A Buffalo native, Hannah LaDuca immediately found success with Acara. One of the most interesting parts of her journey to the company was that she actually never planned to work for Acara to begin with!

In the latest edition of our “All In at Acara” series, learn how Hannah’s previous experience in the staffing industry in California—in combination with her detail-oriented and analytical mind—led to her fulfilling the technical recruitment specialist position in her hometown.

A background in IT

Born and raised in Buffalo, NY, I studied communications at the University of Buffalo. Upon graduation, I accepted an offer on the west coast, California specifically, where I worked for an IT staffing firm. Despite the success I found after two years in this role, I decided I really wanted to move back home.

Journey to Acara

In September of 2021, I was speaking with an Acara recruiter about an open position with one of their clients. The recruiter, Christian Ciesiulka, mentioned that there was a position available internally with Acara and that my previous experience in the IT industry might make me a competitive candidate for the role. After inquiring a bit more about the position—and about Acara itself—I knew this was the company I wanted to work for.

Role of a technical recruitment specialist

My position at Acara is technical recruitment specialist. Basically, I work alongside clients who have IT needs. My team and I determine exactly what our client’s needs are and connect them with candidates whose experience aligns with the role. IT is an exciting industry to work in because of how vast and ever-changing it is. There is always something new to learn. Additionally, I would consider myself a detail-oriented and analytical-minded person. I think this has helped me find success in this position. I genuinely enjoy researching new IT positions and identifying the type of candidates needed for that role.

Staffing in this industry can be challenging. IT positions can take a long time to fill, and you must not only be patient but also have an understanding of the simple fact that you will not have wins every week. It has taken me quite some time to be comfortable with having bad days, or even weeks, in this industry. It is easy to get discouraged, but it’s important to keep your head up and remain focused on your team and your client’s goals.

Connection to the Acara culture

Despite the challenges posed by the nature of the IT staffing industry, the culture of Acara makes even the worst of days worth it. In fact, the people and overall culture of the company were what ultimately sold me into accepting my offer to join the organization. I look forward to coming into the office each day because I genuinely enjoy being a part of my team. Everyone is so supportive of each other, and our leadership constantly encourages us to raise our bar and set even more ambitious goals for ourselves. I believe this environment is a key reason that our employees and organization are so successful.

Additionally, Acara continues to prove to me how much opportunity and growth there is both within the company and the industry. As the IT industry evolves through advances in technology, Acara makes sure to keep pace.

When I am not working…

I am very close to my family and enjoy being with them on the weekend—whether that be going out to eat or attending sporting events. It is important to me that, even in the hectic talent acquisition world, I make spending time with them a priority of mine. I am a huge hockey fan, so we often attend Sabres games together. I grew up a Pittsburgh Penguins fan, although I still root for the Sabres, too! My dream is to one day travel to Italy. Much of my father’s family still lives in Sicily, and I would love to one day meet them and learn more about their culture and my Italian heritage.

To learn more about Hannah connect with her on LinkedIn.

Interested in finding out more about the rest of our Acara team? Check out other editions of our “All-In at Acara” series here.