Current Position

SVP Product @ HubSpot

Major

Computer Science and Economics

Graduating Year

2002

A message from Karen

The only way through life is forward. For me, this means that I know life might throw me a curveball, or I know definitively that I won’t know something (esp as I grow in my career!). It’s about how to move forward, not if, and I have a deep belief that I can learn anything. Building product means knowing for certain that you aren't always right -- which drives me everyday to be a better listener, have deeper empathy for who I'm building for, be flexible in my approach, be deft in prioritizing, and have focus -- because you'll only get there one step at a time.

Find your career path by following what brings you joy – it might be designing something beautiful (frictionless tech, talking to someone and hearing what makes their life hard and solving it, or breaking down a hard problem into little bites so they are achievable).

When re-orgs or change happens, take the time to figure out what your “ideal” looks like. And then have the courage to express it and ask for it. The worst thing that can happen is nothing, which is the same outcome as if you didn’t speak up. But this was key for me in my early career to articulate and shape my next role.