Rebecca Carr ─ a next generation product leader who knows how to accelerate revenue by leveraging her athletic championship background!
December 8, 2020 • 3 Minute Read
Updated October 2022
Rebecca Carr
Vice President, Checkr Pay
Checkr, Inc.
(Previously—Senior Vice President of Platform & Growth
SmartRecruiters)
Are you looking for a next generation product leader that helps accelerate revenue, while leveraging her college NCAA championship background to fuel success? We know the person—Rebecca Carr!
Rebecca is a rising star in the IT industry and a veteran recruiter and enterprise product leader. Her current role is with SmartRecruiters where she is the Senior Vice President, Platform & Growth. Her responsibilities include managing product marketing, customer marketing, pre-sales solutions consulting, proposal management, solutions architecture, platform integrations, and partner operations & programs. Her professional story is being written through a combination of the effort she puts into learning new things, stepping up to new challenges, and embracing every success and failure as a stepping stone for her next big adventure. Not unsurprising, this hardworking executive is leveraging her college athletic experience at UC Berkeley where she was a two-time NCAA Division 1 Women’s Rowing Champion — Go Bears!
Please meet this IT Wondrous Woman™—Rebecca Carr!
Our 10 Questions for this IT Wondrous Woman.
Fun Facts
1. What’s the one thing about you that your business colleagues don’t know about you?
I am an Ironman! Though some of my colleagues know it, most aren’t aware that I love to swim, bike, and run. You take all three, plus the endurance athlete in me, and you get one of the world's more grueling races. I completed my first full Ironman in 2013.
2. Before the pandemic, how many air miles/KMs did you flying annually?
I’d say I was traveling between 125,000-150,000 miles a year - mostly to Europe. For several years, I split time between Berlin, Krakow, and San Francisco.
3. What is the most adventurous food you have eaten and what city/location did you eat it?
Probably cow’s tongue. I had it during a business dinner in Shanghai, China, and didn’t want to be impolite despite my lack of overall excitement. Outside of looking exactly like a tongue (texture and all!), it wasn’t bad!
Your Career
4. What are the top two experiences, achievements or failures that shaped your journey as a successful leader?
1 - My first successful exit. There’s nothing more rewarding than working night and day, doing something you love, meeting new people as passionate as you about driving change and seeing that effort come together into a successful exit. My first exit in 2010 was just that and was a moment that forever changed me. It taught me the power of hard work, of loving what you do, and of taking calculated risks.
2 - The first time I was laid off. There’s nothing that guts you more than getting a pink slip. You feel like you’ve failed your team, your family, and yourself. Be professional, keep your chin up, and don’t hide from it.
5. Did you have a mentor in the early part of your career and, if so, what is the biggest lesson you learned from your mentor or influencer?
Yes! One of my first managers, Paul, quickly became a mentor and friend. He encouraged me to raise my hand, roll up my sleeves, and leave behind the fear of not being good enough, not having the perfect resume, or being too young.
Walking In Your Shoes
6. What is one piece of business or career advice you would give to your younger self?
Stop worrying about what other people think. Make smart choices, speak up when you have new ideas, and ask for help when you need it.
7. As a leader, how do you remain a resource for people early in their careers?
I still work with some startup accelerators helping founders craft their pitches, find product-market fit, and hire the right teams. It’s very rewarding.
Today’s Business Environment
8. What is the most interesting project you have worked on in the last few years?
I love launching new products and have had the opportunity to launch four in the last three years. The “plan to adopt” process is challenging, requires strong collaboration, and, if done well, can really accelerate your business.
9. What skills are you currently developing or refining (in yourself) that will make you a more successful leader in the digital economy?
Having recently finished the Program for Leadership Development at Harvard Business School, I am working on becoming an authentic leader. You are who you hire, and you have the capability to hire and develop the best talent if you approach leadership as a skill that needs to be nurtured over and over again. I constantly find myself stepping back and evaluating what I could have done differently to lead the team to a more successful outcome, versus finding fault in the efforts of the team or an individual team member.
10. What is your greatest business challenge today?
Figuring out how to continuously differentiate against the competition. There are a lot of new entrants in our company’s market segment, as well as some legacy challenges. With the market accelerating at its current pace, it's critical to stand out, be data-driven, and offer a different level of differentiated innovation.
