Lauren Dockendorf
Elevating teams in the ever-changing world of bikes · Santa Cruz Bicycles
Santa Cruz, CA
In My Own Words
When people used to ask me what I wanted to be when I grow up I would always, without fail, say, "I want to be a mermaid." It was a pure and honest answer to this age-old question. Alas, that dream was never realized because apparently, humans cannot grow tails or breath underwater. I have moved on but I still pretend when I go SCUBA diving.
I was never able to add Mermaid to my resume but I have tested the waters in a few roles along my path to recruiting and talent development. The connections we make can last a few seconds or a decade. In my life, I have worked with a wide variety of people, from salty sailors to elected officials.
Now I work with some of the most passionate people I have ever met who have converted me into a mountain biking fanatic! I love the atmosphere here at Santa Cruz Bicycles, it is the best company I have ever been a part of.
I would love to connect with you, reach out to me, let's work together.
Work Experience
Senior Manager of Talent Acquisition & Development
Santa Cruz Bicycles2024 – Present
Leading global strategic initiatives in talent acquisition & development for Pon Bike Performance (Santa Cruz Bicycles, Cervelo, OneUp Components and GT Bikes). Orchestrating recruiting processes, fostering a culture of growth and shaping training programs. Driving the company's success by cultivating top-tier talent and empowering advancement in the dynamic world of bikes.
Talent Acquisition Manager
Santa Cruz Bicycles2018 – 2024
Managed the Talent Acquisition team to grow our company in Santa Cruz, Salt Lake City, Germany, France, Australia, Taiwan and the UK. Hired staff for every department including Engineering, Marketing, Sales, Finance, Operations and Production.
Recruiter
Santa Cruz Bicycles2017 – 2018
I manage the full cycle of recruiting from screening to onboarding.
I am so proud to be a part of this passionate, thriving team and I am always looking for people who are looking to help this awesome company succeed and grow.
Check out our careers page and see if you or someone you know would be an awesome addition to our team at Santa Cruz Bicycles.
Executive Recruiter
Wavestaff2014 – 2017
Scoured the internet and my personal network to find, interview and place top performers in permanent roles for various tech startups around the globe.
• Placement included: VP of Engineering, Head of Customer Success, Growth Hacker, Graphic Designer, VP of Sales, Customer Success Manager, Account Executive • Managed 5-10 clients at a time, SaaS, Digital Marketing, Big Data, IoT and eCommerce software • Drafted client contracts and managed invoices for the 10-person staff • Planned teambuilding events and retreats for staff • Managed 3 interns, tracked and managed their projects and scheduled regular check-ins • Salesforce Administrator, created weekly reports for management and SOPs/best practices for staff to ensure accurate data entry
Project Manager
Save Our Shores2008 – 2014
Save Our Shores is a marine conservation non-profit. I wore multiple hats over the span of my 6 years there. My favorite part about this job was the amazing people I met along the way who shared my passion for the ocean and preserving it for our kids.
• Recruited and tracked hours for over 5,000 volunteers per year through events, social media and networking • Created and enhanced the organization's first social media presence (Facebook, Twitter, Instagram), email newsletters and digital advertising • Acted as the Human Resources liaison: Recruited and hired staff members, updated employee handbook, organized teambuilding activities and assisted with annual staff performance reviews • Served as the Conservation seat on the Science Advisory Council for the Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary for 4 years. Presented beach cleanup data findings and suggested research for banning seismic sonar in all sanctuaries along the California Coast. • Managed migration to a new website from Drupal to Wordpress and created content for over 100 pages of informational webpages and Sanctuary Steward intranet • Built SEO standard practices and tracked website traffic using Google Analytics • Wrote weekly blog posts about events, highlighting volunteers and ocean conservation current events • Designed, sent and reported on monthly e-newsletters using Constant Contact • Created Excel graphs on data collected from public beach and river cleanups on types of trask collected • Presented findings at City Council meetings around the Monterey Bay resulting in multiple bans on Plastic Bags and Styrofoam within Santa Cruz and Monterey Counties • Managed financial tracking using Quickbooks and Intuit Payroll, worked with a bookkeeper to make sure all bills were paid and grant money was collected
Research Associate
Santa Cruz Biotechnology2007 – 2008
Conducted research in the Immunodiagnostics Department studying animal DNA to be used in cancer research.
Senior Bank Teller
Washington Mutual Bank2006 – 2007
Got a taste of the corporate life as a Senior Bank Teller at WaMu. After working on the whale watching boat, I figured I had to get a real job so I could continue to live in Santa Cruz. I loved my time there and still keep in touch with some of my awesome co-workers. My dad is a CPA and was so excited when I got this job but we soon realized that finance was not my calling. Learned a lot about the finance world and used it at my job at Save Our Shores where I helped with bookkeeping as well as my personal life.
Naturalist and First Mate
Sanctuary Cruises2005 – 2006
I was determined to see a Blue whale (my favorite animal) and I love being on a boat of any kind so I sought work on a whale watching boat. It was one of the best decisions I made, I had no idea the impact it would have on my life.
This remains one of the best jobs I have ever had, I got to see whales and dolphins all day in their natural habitat. It was tough work, it was only me and the captain working on the boat but it was well worth.
One of my other favorite memories was when we saw a small pod of killer whales coming right for our boat and they dove under at the last minute, had the biggest grin on my face all day!
Every single day we went out we would see something: Blue Whales, Common Dolphins, Pacific White-sided Dolphins, Sunfish (Mola mola), Blue Sharks, Risso's Dolphins, Humpback Whales, Albatross, Sooty Shearwaters and Sea Otters. I will never forget my days working on the boat but had to pay rent in Santa Cruz so moved on to work at a bank so I could stay local. I still go out on a boat at least a few times a year, I can't stay away for long.
Research Assistant/Volunteer
Marine Life Studies2005 – 2005
Recorded behavior of Risso's Dolphins, Killer Whales, Pacific White Sided Dolphins and Northern Right Whale Dolphins from a tiny fishing boat.
Research Assistant
Joseph M. Long Marine Laboratory2004 – 2005
While pursuing my Marine Biology degree at UCSC, I assisted graduate students with research on wild California Sea Lions and Elephant Seals.
My favorite day on the job was traveling to Ano Nuevo Island to do monthly counts of elephant seals and sea lions. Do you know the difference between a seal and a sea lion? I will tell you if you ask!
