Embedding Mobility and Mentorship at Enterprise

Announcer: Welcome to the Recruiting Community Podcast, the go-to channel for talent acquisition leaders and practitioners. This show is brought to you by CXR, a trusted community of thousands connecting the best minds in the industry to explore topics like attracting, engaging, and retaining top talent. Hosted by Chris Hoyt and Jerry Crispin.

We are thrilled to have you join the conversation.

Gerry Crispin: Good day. My name’s Jerry Crispin from CareerXroads. I’m at RecFest and pleased to be sitting here with Ashley Hever from Enterprise. We’re going to spend about 20 minutes chatting about this venue, this space, and what we’re doing. We have about a hundred vendors here and at least a couple thousand people streaming through. Yesterday, one of your colleagues led a session in one of the circus tents about a mobility mindset at Enterprise. I’d love for you to expand on that a little.

Ashley Hever: Cool. Hi everyone, I’m Ash Hever. I’m the System Vice President of Talent Acquisition at Enterprise Mobility. Yesterday, I was lucky enough to speak in one of the circus tents about mobility. It was really about telling our story and journey at Enterprise—how mobility is embedded in our culture.

But like any employer, we always ask, “How do we go from good to great?” It’s about continuously evolving to ensure the business is set up for the future. We bring in people at entry level and develop their careers. Personally, I’ve had probably a dozen different moves or promotions—working across operations, talent acquisition, talent development, and then back to TA. A couple of years ago, I moved from Europe to North America, bringing that experience over and learning this market. Maybe that’s why I’m here!

Gerry Crispin: I love it. The first time I connected with Enterprise and met some of your colleagues, I was really blown away by two things. One, such a high percentage of people come into one job—learning the business at a local rental shop. After a year, you know whether this is for you. But what really struck me was the range of options that follow. All the recruiters I met had done that first job, so they knew what the roles were—they lived them.

Ashley Hever: Exactly. That was my career path. I left university with a degree in criminology and didn’t know what to do. I saw a job in the newspaper—working for Enterprise, a company I hadn’t heard of. I joined as a management trainee in one of the stores. From a TA perspective, my colleagues and I are able to tell that story firsthand—about career paths, lateral and upward moves, and real success stories. Everyone you meet in the recruitment process at Enterprise can share their own journey, which is pretty unique.

Gerry Crispin: Very unusual. Most companies today are just now figuring out internal mobility, but you’ve been doing it historically, and it shows. There’s authenticity. Even at the C-suite level, folks started at the ground floor.

Ashley Hever: Yeah, Chrissy Taylor, our CEO, started as a management trainee and worked her way up through the business.

Gerry Crispin: That kind of story makes it aspirational. Why did you choose to go into talent acquisition and HR, and when?

Ashley Hever: I was a couple of years into my career, working as a branch manager in England. I really enjoyed developing employees, helping them grow. My best friend—also at Enterprise—was the recruiter and went on maternity leave. She said, “I think you’d be great for this job.” I applied and got the role.

I did that for a year until she returned, and I realized this was my passion. I loved the sales aspect—attracting people to the business, advising hiring managers, and making sure we delivered a great candidate experience. When she came back, I returned to operations, but I applied what I’d learned in TA. Later, a role came up at our corporate head office as TA Manager for the UK, and I jumped at the chance. It was my dream job. I couldn’t believe it when I got it—five years into my career.

From there, I started developing strategies, discovering I had strengths in recruitment marketing and relationship building—internally and externally. That trust helped me thrive.

Gerry Crispin: And it’s powerful that you’ve done the jobs of the people you’re hiring for. They can’t say, “You don’t know what we do.” You’ve been there.

Ashley Hever: Absolutely. As an area manager, I could speak to other area managers about why candidate experience matters. They couldn’t say, “You’ve never done this job.” I could speak from firsthand experience. It makes coaching and development so much easier.

Gerry Crispin: That tells me companies looking to improve should give HR folks the chance to shadow or even work in ops. I spent 10 years at Johnson & Johnson. For two years, I was pulled from HR to report directly to an engineering group that was transforming. I learned a ton—how to make jobs more human and empowering.

