how are they wearing weighted vests and carrying huge packs and stuff?
93 00:11:57.740 ⇒ 00:12:13.619 Hannah Wang: Literally. And, like, speakers, they’re, like, they have, like, speakers, they’re just jamming music. Yeah, I… I live, like, 10 minutes away from the steps, or maybe, like, 5 to 10 minutes, but yeah, I know exactly what you’re talking about. I’ve tried it before, and I’m, like…
94 00:12:13.910 ⇒ 00:12:30.040 Hannah Wang: It kills me. I’ve also had a knee… not injury, but I’ve also had problems with my knee before, so I totally understand, like, the PT. Do they make you work on, like, your glute medius, and, like, do a bunch of, like, clam… donkey kicks, clamshells, like, side leg lifts? Yeah.
95 00:12:30.040 ⇒ 00:12:30.549 Kaela Gallagher: All of it.
96 00:12:30.550 ⇒ 00:12:31.660 Hannah Wang: Yeah, all about…
97 00:12:31.660 ⇒ 00:12:35.080 Kaela Gallagher: Yes. I feel you, yeah.
98 00:12:35.300 ⇒ 00:12:38.749 Hannah Wang: from that experience, like, I’m sure it’s…
99 00:12:39.080 ⇒ 00:12:46.239 Hannah Wang: I mean, I feel like any injury, especially with your knee, where you don’t know what’s going on, is, like, really frustrating. I guess what…
100 00:12:46.470 ⇒ 00:12:57.480 Hannah Wang: kind of got you through the moments where it felt like you stalled, or, like, there was no progress? And, like, how did you… I guess I just want to know, like, how you persevered through
101 00:12:57.840 ⇒ 00:12:58.650 Hannah Wang: that.
102 00:12:58.970 ⇒ 00:13:02.850 Hannah Wang: Yeah, it can be tough, because it’s not just…
103 00:13:03.040 ⇒ 00:13:13.549 Kaela Gallagher: the physical pain, like, especially when I first injured it, I remember sitting in the office with my knee up on, like, a big bouncy ball, and just feeling throbbing.
104 00:13:13.550 ⇒ 00:13:14.000 Hannah Wang: Yeah.
105 00:13:14.000 ⇒ 00:13:28.280 Kaela Gallagher: pain, you know? So it’s, like, not just the physical aspect of it, but the mental, especially when it becomes a long-term thing, and doctors are even telling you they don’t know what’s going on, like, that can be really frustrating.
106 00:13:28.280 ⇒ 00:13:37.089 Kaela Gallagher: And I just never allowed myself to, like, get into a mindset of, this is how it is, or this is just how it’s going to be.
107 00:13:37.250 ⇒ 00:13:39.940 Kaela Gallagher: I always had the mindset of, like.
108 00:13:40.160 ⇒ 00:13:54.829 Kaela Gallagher: I’m… I’m going to get better, and I’m going to figure out what I need to do, and if that’s consulting a new doctor, telling my PT, like, I need a new routine, I need to try something new, then that’s what it’s going to be, and…
109 00:13:54.870 ⇒ 00:14:10.879 Kaela Gallagher: like, some of it was kind of setting, like, micro goals, like, week by week. This week, I’m gonna do 3 or 4 strength sessions, or setting, like, larger goals, like doing the stairs, like, always just having something to kind of…
110 00:14:10.880 ⇒ 00:14:25.170 Kaela Gallagher: strive for and, you know, look forward to and achieve. So, I think it’s all kind of in the mantle of, of, yeah, never, never, like, letting yourself accept things the way they are.
111 00:14:25.170 ⇒ 00:14:26.520 Hannah Wang: Yeah, totally.
112 00:14:26.780 ⇒ 00:14:30.720 Hannah Wang: Is there… did you, like, learn anything about the way…
113 00:14:31.000 ⇒ 00:14:38.820 Hannah Wang: you learn, I guess. I know that’s kind of, like, a tricky question, but I’m sure you, like, learned a ton of stuff about, like, your knee, and just, like.
114 00:14:39.090 ⇒ 00:14:48.589 Hannah Wang: all these technical things and all these workouts and strength trainings, like, did you learn anything about… yeah, the way you learned or about yourself, like, through this process?
