Guest Profile
Erika Peterson
Erika Peterson has over 15 years' experience in agency recruiting, manufacturing operations, and consulting for small businesses experiencing rapid growth.
Erika's non-profit work supporting people with disabilities exposed an inclusion gap where hiring organizations overlooked disability as a component of DEI. Employers were often afraid to take a step towards more inclusion in the workplace for fear of making the wrong move or saying the wrong thing. Experiencing this on a day-to-day basis, Erika was inspired to educate herself more about diversity, inclusion, and belonging in order to be a better advocate for job seekers as well as to be a better educator for employers. Always finding joy in learning, Erika also began to pursue continuing education in the area of organizational development.
Erika’s approach to leadership draws on kindness, empathy, continuing education, and good listening. Her passion lies in being a supportive partner and cheerleader to job seekers as they navigate an ever-evolving job market. Her consulting work centers around helping job seekers refresh their resumes and LinkedIn profiles while also providing coaching and cheerleading through job interviews.
Erika has also become an unintended student of grief and aging. In 2018, Erika's mom lost a long battle with ovarian cancer. 4 short months later, her uncle, a "bonus parent" to Erika and her brother, died unexpectedly. In 2020, Erika navigated COVID as a newlywed, moved her octogenarian Dad to Minnesota from his home of 30 years, held a socially-distanced estate sale, and sorted through decades of belongings and family heirlooms. Erika helped her dad navigate life in a new city without his spouse and experienced caregiver burnout herself. In August 2023, Erika's dad passed away. He was 88.
In the aftermath of losing her last parent, Erika reflected on her career path to date and did some hard work envisioning her most authentic next step. Inspired to go back to school, she started the Master of Arts in Organizational Leadership at St. Catherine University in August 2024. Her research will be focused on coaching organizations on how to better support their employees in grief while also supporting our aging population in their grief. She has become more in tune with her own grief and wants others to know that there's no set path and no right way to "do" grief. What has helped has been leaning into joy, asking for help, and giving yourself grace. Erika says, "Don't ignore the signs. Always remember that the universe has a way of showing you who you were meant to be and who you are here to help."
