"Someone told you I was the best, I am only the best because I work with the best. You don't trust the men you're working with, you're good as dead."

Find the laughter. This is Mayra’s tried and true method of turning a bad day into a good one and, if we’ve learned anything here at AMIAS, intentionally seeking out the humor of a situation is a key skill to surviving and thriving in the world of human resources! Mayra’s friends describe her as funny, as well as driven and caring. She counts her mother and previous HR bosses as her role models and she has received some valuable advice over the years:

• Closed mouths don't get fed
• If it was easy, everyone would be doing it.
• Not everyone who smiles at you is your friend. 

Along with knowing when to heed solid advice, Mayra possesses a strong sixth sense. Listening to (and following) those instincts has led her to a career working with people, and no one but her is surprised at how good she is at it. If she had not ended up in HR, Mayra would have pursued a career in law enforcement and there is an undeniable parallel between the two fields. Describing in the simplest terms what it is she does as an HR director – easy enough for children to get it - Mayra explains that she makes sure everyone is following the rules. Human resources: the cops of the corporate world!

Although she enjoys music in her off hours, Mayra works best in a quiet environment. Music during work is too distracting because it makes her want to dance! So, Mayra maximizes her focus by working in silence and focusing on breathing. This helps her keep a calm mindset.  Her first ever concert was the band Maná and, if you catch her at karaoke night, her go-to performance is Tequila by The Champs. Genius. 

We officially have a friendly rivalry between directors here at AMIAS. Mayra roots for the Ohio State Buckeyes (and she has a Buckeyes ally in our Posting Picasso, Amya), while Bill is a lifelong University of Michigan Wolverines fan. Mayra’s guilty pleasures are reality TV (Real Housewives and Southern Charm are favorites) and a newfound hobby of gaming (lookout, Mario Kart!) that she is hoping to eventually be as good at as she currently is at debating, which she is unbeatable at! She also loves to play with her dogs, Goldie and Bradley, she stays organized with her digital calendar, and if she could choose a superpower, it would be time travel. One day, should she decide to publish her memoir, look for the title, Wait . . . what?! Anyone with any experience in the world of HR can relate to that title! 

Flying Forward: Embracing Change, Challenge, and Opportunity is the current favored title for Kristie’s future memoir. A veteran of our United States Air Force (thank you for your service!) and a native New Yorker/New Jerseyan, Kristie has honed her warrior skills and disciplined background experience into a successful human resources career in Las Vegas. Kristie credits her military experience with helping her learn to adapt quickly to sudden changes and unforeseen circumstances and boy does that help with those pesky and pivotal HR moments. Though she originally thought she would go into a science-related field, she always knew whatever area she ended up in, it would be a career in which she could help people. 

Inspired by some remarkable favorite role models, Kristie credits her mom and sister for their incredible hard work and dedication, as well as some amazing historical figures – Amelia Earhart, Christa McAuliffe and Maya Angelou – for making lasting impacts with their passion, perseverance and bravery. One of the best pieces of advice Kristie ever received is, “Control what you can, and don’t stress over what you can’t.” Keeping this in mind helps her let go of things beyond her control while allowing her to focus on maximizing her own actions, attitude and mindset. 

She is a big believer in sticking to a routine, which keeps her focused and her energy high. Rather than music during work, you’re more likely to find Kristie listening to a podcast or audiobook if she isn’t engaging with an employee. She enjoys all genres but is passionate about learning new topics and stories. Remaining organized in her work and personal life helps her stay on top of the self-care that keeps her feeling her best. Early bedtimes help this natural early bird catch the worm, along with her consistent workouts and healthy meals. She keeps a great balance with a lavender latte every so often as a treat. Although she claims she would make a terrible professional athlete since she did not participate in sports while growing up, Kristie’s mile run time is seven minutes. Not too shabby, there, Kristie! 