115 00:14:48.930 ⇒ 00:14:50.569 Kaela Gallagher: That’s a good question.
116 00:14:52.570 ⇒ 00:15:00.160 Kaela Gallagher: I… I definitely realized, which I think I kind of knew this before, but realized even more through this process.
117 00:15:00.160 ⇒ 00:15:14.460 Kaela Gallagher: That the visuals really help. Like, the PT can tell me that there’s something going on with my IT band, but when he, like, pulled up a chart or a picture or something and was like, oh, this is your IT band, I’m like, oh, okay, like, that.
118 00:15:14.460 ⇒ 00:15:15.210 Hannah Wang: That makes…
119 00:15:15.210 ⇒ 00:15:20.790 Kaela Gallagher: a lot more sense, like, just having a visual definitely helps me.
120 00:15:21.540 ⇒ 00:15:25.710 Kaela Gallagher: Trying to think if there’s any other takeaways about the way that I learn.
121 00:15:25.710 ⇒ 00:15:26.380 Hannah Wang: Hmm.
122 00:15:26.590 ⇒ 00:15:43.730 Kaela Gallagher: Hmm. I definitely realized, like, again, going back to the goal setting, that that’s something that’s really helpful for me, like, even in a situation where there might not be, like, a lot of, structure, like, creating goals for myself is going to help me move forward, so…
123 00:15:43.940 ⇒ 00:15:47.209 Kaela Gallagher: Yeah, I think those would be kind of the main takeaways.
124 00:15:47.930 ⇒ 00:15:58.029 Hannah Wang: Yeah, I guess, like, in ambiguous situations, like, you still like to… need to, I guess, set goals in order to, like, achieve those milestones and get to the next… next step.
125 00:15:58.070 ⇒ 00:15:59.610 Kaela Gallagher: Yeah, that makes sense.
126 00:15:59.870 ⇒ 00:16:02.529 Hannah Wang: And then, curious about…
127 00:16:02.890 ⇒ 00:16:14.140 Hannah Wang: a time… like, when was the last time, or a memorable time you, like, hit a wall, either in work, or, like, learning something, or, like, a hobby? You just, like, hit a wall, and, like.
128 00:16:14.960 ⇒ 00:16:20.060 Hannah Wang: Obviously, it’s frustrating, but, like, what did you do to unblock yourself, in a way?
129 00:16:20.480 ⇒ 00:16:21.090 Kaela Gallagher: Hmm.
130 00:16:21.940 ⇒ 00:16:26.790 Hannah Wang: I know the knee thing is, like, kind of answers that, but maybe, like, another situation.
131 00:16:26.790 ⇒ 00:16:32.460 Kaela Gallagher: Yeah, let me think of a different… of a different one. A time that I hit a wall.
132 00:16:32.680 ⇒ 00:16:34.340 Kaela Gallagher: I… so…
133 00:16:34.590 ⇒ 00:16:54.369 Kaela Gallagher: In my current role, I’m obviously recruiting and placing people at different companies, and when we have somebody start at a new company, we consider that to be a deal. And ideally, for me to be, like, ahead of pace, I should be closing, like, one deal a month.
134 00:16:54.470 ⇒ 00:16:58.990 Kaela Gallagher: That would put me, like, ahead of the office and help me hit my goals.
135 00:16:59.430 ⇒ 00:17:07.169 Kaela Gallagher: And I went through, I think it was about two and a half month period recently where I didn’t get any deals.
136 00:17:07.319 ⇒ 00:17:19.549 Hannah Wang: And I had offers come through, and I had my candidates decline those offers, and it felt super frustrating to be in that situation, and just feel like I was kind of behind my target. Yeah.
137 00:17:19.550 ⇒ 00:17:35.759 Kaela Gallagher: So how I approached that was a couple things. Like, number one, when I got those offers, and then my candidate didn’t accept them, it was about revisiting, like, with my manager, and also the account executive, like, working on that deal with me of, like.
138 00:17:35.870 ⇒ 00:17:46.980 Kaela Gallagher: could we have approached this any differently? Is there anything I could have done better in this process? Like, kind of, you know, retrospectively, like, looking back, like, what could I have done better?
