#MeetTheGems: Chrissy Edgington

As Gem continues to grow and scale, so do the number of our Gems! And so we thought it would be great to sit down with Gems across different teams and locations to get to know more about them and the impact of their work. This week we sat down with Chrissy Edgington (she/her/hers) who is an Enablement Program Manager, Content, and also the newest lead for Gem’s Women employee resource group (ERG), recently rebranded to be called Amethysts.

‍Let’s dive in and learn more about Chrissy!

Why did you join Gem? 

I joined Gem because I loved everything I read and heard about it both from a product standpoint and what I perceived as an amazing culture. Through my own research, I saw that I really aligned with the company’s overall values, and through speaking with current employees (who I am lucky to now call my co-workers!), I learned that Gem actually embodies those values I had read about. 

No exaggeration, all of the people I spoke with so clearly walked the walk that I felt welcomed, supported, and respected professionally and personally from the interview process alone. I just couldn’t get over the amount of positivity, collaboration, and velocity I saw, and I’m happy to say that Gem didn’t just live up to, but actually exceeded my expectations. Every day, I’m reminded that I made the right decision by the honesty and directness of our leadership, the support & talent of my team, and the encouragement I receive. 

Our mission is to help companies hire great teams — what does that mean to you?

What a company does is important, but the people getting the job done are just as important. Hiring a great team means hiring people who will do exactly what Gem has done for me: be supportive, collaborative, and respectful of one another while driving velocity for the company. 

As a company, it means ensuring your team includes people from different backgrounds and perspectives, going above and beyond to be aware of and sensitive to differences in privilege and life experiences, actively making an effort to educate ourselves as individuals, and simply listening and being empathetic towards those around us. 

A great team drives all of Gem’s values – velocity, customer-centricity, transparency, and diversity – and when a company makes a concentrated effort to hire a great team, it leads to better business outcomes both on a personal level for employees and on a professional level for customers.

Tell us more about your role and the impact you are making.

I work as an Enablement Program manager, boosting the GTM team’s knowledge and effectiveness via content creation. As one of the first members of the team, I'm helping build out the enablement function at Gem and delivering hybrid learning content and programs, tailored to our internal products and customers. 

My team is working toward building out a world-class training and enablement strategy, which includes developing and measuring training programs rooted in a competency-based learning model, proactively developing and executing impactful enablement solutions, and transforming our project and ongoing product management processes. It’s an iterative, ongoing process, but a lot of fun – I’ve been proud of the materials I’ve created to support our GTM team, such as our comp intel/persona/industry playbooks, onboarding materials, and weekly newsletter, and I hope to continue to make the lives of my fellow Gems a little easier by providing them the content they need to be successful in their day-to-day.

What would you tell someone who is considering joining Gem?

I would tell them that if they truly align with and believe in our values, then Gem is the right choice for them. I would say that if they want to work in a place where they have the opportunity to grow each and every day in their role, they couldn’t pick a better company. I can’t believe how much I’ve grown in less than a year at Gem, and I already couldn’t imagine being anywhere else. 

It’s hard to put all of my thoughts on Gem into words. I love being here, and I’m so grateful I had the opportunity to join a company this great – that’s what I would say. I’d try my best to keep it simple and just tell them being here is wonderful in so many ways, and I am so glad I said yes when given the opportunity to join. 

You are the new lead of our Women ERG (recently rebranded to Amethysts)  — we’d love to learn more about this community and your impact.

Amethysts is committed to empowering, enabling, and celebrating the women of Gem, and I’m so excited and honored to be part of it! By advocating for larger representation of women and other under-represented groups, generating professional development and networking opportunities, and creating a space for women's voices to be heard, Amethysts hopes to make Gem an amazing place for women to work at all levels.

On that note, around the world, women experience a myriad of obstacles inhibiting their opportunity to gain leadership roles. These barriers can come in the form of structural barriers, institutional or individual mindsets, and discriminatory biases. ‍

In honor of Women’s Equality Day, we’re hosting a panel on how we can challenge these barriers with a few of our amazing female leaders at Gem! In this panel, they will discuss their professional backgrounds, give advice on overcoming obstacles, and provide guidance for upcoming talent on how to succeed and advocate for themselves in their careers. 

Are you interested in being a part of #LifeAtGem? Head to our careers site to learn more about our culture and what it’s like to work at Gem. We can’t wait to hear from you!