Off-duty, Kristie enjoys spending time with her family and dachshund, going for walks and enjoying nature hikes or exploring new parks. If there was a beach nearby, Kristie would likely visit it every day. Isn’t that just THE DREAM for us desert dwellers?! She also unwinds by cooking, baking desserts, reading or practicing yoga. She is unbeatable at word searches and is putting in a lot of practice to become better at knitting and crocheting. Her fantasy superpower? Ultimate knowledge! So much can be accomplished with the answers to resolve everything. Despite not currently possessing ultimate knowledge, Kristie has brought with her a great collection of skill sets to help all of us here at AMIAS and our amazing clients. 

Meet Alicia, one of the newest members of Team Awesome Sauce and proof that sometimes your career doesn’t zigzag – it quietly taps you on the shoulder and says, “Hey … you were made for this.” What surprised her most about landing in HR? How perfectly it aligned with who she’s always been: the trusted advice-giver, the listener, and the calm voice of reason when things get a little weird. HR wasn’t a pivot – it was a homecoming.

Alicia found AMIAS HR while searching for local consulting firms and quickly realized this firm is not your typical corporate HR snoozefest. She was drawn in by our quirky, authentic vibe, clients who actually LOVE working with HR (we know, shocking), and our belief that HR should be ethical, human, and never painfully stuffy. Sold. 

When days go sideways, her solution is simple: dance it out – preferably fueled by coffee and good energy on full blast. An unapologetic extrovert, Alicia thrives on connection, collaboration, and building trust. Outside of work, Alicia recharges by spending quality time with her family and friends – the people who keep her grounded, laughing, and inspired. She works best in quiet (do keyboard strokes count?), hoards greeting cards like emotional documentation (HR habits die hard), and can kind-of sing – especially if Whitney is involved.

Alicia shines at creating clarity out of confusion, helping leaders make smart people decisions, and keeping small problems from becoming “call HR immediately” emergencies. Her HR style is a thoughtful blend of compliance, culture, and care – all strategically curated to keep everything running smoothly. Welcome to the rock star roster, Alicia. We are so glad you are here!

Memories of her time in the workforce were fading during Alissa’s time spent focused on raising her family in recent years. Let’s be real - everything is a blur in the early years of parenting! It needed to be a special situation to lure her back in and working with Michelle and the AMIAS team is indeed special! Alissa feels very lucky to be part of the AMIAS crew, polishing up skills she had not used for a bit. She comes from a journalism and marketing background, giving a unique perspective on communicating with and helping people in the HR field. 

Always learning, Alissa considers herself a permanent student and enjoys reading (preferably real paper and ink books rather than a screen but in a pinch she won’t be picky) and teaching herself how to design and DIY home renovation projects. The passion for paper and ink also spills over into staying organized. This may seem old fashioned, but Alissa (just like Michelle and others on the amazing team) is all about analog with her paper planner instead of a digital calendar. Paper nerds, unite!

Hello, Hola, Bonjour and 안녕하세요 (Annyeonghaseyo) from Erika! Born into a Spanish-speaking family, Erika studied her first foreign language during twelve years of grade school French classes. She followed that up by mastering English at UNLV and has been exploring the Korean language for the past several months. Her talent for speaking and reading multiple languages, her remarkable interaction talent, and keeping her humanity front and center all aid her in collaborating well with a diverse group.

Inspired in her life and work by her maternal grandmother, Erika says her Mamama Alicia was always ahead of her time. Forward thinking like that is often not fully appreciated until it is viewed in retrospect, but that’s not stopping Erika from incorporating it into her job today. Something that has surprised her about her human resources career path is how, as an HR professional, it’s possible to change people’s lives. It also doesn’t hurt that she brings her unbeatable positive attitude with her to work every day. Fun fact: Erika loves color coding with colorful fine tip pens – it helps her stay organized. She is also a beloved fellow Paper Nerd – we just keep finding one another somehow!

The support of her family and close friends, who are always there to celebrate her successes, keeps Erika motivated to be the best version of herself so she can continue to make them proud. Being at home with her family and pets brings her joy and she enjoys dining out as a family, with her favorite guilty pleasures being all-you-can-eat Sushi at Umiya or Korean BBQ. As a fan of live music, Erika enjoys attending concerts; her favorites so far have been P!nk and Luis Miguel. She is also a sports fan and proudly roots for her favorite teams: the new Vegas Thrill professional volleyball team, our Vegas Golden Knights and her son’s soccer team. If she could choose a superpower, Erika says it would be flying, hands down. Efficient and economical travel – imagine that! That’s almost impossible to find anymore! 