139 00:17:47.630 ⇒ 00:17:52.040 Kaela Gallagher: But then it was also sitting with my manager and being like, hey.
140 00:17:52.260 ⇒ 00:17:55.469 Kaela Gallagher: now that I’ve had 2 months without deals, like.
141 00:17:55.730 ⇒ 00:18:14.830 Kaela Gallagher: how am I going to realign my goals through the rest of the year to get myself back on track and, you know, get myself back to closing deals? And so, had a long conversation with him, set out some goals, like smart goals with, you know, smaller,
142 00:18:15.030 ⇒ 00:18:22.850 Kaela Gallagher: weekly… weekly metrics to achieve to then get me to a deal, and actually just closed a deal on Friday, so…
143 00:18:22.850 ⇒ 00:18:23.490 Hannah Wang: Bro.
144 00:18:23.490 ⇒ 00:18:24.709 Kaela Gallagher: We’re out of the droughts!
145 00:18:24.710 ⇒ 00:18:25.610 Hannah Wang: Yeah.
146 00:18:25.610 ⇒ 00:18:43.689 Kaela Gallagher: And, yeah, have quite a few more things, like, that are really exciting and in the works right now. So, yeah, I think in those situations where it feels like you’ve hit a wall, like, it’s about, you know, kind of taking a step back, looking at things higher level, and then also, like, utilizing the resources around you to help, get you back on track.
147 00:18:44.540 ⇒ 00:18:49.790 Hannah Wang: Curious, like, in the recruiting world, like, what… what was, like, a tangible…
148 00:18:49.920 ⇒ 00:18:52.790 Hannah Wang: Like, next step that you took in order to get
149 00:18:52.910 ⇒ 00:18:57.209 Hannah Wang: the deal that you got la- this past Friday, I think is what you said.
150 00:18:57.510 ⇒ 00:19:00.390 Kaela Gallagher: Yeah. Yeah. Yeah.
151 00:19:00.390 ⇒ 00:19:19.880 Kaela Gallagher: One of the, like, smaller goals to… that I… that I set was, like, a certain number of submittals each week, so a submittal is when we’re, like, presenting a candidate to a hiring manager. So, in order to, like, get myself back on track, it was like, okay, we need to be… I need to be hitting 6 submittals per week.
152 00:19:19.960 ⇒ 00:19:34.109 Kaela Gallagher: And based on my, you know, success rates in my submittals, like, if I’m hitting 6 a week, then I’m going to get back on track with the deals that I want to hit. So, that was kind of, like, one of the smaller goals that… that I set.
153 00:19:34.720 ⇒ 00:19:41.470 Hannah Wang: I feel like you’re a very goal-oriented person. Like, even with your knee, like, hitting that goal, that’s great. I feel like…
154 00:19:42.280 ⇒ 00:19:46.479 Hannah Wang: I feel like I tend to not… or I set goals, but I feel like…
155 00:19:47.210 ⇒ 00:19:53.470 Hannah Wang: making very tangible, like, this is the number you should hit type of goal is, like, always good for…
156 00:19:53.470 ⇒ 00:19:54.140 Kaela Gallagher: Yeah, I think.
157 00:19:54.140 ⇒ 00:19:54.640 Hannah Wang: Moving forward.
158 00:19:54.640 ⇒ 00:19:58.460 Kaela Gallagher: I think that comes a lot from, like, the military back?
159 00:19:58.460 ⇒ 00:19:59.010 Hannah Wang: Yes.
160 00:19:59.010 ⇒ 00:20:04.739 Kaela Gallagher: Being a military kid, like, that is how my dad, you know, ran the house, was like.
161 00:20:04.740 ⇒ 00:20:05.230 Hannah Wang: Oh, it’s…
162 00:20:05.230 ⇒ 00:20:21.070 Kaela Gallagher: summer break, it’s not summer break for you, like, these are the things you’re gonna achieve today, you know? And so I think I’ve kind of carried that over, and I actually won, like, the award for our office, this quarter for being, like, committed to excellence, like, basically.
163 00:20:21.070 ⇒ 00:20:22.070 Hannah Wang: Okay.
