The Anniversary Spotlight highlights an employee celebrating a significant work anniversary at UPMC every month.
After graduating high school, Ashleigh Ketter was still trying to figure out what she wanted in a career. She didn’t want to do just anything – it had to be something that would fulfill her daily.
She enrolled in CCAC and worked for Tobii Dynavox as an Office Assistant. She helped on various projects in accounting, marketing, research and development, manufacturing, and human resources. This job was a fortunate turn of events for Ashleigh, for she found her passion in Human Resources (HR).
“I knew from being at Tobii Dynavox that I wanted to continue to work for an organization that was helping others in a meaningful way,” said Ashleigh. “That’s when I started looking into UPMC.”
In 2006, Ashleigh began her career with UPMC as an HR Assistant for Western Psych. Then, she became a Senior HR Assistant for the International and Commercial Services Division (ICSD). Shortly before she started with ICSD, Ashleigh enrolled at Carlow University to obtain her Human Resources and Information Management degree – since she knew that HR was what she wanted as her career. Ashleigh was working at UPMC and attending college full-time, all while trying to get acquainted with her new role.
After a few years, ICSD split into two divisions, and that’s when Ashleigh transitioned to the Technology Development Center (TDC), known today as UPMC Enterprises.
Ashleigh’s grown through the HR career track, from HR Assistant to her current role, HR Manager. When asked what her responsibilities are as an HR Manager, Ashleigh said it best, “All the people things.”
She manages a team of three skilled HR professionals and oversees various HR protocols and initiatives, including compensation, talent review, organization structure, immigration, and more. Ashleigh, and the rest of the HR team, are also responsible for traditional HR duties, like answering questions about an employee’s role, benefits, and pay. Even though the HR team at UPMC Enterprises has ownership of different HR duties, they collaboratively work together to be an advocate, support system, mentor, and strategic partner for Enterprises employees.
“The people, the constant change, the exciting work that I get to be a part of, and the chaos of it all” are the reasons why she continues her career at UPMC, explains Ashleigh. “There’s always something new happening, new challenges, and new people-problems to solve. It never gets boring.”
When Ashleigh’s not at work, she spends time with her boyfriend, Matt, her two bonus kids, Chelsie, and Bear, and their three dogs, Ben, a rescue mix, Oscar, a Miniature Schnauzer, and Roman, a Boerboel and Cane Corso mix.
“Being here for 17 years is my biggest accomplishment,” said Ashleigh. “It’s a great feeling to think that I helped shape what UPMC Enterprises is today. Even though I’ve been with UPMC for 17 years, it feels like I’ve worked in many different places and roles. Without the constant evolution, I probably wouldn’t be sitting here at Enterprises today. There is no other place like Enterprises.”
