The “Getting to Know” series is sponsored by Applied Innovation. Applied Innovation is helping to shape the future of accounts receivable management. Product development is driven by customer feedback, agency profitability and compliance and includes platforms addressing client portal access, document management, payment negotiation, Regulation E focused electronic payment authorizations and TCPA communication authorization platforms. Partner with a company who understands your business challenges and evolves to provide cutting edge technology to overcome those challenges and achieve success.
Finishing law school and passing the bar is no joke, any attorney will tell you. Doing it while working full time is just showing off. But that accomplishment speaks to the kind of ambition and passion for the law that Kristen DeFiore has. Read on to learn more about Kristen, the snack she would eat every meal for the rest of her life if she had the choice, and how her two dogs are enjoying their retirement.
Name: Kristen DeFiore
Job Title: Chief Compliance Officer
Company: Glasser and Glasser, P.L.C.
Length of Time at Current Company: Seven years
Length of Time in Industry: Seven years
How did you get your start in the industry?
I returned to the United States after four years in Japan. I knew I wanted to get back to the legal field as I had previously worked as a paralegal. In 2014, I met with a job recruiter who placed me with Glasser. I found the work challenging and rewarding. I was promoted to department manager and then to my current position.
What is your career highlight so far?
Finishing law school while working a full-time and then passing the Bar Exam.
When or how are you most productive?
I talk to myself when I am in “the zone” to help organize my thoughts. Therefore, I am most productive where no one can hear me.
Which industry professional do you admire most?
There are a handful of attorneys I have worked with at Glasser that have been positive mentors to me. I cannot thank them enough for the role they played, and continue to play, in my professional development.
My boss and outgoing president of the National Creditors Bar Association, Mark Groves, deserves a special mention. His larger-than-life personality, unwavering enthusiasm and dedication to what we do pushes me to reach for the gold standard every time. Mark has truly been supportive of my professional journey and as a result of his support and mentorship I am where I am today.
What is one thing you do better than everyone else?
Technical writing. I love the challenge of finding the clearest, most concise and precise way to express an idea. It’s a skill I am proud of and it definitely helped me on the Bar Exam.
What do you like most about this industry?
I like how adaptive we are to change. Change is constant and inherent in our industry. Specifically, in the legal space, the legal profession can be one of the last to adopt technology and process advances. However, in this industry legal professionals are experts at being adaptive.
What is one thing you wish you could change about this industry?
I wish we would change the language we use within our industry. There are so many terms we use daily that have a negative connotation to those outside the industry, such as “debt collector.” It is hard to change a negative public perception if internally we are continuing to use phrases we know invoke a negative reaction. There has been a lot of positive work in recent years to change the perception of the industry and part of continuing that work is changing how we talk about ourselves.
Describe a typical work day.
My day usually starts with responding to a mountain of emails. Then, I am either in meetings, working on audit deadlines or special projects. I do a lot of writing and most days I spend a significant chunk of time on drafts and edits.
If you weren’t in this industry, what would you be doing?
I would probably work as an estate planning attorney. I am passionate about ensuring people make their end of life plans known so that their intent and wishes can be honored.
What is your guilty pleasure?
Popcorn. If I could eat only one food for the rest of my life, it would be popcorn. I probably eat it every day.
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What is the best advice you’ve ever received?
Never send an email when you are angry.
What are you currently reading?
Diana: Her True Story in Her Own Words. It’s about Princess Diana. I binged watched “The Crown” during the pandemic and now I cannot stop reading about the Royal Family.
What is one fact you’d like everyone in the industry to know about you
I have two retired greyhounds, Iffy and Spaghetti, and they are the world’s biggest couch potatoes now that they are retired from racing.
Who else would you like to see answer these questions?
The compliance officers out there. I think we have a reputation for being stodgy, but we are actually fun.
The “Getting to Know” series is sponsored by Applied Innovation. Applied Innovation is helping to shape the future of accounts receivable management. Product development is driven by customer feedback, agency profitability and compliance and includes platforms addressing client portal access, document management, payment negotiation, Regulation E focused electronic payment authorizations and TCPA communication authorization platforms. Partner with a company who understands your business challenges and evolves to provide cutting edge technology to overcome those challenges and achieve success.