164 00:20:22.070 ⇒ 00:20:27.259 Kaela Gallagher: You’re gonna hit it, so… I would say, yeah, that’s definitely, like, something I’m… I’m proud of doing.
165 00:20:27.480 ⇒ 00:20:33.289 Hannah Wang: Awesome. Yeah, that… that’s great. Setting goals… I feel like we…
166 00:20:34.150 ⇒ 00:20:52.229 Hannah Wang: learn about that at such a young age, but it’s like, in practice, it’s not as easy as people make it seem, but that’s awesome. Just a couple more questions, and then I’ll let you ask me any questions if you have any. I guess another question is, like, what motivates you?
167 00:20:52.320 ⇒ 00:21:10.519 Hannah Wang: in work, when the steps… or when, like, your tasks are, like, unclear or ambiguous? I guess you already kind of answered that through, like, setting goals, but is there anything that kind of, like, okay, this is my North Star, like, I need to get there? Like, what’s your driving factor?
168 00:21:11.230 ⇒ 00:21:18.299 Kaela Gallagher: Yeah, I think moving around a lot growing up, showed me that
169 00:21:18.300 ⇒ 00:21:33.579 Kaela Gallagher: no matter what situation I was kind of thrown into, or, you know, where I was living, that I could always leave a place or a team, like, better than I found it. And I would say that’s, like, a big motivation for me in my work life, is
170 00:21:33.580 ⇒ 00:21:52.590 Kaela Gallagher: you know, I always want to make an impact in what I’m doing, and, like, leave behind something better than where I found it. So, yeah, in the ambiguous situation, definitely, like, creating some goals is super helpful, but in terms of, like, a North Star, I think it’s, yeah, just improving processes wherever.
171 00:21:52.590 ⇒ 00:21:53.350 Hannah Wang: There we go.
172 00:21:53.780 ⇒ 00:22:01.120 Hannah Wang: That’s great, because we’re all about standard operating procedures at Brainforge. We have, like, a lot of documents, so it’s good to hear that.
173 00:22:01.120 ⇒ 00:22:05.689 Kaela Gallagher: Yeah, that’s… that’s exciting to hear that you guys, like, already kind of have that line.
174 00:22:05.690 ⇒ 00:22:19.630 Hannah Wang: Yeah, we, like, brought on, like, a team member recently, and he’s, like, super big on SOPs, standard operating procedures, and it’s great, because, like, it’s like, oh, we’re… how do you do this? Oh, it’s… it’s a Notion, go check out this.
175 00:22:19.630 ⇒ 00:22:20.150 Kaela Gallagher: SOP.
176 00:22:20.150 ⇒ 00:22:22.460 Hannah Wang: for it, so… Oh, that’s cool.
177 00:22:22.460 ⇒ 00:22:24.949 Kaela Gallagher: That’s awesome. And I, I, I love, like, steps.
178 00:22:24.950 ⇒ 00:22:37.430 Hannah Wang: So it’s like, okay, it’s very clear, this is what I do. So that’s awesome. My last question is, what kind of team environment do you work best in?
179 00:22:40.090 ⇒ 00:22:59.620 Kaela Gallagher: I would say an environment that is collaborative. I would consider myself, like, a people person. I talk to people all day right now, and so being in a work environment where I just know, like, oh, hey, if I have a question on this, like, Hannah’s gonna be willing to
180 00:23:00.010 ⇒ 00:23:07.869 Kaela Gallagher: help me out with it. I think that’s the most important to me, is just having a team that you can kind of lean on and collaborate with.
181 00:23:08.150 ⇒ 00:23:10.809 Hannah Wang: Yeah, and not be, like, siloed, and…
182 00:23:10.980 ⇒ 00:23:17.940 Hannah Wang: Yeah, because I know… I feel like some teams, it’s, like, very… you don’t really talk cross-department-wise, but…
183 00:23:18.040 ⇒ 00:23:19.990 Kaela Gallagher: At least here, yeah, you just…
184 00:23:19.990 ⇒ 00:23:22.970 Hannah Wang: I find myself talking to everyone, so…
185 00:23:22.970 ⇒ 00:23:34.439 Kaela Gallagher: Oh, that’s good to hear. I think especially, like, in a remote role, that collaborative, like, feeling might be a little bit harder to find, so it’s good to hear that you, feel that, for sure.
