My name is Elissa, and like the quote mentions above, I believe that you can never learn too much. One thing I never really had to learn was organization and how to work with others. My mom always used to say, "organization is your God-given talent."

Professional Background:
Because of this specific talent, I decided to major in Communications at the University of Northern Iowa, with a minor in Business Communication. Since my sophomore year, I knew I wanted to get into project management. I have always enjoyed working on group projects and organizing groups or events. Going into my senior year I had the opportunity to work for a start up company as a Project Management Intern for a year. After college I started at Wells Fargo as a Project Coordinator, before becoming a Project Manager at SHAZAM, Inc. before moving to Seattle with my husband and becoming a  Project Lead at Point to Point Transportation. 

Due to the Coronavirus, the event industry was severely impacted, and I was laid off. Due to the effects of the virus, my husband and I relocated to Texas to be closer to our family. After relocating, I worked at Crayon Software as a Project manager, before moving to Mission Cloud to become an Engagement Project Manager, where I currently work today.
 
Through all my positions, I have gained a lot of insight as to how Project Management work can change and be applied to many different industries and fields. Along with my job experience, I have been working on getting my PMP certification, to continue growing and learning in the Project Management field, along with my other technical certifications, AWS Cloud Practitioner and GenAI for PMs.

Personal Background:
I grew up in Winterset, Iowa, but I was raised in a southern household; my mom being from Memphis and my dad being from Texas. I grew up with my parents, grandparents, one of my older brothers and my twin, all in one household! I have a few other siblings, and have recently gained 4 more, after getting married. 
 
My hobbies include singing, cooking, baking, reading, various crafts, blogging, designing, and traveling. So far I have been to 42 states and 13 countries with more places I hope to go some day.