Evan Ladd
Director, Assistant General Counsel
Capital One
Milestones
My road in life took a while to figure out.
I studied abroad in college, which was scary and made me miss home, but so worth it.
I moved to Washington, D.C. a few months after college by myself.
Applied to law schools on both coasts, choosing the East coast because the school was a perfect fit.
Applied for jobs and roles I didn't think I would get to challenge myself. I ended up getting them.
Left a really good paying job where I was valued because I only ever had time to work.
Moved back west with my family and had the guts to ask if I could work from home, which I now do.
Education
High School
Sanger High School
Sanger High School
Career
Director, Assistant General Counsel
I give advice to our company regarding legal and compliant debt collection.
Career Roadmap
My work combines:
My work combines:
Law
Business
Problem Solving
Day to Day
I have the opportunity to work with leaders across the company to provide advice and answer questions regarding debt collection. So I get to meet a lot of different people, and because we have many different lines of business, I am responsible for making sure the legal advice we give regarding one product (like credit cards) is grounded in the same legal analysis as we give regarding another product (like bank accounts).
Advice for Getting Started
Here's the first step for college students
What I studied in college has very little to do with what I do today, but I think it's important in college to figure out what interests you coupled with what will lead to a career. Sure, linguistics is interesting, but unless you're going to be a professor or a speech therapist, you have to consider your future career too. I wish I had considered more classes in pre-law or business, which would both have helped me get started in my current role sooner.
Recommended Education
My career is related to what I studied. I'd recommend the path I took:
Hurdles
The Noise I Shed
From Society in General:
"D.C. is far away and you'll be living by yourself. Are you sure you will be ok with that?"