186 00:23:34.700 ⇒ 00:23:39.979 Hannah Wang: Yeah, I feel like the people here… granted, I’ve only worked at one company before this, but…
187 00:23:40.290 ⇒ 00:23:43.940 Hannah Wang: I feel like everyone here is really sweet, or it’s, like, nice…
188 00:23:44.220 ⇒ 00:23:50.879 Hannah Wang: like, I’m the type of person, I want to get to know you outside of work, so… and I feel like people are open to that here, so,
189 00:23:50.990 ⇒ 00:23:54.479 Hannah Wang: Yeah, it’s been… it’s been nice working here.
190 00:23:54.730 ⇒ 00:23:58.599 Hannah Wang: Okay, well, that’s kind of the end of the grilling session.
191 00:23:59.030 ⇒ 00:24:05.229 Hannah Wang: Okay, just the conversation. Do you have any questions for me, or just anything you’re curious about?
192 00:24:05.400 ⇒ 00:24:16.309 Kaela Gallagher: Yeah, I… well, I looked at your LinkedIn ahead of time, and I noticed that you made the switch from, like, a larger organization to, you know, Brainforge, and…
193 00:24:16.420 ⇒ 00:24:30.430 Kaela Gallagher: I’ve, you know, worked with larger organizations in the past. Obviously, Target is huge, and then my current company is still 2,500 people, so curious how that transition felt for you, and.
194 00:24:30.430 ⇒ 00:24:31.110 Hannah Wang: And…
195 00:24:31.110 ⇒ 00:24:35.739 Kaela Gallagher: I guess… How you’re adapting to a smaller company.
196 00:24:36.000 ⇒ 00:24:47.320 Hannah Wang: That is such a good question. Thank you for looking… you did your due diligence, looking at my LinkedIn. My LinkedIn’s not super… I feel like it’s not up to… or it is up to date, but anyway.
197 00:24:48.120 ⇒ 00:24:49.359 Hannah Wang: Yeah, it’s…
198 00:24:49.600 ⇒ 00:24:55.709 Hannah Wang: I’m not… I’m not gonna lie, it’s been challenging, but I think in a good way. I think…
199 00:24:56.110 ⇒ 00:24:57.970 Hannah Wang: at Amazon.
200 00:24:58.180 ⇒ 00:25:07.990 Hannah Wang: yeah, everything’s a lot slower, and I was also more, like, entry-level… an entry-level dad, because it was my first job straight out of college, so I feel like…
201 00:25:08.690 ⇒ 00:25:18.459 Hannah Wang: kind of all the tickets were laid out for me, like, all the tasks were super clear, and there was, like, a hierarchy, in a sense. So I think coming to a smaller company, like.
202 00:25:18.910 ⇒ 00:25:30.209 Hannah Wang: we do have a hierarchy in a sense, but it feels more flat. The structure and hierarchy feels more flat than it did at a bigger organization. So I find myself
203 00:25:30.370 ⇒ 00:25:48.249 Hannah Wang: yeah, having to deal with a lot more ambiguity than before, and I think, I mean, personally, that’s, like, a weakness of mine, because I… I like to follow instructions, I like to execute, so I’m not the best, like, strategist, which I feel like you’re good at, but yeah, strategy is not in my wheelhouse, so I think it’s been…
204 00:25:48.250 ⇒ 00:25:51.749 Hannah Wang: challenging growing in that way.
205 00:25:52.670 ⇒ 00:25:57.989 Hannah Wang: because I think at a smaller company, there’s more unknowns, and things move a lot faster.
206 00:25:57.990 ⇒ 00:25:58.530 Kaela Gallagher: I think I’ve had.
207 00:25:58.530 ⇒ 00:26:00.169 Hannah Wang: I have to learn to…
208 00:26:00.320 ⇒ 00:26:17.700 Hannah Wang: be okay with just shipping something, even if it’s not, up to my standard, and then adjusting retroactively. Versus, like, before, I would make sure everything’s, like, perfect, and then get it reviewed, and then ship it, but that obviously takes a lot longer. Yeah.
