Staff Snapshots | Shelby Holland.

Shelby Holland

Hometown: Raleigh, N.C.

Role: Human resources generalist, North Carolina General Assembly

Years of legislative service: Three

The best advice she's ever received: "'Own your mistakes.' Everyone makes them, and the only way to grow as an individual or colleague is to acknowledge the mishap as soon as possible, fix it, learn from it and move on."

Why did you choose to work at the legislature?

After graduating from the University of North Carolina at Charlotte and relocating to Raleigh, I had never considered working in government, much less at the Legislature. Through an acquaintance, I found out the Human Resources Office had an opening for an HR generalist. Now, after working at the Legislature for three years, I can't see myself anywhere else. I love being part of the behind-the-scenes institutional operations, assisting legislators and legislative staff with their staffing and personnel needs and concerns. No two days are the same, and I am constantly learning and being challenged to expand my HR knowledge. I am very grateful for my team and the wonderful staff that make up the General Assembly.

What skill or talent are you most proud of?

I am most proud of my ability to interact, relate and communicate with others. I like the phrase "I have never met a stranger," because I have always been comfortable speaking to all people, regardless of race, age, gender, job titles or positions. My ability to connect with people has been a tremendous asset in my role as the lead recruitment coordinator. When I began my role years ago, recruitment was merely posting a vacancy on the state's job website and waiting for the applications to come in. Over the past few years, the job market and employment needs have significantly changed due to factors such as the pandemic, generational shifts in the workforce, and lack of strong candidates being interested in the public sector. These obstacles have forced me to be creative in our branding and in expanding our outreach to new talent pools and resources. I have enjoyed rising to the challenge while increasing my knowledge and skills.

Who or what inspires you?

This question was the most difficult for me, because I'm an idealist and get inspiration from a variety of subjects: nature, art, music, books, family and friends. However, the person who inspires me the most would be my fiance, whom I met as a fellow student at UNC Charlotte. He is one of the most hard-working and dedicated people I...