Ashley Hever: I completely agree. We did the same, especially as our tech side of the business grew. I took a week to immerse myself—understanding competencies, team dynamics, and hiring managers—so I could really sell the culture to candidates. My whole UK team did the same. We wanted to fully understand the business.

Gerry Crispin: That strategy really works. I did something similar when I took over an HR division supporting marketing and sales. I spent a week riding with their top and bottom salespeople. You learn so much.

Ashley Hever: Exactly. And sometimes you realize you don’t have to look outside the company. We found we had marketing competencies among branch managers. Once we understood that, we could have better conversations with hiring managers.

Gerry Crispin: That’s probably why you got involved with the Talent Marketing Group and joined the board.

Ashley Hever: Right. Events like RecFest help me educate myself. I’ve learned so much by listening to people in the tents, hearing about their challenges and successes, and talking with the 100+ suppliers here. It prepares me to be an internal expert on talent acquisition and understand what others in the industry are doing.

This is my second year at the US RecFest, but I’ve attended the UK version five or six times.

Gerry Crispin: How do you see differences in how Enterprise operates in the UK versus the US?

Ashley Hever: Honestly, you can walk into a branch in the UK or Germany and not really know where you are—aside from the language. That’s intentional. The US operation is more mature, with more mobility lines—like truck, airport, and commute businesses.

If I want credibility in the US TA space, I need to immerse myself. I spent time at Chicago O’Hare to understand what roles we’re hiring for and how they differ from Europe. The competencies are similar—customer service, sales—but the roles vary. I love that I can go from the US to the UK and still have the same experience as a customer. That’s how it should be.

Gerry Crispin: So what’s next for you? Most of your career’s been with Enterprise.

Ashley Hever: Yeah. I struggled to find a job after university. My degree score ruled me out of many graduate roles. I worked in customer service and sales before joining Enterprise. Next year will be 25 years with the company.

Gerry Crispin: That’s rare in the US. Among our members, only a couple—like Marie Art and Dan Black—have stayed with one company for decades.

Ashley Hever: Exactly. I was talking to someone yesterday who said three years at their company felt like a long time! You never know what’s around the corner, but what’s kept me here are the evolving challenges, new opportunities, and the values that remain constant.

Gerry Crispin: That constant evolution keeps things fresh, even in the same organization. The values and culture stay, but the problems you’re solving shift.

Ashley Hever: Yes, and if you’ve got the right leadership and values, you can learn the tools, systems, and processes. Marie has over 30 years at Enterprise, and I still learn from her every day. I pass that on to others—it’s a cycle of mentorship.

Gerry Crispin: That willingness to listen and coach others is a big sign of leadership.

Ashley Hever: Absolutely. I mentor both officially and informally. There’s so much support within the TA space. Some of my closest friends were recruiters I met 15–20 years ago. Moving to the US has been a new experience, and Marie has helped me build those bridges and grow my network.

Gerry Crispin: One last question. I follow NACE, and I’ve seen that graduate job opportunities have dropped significantly this year. Is that a concern—or maybe an opportunity—for Enterprise?

Ashley Hever: I’ve seen that too. In the UK, the ISE surveys show a slight decline in opportunities. It’s cyclical, but it will be harder for graduates to find roles now. Employers are looking for more than just a degree—they want skills. That’s an opportunity for us to partner with different organizations and showcase the breadth of careers at Enterprise Mobility.

We’re known for our rental operations, but there’s so much more. We’re focusing on delivering that message at the attraction stage. It also helps align with internal mobility—showing people what’s possible beyond their first role.

Gerry Crispin: That foundational experience in the branch really sets the stage for everything else. If it’s not the right fit, that’s fine—but for those who love it, it opens a lot of doors.

Ashley Hever: Exactly. And we make sure people get the right coaching, development, and mentorship. Someone told me last night, “Your employees are my favorite future hires.” That’s flattering, but we also want to keep those people by providing internal opportunities.

Gerry Crispin: That’s a great challenge to have. On that note—thank you very much. I’ve really enjoyed this conversation.

Ashley Hever: Thank you so much for having me! Time flies when you’re having fun.

Gerry Crispin: You got it. Cheers.

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