209 00:26:18.020 ⇒ 00:26:21.160 Hannah Wang: So that was, like, one adjustment. I think another one…
210 00:26:21.300 ⇒ 00:26:27.499 Hannah Wang: Was, yeah, kind of not being forced, but having to, like, talk outside of…
211 00:26:28.250 ⇒ 00:26:36.289 Hannah Wang: just my own team. We are a small company, so I think naturally you just end up talking to everyone, but,
212 00:26:36.920 ⇒ 00:26:53.890 Hannah Wang: yeah, if I don’t know something, I just reach out immediately to whoever I think is gonna help me direct me to the right person. Whereas I feel like at a larger company, there’s more hierarchy, so I feel like I would usually ask my direct manager something, and then they would…
213 00:26:54.240 ⇒ 00:27:08.220 Hannah Wang: get me that information, versus now, like, I’m just reaching out, and that’s, like, encouraged here. It’s like, if you don’t know something, that’s totally fine, just reach out to someone, and someone can, like, point you in the right direction.
214 00:27:08.330 ⇒ 00:27:11.979 Hannah Wang: I don’t know if this is because
215 00:27:12.670 ⇒ 00:27:21.920 Hannah Wang: this is a smaller company, or if it’s because it’s AI, but I definitely rely on AI a lot more, than my
216 00:27:22.120 ⇒ 00:27:29.959 Hannah Wang: previous company, but, like, that was back when AI wasn’t a huge thing, but yeah, I use AI a ton here, and…
217 00:27:30.170 ⇒ 00:27:32.450 Hannah Wang: Kind of like the self…
218 00:27:32.470 ⇒ 00:27:50.370 Hannah Wang: starter mentality of, like, oh yeah, yes, you can ask people if you don’t know anything, but also, like, try to figure it out using AI first, and then kind of adapt from there. So, yeah, a lot of the transition is, like, being more scrappy and resourceful, and…
219 00:27:51.110 ⇒ 00:27:53.869 Hannah Wang: Just not being afraid to go for it, because…
220 00:27:53.870 ⇒ 00:27:54.220 Kaela Gallagher: No.
221 00:27:54.220 ⇒ 00:28:02.449 Hannah Wang: I naturally tend to be more timid and want, like, the green light before doing something, but I think here it’s encouraged to kind of move fast and
222 00:28:02.810 ⇒ 00:28:07.470 Hannah Wang: execute, and then if it fails, like, that’s okay. That’s, like, totally fine. So…
223 00:28:07.470 ⇒ 00:28:07.840 Kaela Gallagher: Yeah.
224 00:28:07.840 ⇒ 00:28:10.990 Hannah Wang: Yeah, failing is okay here, which…
225 00:28:11.270 ⇒ 00:28:13.679 Hannah Wang: I had to get used to, as…
226 00:28:13.680 ⇒ 00:28:14.080 Kaela Gallagher: Yeah.
227 00:28:14.080 ⇒ 00:28:16.409 Hannah Wang: I don’t think any of us like to fail, but…
228 00:28:17.140 ⇒ 00:28:18.080 Kaela Gallagher: Totally. Yeah.
229 00:28:18.080 ⇒ 00:28:29.300 Hannah Wang: Yeah, at a smaller company, I think it’s okay, because you’re more flexible and malleable, and you can adapt. And it’s not, like, a huge alarm that goes up all the way to, like, the CEO.
230 00:28:29.840 ⇒ 00:28:37.190 Hannah Wang: Because, yeah, because it’s different. I have a larger org, so yeah, that’s kind of my experience working here, yeah.
231 00:28:37.190 ⇒ 00:28:46.840 Kaela Gallagher: Okay, okay. And, I’m curious, like, what your day-to-day kind of looks like. Like, I know you’re kind of, you know, touching a lot of different.
232 00:28:46.840 ⇒ 00:28:47.360 Hannah Wang: Hmm.
233 00:28:47.360 ⇒ 00:28:52.049 Kaela Gallagher: But, what does, like, a normal day in the life for you kind of look like?
