Pace Culture Warrior Beth McDaniel feels a sense of accomplishment when a new hire is fully onboarded. Beth’s sense of duty, her drive to get the job done, and her constant quest to illustrate our Pace core value – Do what you say – has earned her a coveted Pace Culture Warrior Award.
In her three plus years at Pace, Beth has served two years as a Customer Service Representative and is now a little more than a year into her role as HR Specialist. She says that one challenge of her job is “gathering and compiling all the pieces of the onboarding puzzle from everyone involved in the process. This includes the Recruiting team, Operations, Payroll, Compliance, Safety, occasionally IT, as well as our outside background screen company and the drug screening lab. Each group or team has a part to play in making me successful in onboarding new employees.”
Every ounce a modest team member, Beth has graciously shared some interesting aspects about her life, career, family, and what drives her to be the great team player that she is.
Please tell us about your role at Pace.
I am the Onboarding/Offboarding HR Specialist for Pace. I work with the Recruiting team to order pre-employment requirements such as drug screens and background checks. I set up all new hire W-2 employees in ADP. I reach out to the new hires to assist them with their ADP account set up. I make sure that all new hires’ documents are compliant with government regulations and kept in electronic personnel files. I also handle the offboarding of all Pace W-2 employees in ADP. I conduct exit interviews for resigning team members and make sure that the proper documentation is in personnel files. I assist wherever else is needed in Human Resources.
What is your understanding of Pace’s core value – Do what you say – as it relates to you and the work you do with our teammates and for our customers?
When I think of our core value to Do what you say – I always think of the Bible verse that says “let your yes be yes and your no be no.” I have always felt that if you say you will do something, you should try your hardest to make it happen. That is especially true in the Human Resources department. We don’t deal with outside customers like most of the other Pace employees. Our customers are Pace employees, and I feel that we should treat each of them like customers. I want to do my best to always improve and do what I say I will do for all of Pace’s employees.
What does this value mean to you in your life outside of working with Pace?
I have several volunteer jobs at my church, and one of them is working with the media screens for the Sunday services. I make sure the words of the songs are up on the big screens during the service and that the Bible references and sermon points are shown during the pastor’s message. I am at church by 7:30 on Sunday mornings, and I very rarely miss a service. There is a running joke among us that “Beth is always there”. I volunteered for the job, and therefore I will be there if possible.
Who (or what) inspires you?
My grandmother was my greatest inspiration. She was a barely five-foot tall schoolteacher who commanded the attention and respect of her students. Most were much taller than her. Despite that, she was the sweetest, kindest person you would ever meet outside that classroom. She was elegant, organized, and everyone who knew her loved her instantly.
Please shed light on your background and/or your life outside of Pace. What do you want your Pace teammates to know about you?
I have lived in Alabama all my life. I grew up in Hueytown which is about fifteen miles outside of Birmingham. In fact, I am back living in the house I grew up in, which proves you can go home again! As I mentioned I am active in my local church and have several volunteer jobs there. I have two adult sons, two sweet daughters-in-law, and three grandchildren. I also have two dogs, a twelve-year-old miniature dachshund and a chihuahua-Jack Russell terrier mix who fears everything. I am a HUGE Doctor Who fan, which is a British Sci-Fi show. I spent over ten years in retail working for Walmart and then JC Penney, beginning on the sales floor and moved up through different positions to Office Manager. I also went to work for a life insurance company in Birmingham and spent twenty years in different capacities at their home office.
Beth conscientiously goes about her work every day doing what she says she will do. Even though she doesn’t often interact with outside customers, it’s clear her contributions have a cascading positive impact on Pace team members and onto Pace’s customers! Doing what you say you will do goes a long way.