She shared that the best advice she has been given is, if you’re struggling to decide on a solution to a problem, just pick one, put all your energy into it, and stand by your decision. She also has a trick up her sleeve for turning a bad day at work around: stay focused on the bigger picture and search for a friendly face or voice to chat with when things aren’t going as planned. If it’s a bad day at home, blast some K-pop music and eat a BIG chewy chocolate chip cookie. Does anyone else think that in addition to her HR career, Erika could be an awesome life coach?!

¡Somos muy afortunados de tenerla aquí en AMIAS! ¡Gracias por ser parte del equipo maravilla!

Meet Taura! Known as Hunny to her grandkids, Taura dedicates exceptional, seldom-matched energy to all she does. Bringing a unique combination of experiences to the AMIAS HR team, which just happens to includes sales, her vast business knowledge is unparalleled. A local to Las Vegas (well, since 2006), her honesty and attention to detail make her vital to helping AMIAS with growing our business development side of things.

Taura incorporates creativity and strategic thinking in building warm, long-term relationships related to business-to-business sales, particularly with HR. She brings that same energy and inspiration to her family relationships. Along with her hubby, she puts their blended family of children and all those adorable grandchildren, first, representing exactly how family comes first at AMIAS HR. 

While her job and family life keep her on her toes, Taura also finds time for other passions, including exploring new things and traveling. One of her best stories is about a trip to Cancun … it’s so good, we can’t even reference it here. So not HR appropriate … the best kind.

Currently “under contract” with AMIAS on a strictly trial basis, Andrew offers his knowledge part time, off the books, as free labor (that’s what happens when you’re married to the CEO!). Known as the Chandler Bing of AMIAS, we all have fun guessing, “What exactly does Andrew do?” To be honest, it’s a bit of a mystery. But we sure are grateful he is here and Michelle is grateful to have him here when the printer breaks!

And when the chaos inevitably hits – deadlines loom, printers jam, and mild panic sets in – Andrew can usually be found shrugging it off at the gym (he loves lifting heavy sh!t) while delivering the Italian equivalent of our favorite reality check: “Ma sei morto?” (translation: “But did you die?”). Spoiler alert: no one did. The work still got done. The office survived. And Andrew calmly carried on, proving once again that perspective – and sarcasm – are truly universal languages.

 For those of us unsure of what exactly an HR Analyst does, Lydia breaks it down for us: she simply takes numbers and statistics and makes them pretty enough - for those of us who do not normally like them - to understand. Those little number details that might seem insignificant to those outside the HR biz are invaluable to AMIAS being able to bring the absolute best experiences to you, our valued clients! So we are so very lucky to have her here as part of our AMIAS team. She is all about a digital calendar to stay organized and she fits in perfectly with all the rest of us as a fellow Vegas Golden Knights fanatics.

When she isn’t working, Lydia enjoys reading thrillers, playing video games (current favorite: Dead by Daylight) and watching movies in the magical and immersive experience only a theater can provide, preferably with something starring her favorite actor, Pedro Pascal. Fun fact: Lydia collects popcorn buckets! Hanging with her friends, playing games and enjoying one other’s presence brings her joy. Though she loves art and drawing, she is aspiring to become better at it with more practice. 

Speed would be her superpower of choice, which coincides perfectly with how she sums up her life in one sentence: WON’T STOP MOVING. One day in the distant future, while browsing your favorite local bookstore, should you see a book entitled Starving for Passion that is very likely Lydia’s gripping memoir she will have written once she has plenty of vibrant and fulfilling life experiences under her belt. I predict a bestseller! 

The first concert she ever went to was Bad Bunny (play Lo Siento BB!) and her go-to karaoke song is Take Me Home, Country Roads (time-honored). She listens to pretty much everything when it comes to music genres, but while studying she likes having classical on to help focus and while she’s working, she plays hip hop or Spanish music to keep her energy high. Should the music fail, there is always the old standby: coffee! Lydia, welcome to AMIAS - we’re so happy you’re here!