234 00:28:52.380 ⇒ 00:29:05.889 Hannah Wang: Yeah, well, we are on the… the West Coast, so… when I first started, my meetings were pretty early, but now I’ve kind of blocked off my morning, so… Usually, yeah, my AMs are…
235 00:29:05.890 ⇒ 00:29:25.790 Hannah Wang: meeting heavy, especially on Mondays when we have our internal meetings. And then I think if you end up working with clients, so external-facing, you’ll have Tuesday meetings. I think that Tuesdays are blocked off for client meetings and stand-ups and stuff like that. So yeah, usually just hop on, try to catch up on messages, but yeah.
236 00:29:25.820 ⇒ 00:29:32.979 Hannah Wang: meetings starting around, like, 9 or 10, and then I feel like because everyone
237 00:29:33.530 ⇒ 00:29:51.909 Hannah Wang: in the rest of the U.S. already started working. There’s, like, a backlog of messages that I try to catch up on after. We also have people in Asia, and just in… all over, so they start to work first. So usually it’s just, like, playing catch-up, and then deep work, I usually try to do, like.
238 00:29:53.960 ⇒ 00:30:06.170 Hannah Wang: like, 11, 12, or even post-lunch, when I, like, finish catching up on all my messages, and finish all the meetings, and then I work, and then
239 00:30:06.170 ⇒ 00:30:14.270 Hannah Wang: I send everything for review when people are kind of logging off, and then they check in their AN. So it’s like a cycle of, like.
240 00:30:14.270 ⇒ 00:30:15.090 Kaela Gallagher: Yeah.
241 00:30:15.090 ⇒ 00:30:26.129 Hannah Wang: Yeah, it kind of works nicely, because I think towards, like, 3 or 4, people start to sign off, so you can have, like, heads down time, at least in the West Coast.
242 00:30:26.330 ⇒ 00:30:41.619 Hannah Wang: But I feel like my day is not super reflective of, like, other people’s days. I think it just depends on the department that you work on, so I’m… I’m largely internal, so, like, I don’t have as many meetings as I know some of our, like.
243 00:30:41.620 ⇒ 00:30:53.350 Hannah Wang: if you work as a PM with, like, stakeholders and stuff, you’re gonna have a lot more meetings. But everything other than that is super async, so we take all of our… like, if…
244 00:30:54.040 ⇒ 00:31:05.370 Hannah Wang: we try to minimize meetings as much as possible, so we communicate a lot through Slack. So just, like, a bunch of threads and messages and DMs and stuff like that.
245 00:31:07.210 ⇒ 00:31:10.199 Hannah Wang: Did that answer your question? I feel like I just went…
246 00:31:10.200 ⇒ 00:31:26.629 Kaela Gallagher: No, no, that was actually, like, a very helpful overview, especially, like, me being on the West Coast as well, so yeah, thank you. I think those are kind of the main questions that I have for you. Thank you so much for your time. It was, like, great getting to know you.
247 00:31:26.860 ⇒ 00:31:29.899 Hannah Wang: We should totally, like, grab…
248 00:31:30.170 ⇒ 00:31:39.269 Hannah Wang: coffee. We, like, live so close. I’m… yeah, once I fly back, like, I’ll hit you up. I’ll also, like, text you my number. I feel like it’s easier to…
249 00:31:39.530 ⇒ 00:31:52.020 Hannah Wang: text over the phone, but, cool to see another West Coast girly. One of our other PMs, she also lives in Culver City.
250 00:31:52.020 ⇒ 00:31:56.029 Kaela Gallagher: Also, a WBB alumni as well. Yes, Amber.
251 00:31:56.030 ⇒ 00:31:59.219 Hannah Wang: Yes, yes. Have you talked to her, or you just saw?
252 00:31:59.220 ⇒ 00:32:04.300 Kaela Gallagher: You know what? I have her on Instagram, but I don’t know that her and I have ever met in person.
253 00:32:04.990 ⇒ 00:32:09.460 Hannah Wang: That is… Oh, interesting! You, like, following her photography account?
254 00:32:09.460 ⇒ 00:32:10.270 Kaela Gallagher: Yes!
255 00:32:10.270 ⇒ 00:32:12.759 Hannah Wang: Okay, that’s random, but…
256 00:32:13.210 ⇒ 00:32:14.230 Kaela Gallagher: I know!
