Jenny Berkedal-Wilkins is BetterComp's Head of People, with over 14 years of Human Resources experience. Based in Austin, Texas, Jenny joined the BetterComp team in October 2024 and plays an integral part in making BetterComp a great place to work. We sat down with Jenny to learn more about her role and life outside of work!
Can you share a brief overview of your professional background and how you ended up in your current role?
I started my career as a 4th-grade teacher before earning my Master’s in K-12 Administration. In 2011, I made an unexpected but exciting pivot into the tech world, by joining an EdTech company—and I’ve been immersed in HR ever since. Over the years, I’ve worked in almost every HR function, including learning & development lead, global talent acquisition leader, executive recruiter, global HR leader, operations leader, and now, Head of People. My diverse HR experience has given me a well-rounded perspective on building impactful people programs that help teams and businesses thrive. My passion is working for growth startups bcause I love building out infrastructure and programs that will scale with a company.
Describe your role at BetterComp:
As Head of People, I start each day with some planning. I go through my email and slack, pulling out the critical tasks and urgent messages that I need to respond to right away. I then shift into an hour of focus time where I can knock out critical work and prep for important meetings. I usually like to spend my morning focused on strategic projects, like building out programs and documentation that will drive business performance and better the employee experience, and I usually try to have my meetings in the afternoon. I spend about 10-15% of my day answering ad hoc questions that come in from employees and I wrap my day up with another hour of focus time to finish any remaining tasks and knock off any action items that came from my meetings throughout the day before spending a few minutes looking forward to the next day.
What is your favorite part about your job? About working at BetterComp in general?
What I love most about working at startups is the opportunity to build lean, high-impact people programs that help both employees and the business thrive. The fast-paced environment challenges me to think strategically while staying deeply rooted in employee experience. The highlight of BetterComp specifically is working with a successful, smart, and driven team that is laser focused on making the world of HR easier for folks just like me. It’s a product that I can believe in and relate to!
What do you like doing when you’re not at work?
I have an 11-year-old stepdaughter who I absolutely adore and a 14-year-old former street dog who holds a big piece of my heart. I love spending time at home with my family—especially when it involves art projects of any kind. My most recent creation was a hand-embroidered portrait of a friend’s cat as a housewarming gift. When I’m not at home, you’ll likely find me on the tennis court, in a Pilates class, catching some live music, or checking out a new restaurant.
How do you continue to learn and grow in your role? Are there any particular skills or areas you're currently focused on improving?
You have to keep learning in order to work in tech. Everything changes quickly and as an HR leader, you need to be one step ahead. I joined the People Leader Accelerator (PLA) last year and that has been huge for my growth. My main focus is building out programs that are “right-sized” for the need. I used to get hung up on this idea that, “If I’m a good HR leader, this company would have A, B, and C.” But the PLA has helped me take ego out of it and instead operate in a solution-focused mindset, thinking things like, “In order for this company to hit its strategy/goals, they’ll need A, B, and C.” The right programs are often light and agile, not beautiful and certainly not perfect. But that’s generally what the company needs to move fast! I’m still working on that though. 😊
If you could give one piece of advice to someone just starting in your field, what would it be?
Be proactive and own your own career path. Don’t fall into the trap of waiting for your manager to provide opportunities. Look around you, find gaps, pick at problems, pitch solutions, and seek your own opportunity to make an impact.
Share a few fun or surprising facts about yourself that your colleagues might not know.
I’m a dual citizen of the US and Luxembourg, and I lived abroad for four years—one year in Japan (Southern Kyushu in Miyazaki-ken) and three years in the UAE (Dubai).
What’s your favorite book/movie/TV show and why is it your favorite?
I’m a big consumer of books, movies, and TV shows, so this is a very tough question. I think if I have to narrow it down to the past year, then I’d say my favorite movie has been Robot Dreams. As a stepmom, I’ve found myself drawn into content that centers on non-biological bonds. This specific bond is between a robot, a dog, and some cute little birds. It’s animated, but that didn’t stop me from crying my eyes out in the movie theater!
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