

AmpersandPeople
Why Ampersand?
(our mission)
​
AmpersandPeople was born from a passion for helping companies implement, scale and iterate their people practices. The ampersand was chosen because of its connective property and the way it links things together and shows a closer collaboration than the word “and”, which is exactly how we want to work with you. We know success in business comes from having your people practices as closely aligned with and connected to your business practices as possible.
We appreciate the diversity of style & creative appearance of the ampersand while its purpose remains the same: to connect. Our support will change to reflect your needs, to represent your authentic corporate culture, work, & values, while our mission remains the same—to help you take care of your people. By making connections with your people we will help cultivate engaged employees who do remarkable things to build your business.
About us
Samantha
Schneider
CEO & Principal
Samantha Schneider is the founder and Principal of AmpersandPeople, Inc. She is an established People Leader with over 20 years of experience in recruiting and human resources working with a variety of industries. Samantha holds a Bachelors in Organizational Communications from Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo.
Tania
Bassoni
Founding Partner
Tania has18 years of experience in HR operations, including onboarding, project management, and recruiting coordination. She focuses on support and program creation, building customized training & branded communication materials for clients, and ATS management. Tania has a BS in Business, Management, Marketing, and Related Support Services from University of Arizona.
Kate
DeSanti
Sr. Consulting Manager
Kate DeSanti has a great passion for customer service and 10 years of experience in Recruiting and HR administration in start-up environments. Kate focuses on giving clients support with recruitment operations, workplace & candidate experience. Kate has a BS in Human Resources Management and Services from University of Central Florida.
Nadia
Millikin
Sr. Director, Talent
In her role Nadia focuses on full cycle Recruiting, process and program creation, as well as Talent Branding. Nadia brings extensive experience as a Human Resources Leader, specializing in Talent Management and HR/Talent Operations with an emphasis on creating and implementing programs that lead to a positive candidate and employee experience. Nadia graduated with a BA from Arizona State University.
Madelyn
Harvey
VP, Talent
Tactical lifecycle recruiting leader with 17 years of success supporting progressive initiatives that directly impact the company’s competitive ability to attract, engage and retain top talent. Skilled client engagement manager capable of bringing forth successful talent solutions. Maintains vast network to maintain recruiting pipeline. Madelyn has a BA from Humboldt State University.
Wendy
Butterfield
Recruiting Lead
A highly motivated and driven human resources staffing professional with extensive experience researching, identifying, attracting & closing candidates. Wendy is an ambitious and thorough closer, with excellent communication, relationship building, and recruiting abilities. She is able to project manage, improve processes & deliver qualified talent. Organized, dependable, focused and diligent. Wendy has a BA from San Jose State University.
Janelle
Hall
Sr. Consulting Manager
Janelle Hall is a Sr. Consulting Manager for AmpersandPeople. She brings 10 years of experience in recruiting coordinating, university relations/intern program management, & recruiting. With her skill set, she focuses on full-cycle recruiting, talent operations & candidate experience with our clients. Customer service is at the forefront of everything she does. Janelle has a BA in Social Science, Cross Cultural Studies from Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo.
Steve
Leech
Human Resources Executive
As an engaging, responsive, and hands-on executive, Steve brings a broad & diverse human resources background that spans across all HR areas. Throughout his career, he has achieved top-performing, highly inclusive workforces by aligning people, operations, & processes. He also excels at executing value-added, cost-effective HR initiatives that positively impact employee performance, engagement, & retention. Steve has a BS from Georgetown University and an MBA in Finance/Marketing from USC Marshall school of Business.
Jim
Welch
Consulting VP
Jim's long-standing career in Talent Acquisition, running recruiting teams, and supporting searches across industries is a fit for clients looking to hire their 5th or 500th employee. Jim has a Bachelors in Management from Northern Arizona University, The WA Franke College of Business.
Kerry Ann
Kelly
Legal Consultant
Kerry Kelly is a licensed California attorney. She is a highly collaborative working leader who expertly balances critical, pragmatic problem solving, with a sense of urgency in strategic and tactical decision making. Kerry has a great depth of experience in employment law and HR matters, as well as general company operations. She is able to apply her understanding and skills to provide efficient, cost-effective solutions. Kerry has a JD degree from Santa Clara University School of Law.
Tina
Lombardi
Sr. Talent Associate
Tina has over 36 years of event operations experience. Her strengths are managing projects through the delivery of objectives & execution of logistics, while effectively working with clients and providing outstanding client/customer service. She’s highly organized, with strong prioritization and project management skills that enable her to deliver on multiple projects, on time and within budget. Tina brings her years of expertise at problem solving, organization and operations to the organization. She is an accomplished copy editor & proofreader and possesses outstanding written and verbal communication skills.
Charmain
Johnson
Human Resources Director
Charmain has focused on employee engagement helping companies scale up & down, supporting M&A, opening new locations, and has participated in high volume hiring. Her work experience covers all business units and she has experience supporting exempt & non-exempt employee populations. A warm smile helps her engage with employees with on and off boarding, leave, immgration, benefits administration, compliance activities and more! In addition, she has supported diversity & outreach programs.
Joy
Fang
Talent Associate
Joy is a microbiologist -turned- graphic designer -turned-project manager -turned- talent associate, eager to learn, create, explore and surround herself with game-changing people. Joy has over 15+ years of leading multiple projects of people teams to meeting company goals and needs. With a diverse background and unique high technical aptitude, she has a track record of success in managing complex projects and diverse people in fast paced forward thinking companies. Passionate about people relationships, Joy ensures support, collaboration, and communication with new and existing clients. Joy has a BS from UCLA in Microbiology & Molecular Genetics.
Lisa
Cun
Sr. Talent Associate
Lisa is a total team player and has valuable experience working in Recruiting Operations with tech & life science companies. She creates unique candidate experiences and executes new employee onboarding with a positive and joyful attitude. Her superb organization skills and attention-to-details goes hand in hand to provide recruiting support for clients and candidates. Lisa holds a BS from the University of San Francisco.
Kyaira
Richardson
Human Resources
With 10+ years of experience within Human Resources, Kyaira is a highly effective associate skilled in supporting others through recruiting and various HR operations. Highly effective in organization, attention to detail, and employee engagement & retention, Kyaira is able to support various clients with diverse backgrounds across multiple industries. Kyaira has a BA from California State University-Northridge.
Katie
Doherty
Lead Recruiter
With 10+ years of full life-cycle recruiting, Katie's experience spans multiple functions including Executive, Technical, G&A, and Video Game development staffing. She has proven success with high volume hiring, req load management and resource planning which makes her a valuable member to any recruiting team. Given her extensive background in the video game and visual effects industry, her passion is to help companies grow their workforce in order to push the boundaries of product development, with new experiences and cutting edge technology. Katie holds a Bachelor's degree in Psychology from The University of San Diego.
Maria
Amren
Org Design & Wellness
Maria has an eye for data and detail while working with organizations to define and create HR initiatives that drive employee engagement and organizational performance, leading to effective change management and overall business success. She has experience working with small growing businesses as well as larger organizations spanning across the globe. Maria has a Master’s Degree from San Jose State University and her work has been published in the International Journal of Stress Management.
Joe
Jackson
Lead Recruiter
With dedicated experience and proven talent in both sales and recruiting, Joe is highly proficient in managing teams in both areas over a career that has included Fortune 500 well-known brand names and smaller, more flexible entrepreneurial companies. His extensive industry experiences include healthcare, business services, technology and non-profit organizations. He focuses on finding the right skillset and cultural fit at any employee level taking a total team approach. Joe has a BA from UCLA.