257 00:32:14.230 ⇒ 00:32:17.849 Hannah Wang: Are you guys the same year? What year are you? No. 20… okay.
258 00:32:17.850 ⇒ 00:32:20.289 Kaela Gallagher: I graduated 2022.
259 00:32:20.290 ⇒ 00:32:20.880 Hannah Wang: Okay. Sorry.
260 00:32:20.880 ⇒ 00:32:22.099 Kaela Gallagher: I think she was…
261 00:32:23.460 ⇒ 00:32:27.570 Kaela Gallagher: I don’t… I actually don’t know what cohort she was in, but we were not in the same one, I know.
262 00:32:27.570 ⇒ 00:32:37.669 Hannah Wang: Okay. She’s either a year younger than you, or a year older than you, but… Yes. Yeah, that… because I’m 20-20, and I know she’s not my year, so it’s either one of those.
263 00:32:37.670 ⇒ 00:32:38.130 Kaela Gallagher: Yes.
264 00:32:38.130 ⇒ 00:32:41.760 Hannah Wang: But yeah, that’s so random.
265 00:32:42.190 ⇒ 00:32:42.870 Kaela Gallagher: Okay.
266 00:32:42.870 ⇒ 00:32:50.430 Hannah Wang: Maybe you, like… I don’t know. Anyway, yeah, so she also… she lives near the Sony office.
267 00:32:50.430 ⇒ 00:32:51.120 Kaela Gallagher: Yeah.
268 00:32:51.340 ⇒ 00:32:58.160 Hannah Wang: Yeah. By the way, where is your PT? We might have gone to the same PT, but, like, which PT? Okay.
269 00:32:58.160 ⇒ 00:33:05.089 Kaela Gallagher: I used to go to the PT on Motor Ave across from the garage, but now I go to a PT in El Segundo.
270 00:33:05.470 ⇒ 00:33:07.999 Hannah Wang: Okay. Wait. No.
271 00:33:08.150 ⇒ 00:33:10.750 Hannah Wang: Okay, because I went to a PT…
272 00:33:12.750 ⇒ 00:33:17.649 Hannah Wang: I don’t… near… do you know where that Ralph’s is in Rainforest Plaza?
273 00:33:18.070 ⇒ 00:33:20.439 Hannah Wang: It’s on Jefferson? Ugh, anyway.
274 00:33:20.440 ⇒ 00:33:21.990 Kaela Gallagher: It’s on Venice, right?
275 00:33:22.660 ⇒ 00:33:23.800 Kaela Gallagher: No.
276 00:33:25.280 ⇒ 00:33:32.499 Hannah Wang: I don’t… I’m, like, geographically challenged, low-key, so, like, anyway, I might be saying something totally bonkers, but…
277 00:33:33.030 ⇒ 00:33:34.740 Hannah Wang: Probably not the same PT.
278 00:33:34.740 ⇒ 00:33:42.530 Kaela Gallagher: The Ralph’s next to the Crumble Cookie, and the side Cardona, and the LA Fitness, that big, like, closet.
279 00:33:42.530 ⇒ 00:33:48.730 Hannah Wang: Not that one, but I know exactly what you’re talking about. It’s, like, a little past.
280 00:33:48.970 ⇒ 00:33:57.029 Hannah Wang: There’s, like, another Ralph’s… anyway, okay, because I loved my PT, I was just wondering if you went to the same one, but yeah.
281 00:33:57.260 ⇒ 00:33:57.970 Kaela Gallagher: Okay.
282 00:33:58.860 ⇒ 00:34:09.730 Hannah Wang: Yeah, it was a pleasure. Yes, I’ll… I’ll text you my number, and yeah, it was a pleasure getting to know you, and yeah, I’ll see you in LA, so…
283 00:34:09.739 ⇒ 00:34:10.259 Kaela Gallagher: Cool.
284 00:34:10.260 ⇒ 00:34:11.980 Hannah Wang: Alright, we’ll have a good one!
285 00:34:11.989 ⇒ 00:34:14.270 Kaela Gallagher: You too. Thank you. Bye. Bye.