Carlena “CJ” Harris is a Talent Acquisition Leader, Learning Facilitator, & Career Strategist that is passionate about creating a diverse learning culture to attract, develop, and retain talent.  Carlena joined Cepheid Corporation, an American molecular diagnostics company, in March 2021 to lead the Americas Customer Care Operations Training Team. 

Carlena previously held the position of Talent Acquisition & Learning Development Manager at Luminex Corporation and Talent Acquisition Manager at National Instruments; both companies headquartered in Austin, Texas.  She is a Software Engineer by trade.  She worked as a technical professional at IBM for 15 years, however she navigated her technical leadership skills to become a leader within talent acquisition, coaching, career strategy, and learning development.

To gain experience in her new career, Carlena launched a talent management company, Brickhaus3, in March 2012 which was instrumental in her transition from engineering to talent acquisition. She partnered with start-up companies by providing recruiting, onboarding, and coaching services to their employees.   In addition, she has volunteered for many organizations.  Ms. Harris has served as a Board of Director for the National Association of Colleges and Employers, and Girls on the Run (Austin).  She has held the office of President for the Society of Women Engineers (Central Texas), been a mentor for the Women in Engineering Program at University of Texas at Austin.

Carlena received a Bachelor of Science in Information Systems Technology from the University of Houston-University Park and a Master of Science in Organizational Leadership & Ethics from St. Edwards University.

Carlena is a mother of two young adults and one fur baby. Carlena enjoys cycling, cooking, and comedy.  She is a result-oriented individual who finds pleasure in assisting individuals with getting their careers from here to there.