Search
OUR PEOPLE
A Day in a New York Life: Field Learning’s Elena Ramirez-Hayes.
New York Life | July 15, 2024
The Day in a New York Life article series offers a look into the daily lives of employees: what they do, their career paths, what they find most interesting about their jobs, and how they spend their time outside of the office.
Elena Ramirez-Hayes leads Agent Development in the Field Learning organization which oversees the training of our 12,000 New York Life agents. She is a graduate of the Women Unlimited LEAD program, is a certified trainer, and is a member of the American Society for Training & Development (ATD).
Growing up, Elena Ramirez-Hayes wanted to be a teacher. “I earned my bachelor’s degree in English, but when I graduated I didn’t see myself teaching high school,” Ramirez-Hayes says. Instead, she took a job with Northwestern Mutual as an agent, and as she grew in her career, she realized she was still drawn to learning and development. In particular, she loved being able to help others experience that “lightbulb moment” of understanding. “Making an impact on people was special to me,” she says. So, Ramirez-Hayes pivoted and spent the next decade as a corporate sales training manager in the telecom industry. In 2014, she joined New York Life’s NYLIC University team, where she managed webinar and virtual classroom capabilities. Over time, she took on roles of increasing responsibility, and two years ago, she was asked to lead the Agent Development team.
In this role, Ramirez-Hayes heads a team that equips agents with the knowledge and skills to provide the best holistic advice and guidance possible to our clients. “Videos, eLearning, virtual classrooms, skill builders, micro learning, podcasts, entire curricula – you name it. If it’s agent learning, we build it,” says Ramirez-Hayes. Most recently, the team launched five Practice Model specialization tracks built in collaboration with The American College of Financial Services. “We designed five comprehensive curricula that incorporate self-study, live classroom experiences, and master’s level courses to enable our agents to earn industry designations, deepen their expertise, and better serve their clients. I don’t know of any other organization that invests as much as New York Life does in developing their agents,” she says.
To create these experiences, Ramirez-Hayes and her team need to be on the leading-edge of learning innovations to continuously enhance and elevate agent learning. “We constantly research new tech and tools, with AI being of particular interest for the efficiencies it can offer in creating learning assets and potential for sales enablement using its coaching and simulation functionality,” she says.
To further her understanding of what our agents need, she also serves as a Home Office liaison to the Development Manager Advisory Committee and the Agent Advisory Committee. “It’s important to stay connected to the field and to the learners themselves, so we can continue to enhance the learning experience as agents and their environment both evolve,” Ramirez-Hayes says.
While she’s had a few mentors along the way, Ramirez-Hayes says her current manager, Head of Field Learning Janice Advani, has played a key role in her career. “We’ve worked together for seven of the 10 years I’ve been with New York Life. She has supported me through role transitions and I appreciate her insights and perspectives. It helps that we can be honest with each other, and I always feel safe and supported in doing that,” she says.
The best piece of career advice she ever received is about building networks and relationships across the company. “You can learn tremendously from other people, so connect with colleagues outside your business area. Having those relationships helps you learn more about the organization, more about your role and the work you do, and how you can help each other when help is needed,” says Ramirez-Hayes.
When she’s not in the office, Ramirez-Hayes can often be found “glamping.” “I’m not a tent camper, but we have an RV, and during camping season my family heads to a campsite to unwind and relax with friends,” she says. She also loves cooking, especially lasagna – it’s a family favorite.
A typical day in the life of Elena Ramirez-Hayes:
6:00 am:
First, coffee!
6:30 am - 7:30 am:
My family and I get ready for the day. I’m signing permission slips for my two children, making breakfast, taking care of our dog, Odin, and getting the kids on the school bus.
8:00 am - 9:00 am:
I prep for my workday by catching up on emails and checking my calendar to make sure I’m prepared for the conversations I’ll be having.
9:00 am - 5:00 pm:
I spend a large part of the day in back-to-back meetings with working groups, my team, advisory groups, and also one-to-ones. With so many meetings, I need to carve out time to also do the work, so time management is crucial.
5:00 pm:
When commuting, I catch up on phone calls with people I know are in transit (they’re a captive audience), whether that’s family members, colleagues, or peers in my network outside of New York Life.
6:00 pm:
My kids get home from sports and other activities, and the evening whirlwind starts. We catch up on the day, tackle homework, and eat a family dinner.
9:00 pm:
After the kids go to bed, my husband, Danny, and I enjoy some guilty pleasure TV, mostly home improvement reality shows, and anything with Josh Gates in it.
RELATED CONTENT
Go back to our newsroom to read more stories.
Media contact
Kevin Maher
New York Life Insurance Company
(212) 576-7937
Kevin_B_Maher@newyorklife.com