Cheryl Palarca
San Francisco,CA
Summary
Dynamic Learning & Development and HR + People Programs leader with over 15 years of experience, specializing in New Hire Onboarding reaching over 3,000 employees globally within technology firms. Proven expertise in facilitating impactful leadership workshops and excelling in program management and stakeholder engagement. Strong competencies in instructional design and mentoring, enhancing employee integration and engagement across diverse regions. Committed to leveraging these skills to foster organizational growth and promote an inclusive workplace culture.
Overview
16
16
years of professional experience
1
1
Certification
Work History
Manager, Learning & Development
Figma
San Francisco, CA
11.2022 - 12.2024
- Welcomed over 800 new Figmates through onboarding programs.
- Created and facilitated bi-weekly, virtual, new hire welcome calls.
- Full ownership and facilitation of the company’s first global, monthly, full-day, and onsite “New Figmate Onboarding” in both San Francisco and London offices.
- Facilitated Leadership Workshops in: Giving Feedback, Accountability, Manager 101, DiSC, and StrengthsFinders.
- Adapted to global workforce needs for the AMER, APAC, and EMEA regions.
- Managed stakeholder relationships with HR Operations, I.T., Workplace, and the Executive C-Suite through weekly meetings and communications with executive staff.
- Regularly sought input from participants and stakeholders to improve the content and delivery of learning programs.
- Certified in delivering workshops with Crucial Conversations.
Program Manager, Employee Engagement
Anaplan
San Francisco, CA
06.2017 - 11.2022
- Welcomed over 1,000 new Anaplanners through onboarding programs.
- Designed, implemented, and facilitated the company’s first monthly 3-day, on-site new hire onboarding program in San Francisco, Minneapolis, and London.
- Facilitated and managed a weekly, virtual, new-hire welcome call.
- Managed stakeholder relationships with HR Operations, I.T., Workplace, and the Executive C-Suite.
- Served as an influential Values Ambassador and culture leader to all Anaplanners, and proposed employee engagement activities based on feedback received from listening tours.
- Successfully transitioned in-person onboarding programs to virtual, live program deliveries during two years of the COVID pandemic, with cohorts as large as 90+ people online.
- Certified in delivering workshops in Tilt365 and Reality-Based Leadership (RBL) strength assessments.
Sr. HR Operations & Onboarding Manager
Twitter
San Francisco, CA
03.2009 - 06.2017
- Welcomed over 2,000 new hires through Twitter’s onboarding programs over eight years.
- Hired among the first 30 employees at Twitter as the company’s first Recruiting Coordinator in 2009.
- Piloted the first onboarding program for all new Twitter employees in 2010 as an HR Program Manager with cohorts ranging from 2 to 100 employees in one session.
- Upon joining HR Operations in 2011, I provided end-to-end HR support, from candidate offer letter creation and delivery to new hire data entry into HRIS systems such as ADP and Workday.
- Acted as Benefits Manager during Open Enrollment periods, processing requests through data files and integrations with external benefits vendors.
- Managed stakeholder relationships from HR Operations, I.T., Workplace, C-Suite, and Executive Staff.
- In 2015, I joined the Learning & Development team, which regularly surveyed participants to gain feedback on onboarding programs to evolve and iterate for best practices.
- Official full-time owner and creator of Twitter’s flagship onboarding program: “Flight School.”
Education
BBA - Management & Leadership, Minor: Psychology
Loyola Marymount University
Los Angeles, CASkills
- Facilitation (in-person and virtual)
- End-to-end Global New Hire Onboarding program execution
- Program Management
- Executive Presence
- Leadership Development
- Stakeholder relationship management
- Coaching and mentoring
- Cross-functional team management
- Engagement survey creation
- Google, iOS, Microsoft Suite
- Internal Tools: Workday, Slack, Asana, WorkRamp, CultureAmp, Lattice
Certification
- Crucial Conversations for Mastering Dialogue
- Tilt365 Strengths Assessment
- Reality-Based Leadership (RBL)
Timeline
Manager, Learning & Development
Figma
11.2022 - 12.2024
Program Manager, Employee Engagement
Anaplan
06.2017 - 11.2022
Sr. HR Operations & Onboarding Manager
Twitter
03.2009 - 06.2017
BBA - Management & Leadership, Minor: Psychology
Loyola Marymount University