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Light Up Your Work

We are Bex

It is our profound responsibility as founders, leaders, and managers to illuminate a path for your people. 

We are talent strategy partners with you in this pursuit. As consultants, coaches, and recruiters, we work with you to align your people, profit, and potential.

The Spark

We began in 2016 as FireFly-HR, a name that resonated with our founder Ashleigh Bechtel, who grew up spending summers in the fields of the Midwest, chasing fireflies and watching things grow. Early on, Ashleigh worked in a variety of roles training and coaching children and adults. Her natural tendencies led to an ability to connect with people and an understanding of how to ignite excellence in each person around her.

Flecks of Light

Excited to make an impact in the world, Ashleigh spent the first 16 years of her career with a Fortune 500 med-tech company where she earned her MBA in executive leadership and discovered her passion in human resources, excelling in roles focused on talent and culture. Ashleigh developed a comprehensive understanding of business cycles and the intricacies of managing teams. Throughout her career, Ashleigh navigated leadership roles within established and newly acquired divisions with her favorite being the Head of People for a division serving Eastern Europe, the Middle East, and Africa, based in Switzerland.

This diversity of roles and challenges helped her think strategically and focus on the people. Ashleigh built upon her passion and started what is now Bex Partners, named as an ode to her beloved nickname. Bex blends the talents and experiences of its team members, with a combined 75 years of experience in culture building, talent strategy, human resources, and recruiting.

As a team of talent strategy partners intent on sparking a little more love in the world, Bex represents convergence, warmth, and a tribute to the longstanding relationships it comes from, and continuously cultivates.

“Know what sparks the light in you. Then use that light to illuminate the world.”
― Oprah Winfrey

Glowing Beliefs

These core beliefs and foundational practices spark our work

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GROWTH

Be curious enough to make an impact.

Learn and evolve as humans first. Grow together. Seek wholly to understand. Celebrate each other’s wins.

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Energy

Connect the passion to the action.

Focus on strengths. Ideas are dynamic, be the spark. Share your passion with others. Show up.

A simplified line drawing of an open hand with a small heart hovering above it, symbolizing care or generosity, is about conveying a heartfelt message.

Love

Invest genuinely.

Mutual success is the goal. Compliment. Be kind with your feedforward. Acceptance opens doors.

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Loyalty

Nurture trust time and again.

Clients are a part of our team. Be open and honest. Make a plan, follow the plan. Invest.

Meet The Bex Team

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Ashleigh Bechtel

President & Founder

As President of Bex Partners, Ashleigh leads the team with visionary guidance. She leverages her dynamic energy, solutions-oriented mindset, and strategic thinking to empower clients to achieve their goals confidently.  

Having founded Bex Partners after a distinguished career in Fortune 500 leadership, Ashleigh’s global experience includes shaping business strategies, building teams, and optimizing company cultures for enterprises of diverse scales. Ashleigh has a proven track record of success in talent and culture, human resources, operations, and leadership roles. 

Armed with an MBA in Executive Leadership from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, a BA in Communication from the University of Arizona, and multiple certifications, Ashleigh is dedicated to continuous learning. Passionate about exploring diverse cultures, she is on a mission to visit all continents and aims to reach 50 countries, showcasing her commitment to global understanding.

Significant Seven
Strengthscope Strengths

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Resilience

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Relationship bUILDING

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Optimism

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Leadership

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Enthusiasm

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Emotional control

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Developing Others

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Austin Reed

Talent Acquisition Partner

Austin focuses on creating long-lasting matches between talent and employers. With wide-ranging experience recruiting various corporate roles, Austin contributes expertise in tech, sales, finance, and more. His favorite part of being a recruiter is helping people find meaningful change in their careers and working lives.   

He earned his Bachelor of Arts in English Literature from DePaul University in Chicago and now lives in Denver, where he spends his time skiing, hiking, and exploring new local restaurants and coffee shops. Austin loves trying his hand at cooking new vegetarian meals, watching the best new series, or playing a game of Catan with friends.

Significant Seven
Strengthscope Strengths

An illustration of a fist surrounded by a segmented square with tick marks, resembling a clock face. The fist and square are outlined in gold and black with green tick marks.

Resilience

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Creativity

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Decisiveness

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Efficiency

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Initiative

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Self-Improvement

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Collaboration

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Jennifer Lipscomb

Talen Acquisition Manager

As a coach and an advocate for both the internal team and our clients, Jen manages all aspects of recruiting. A gifted talent matchmaker, she is passionate about connecting clients and candidates. 

Jen’s experience began in operations in the medical device manufacturing industry for a global Fortune 500 company where she held various roles, including planner, production supervisor, manufacturing manager, and recruiter. Since joining Bex in 2018, Jen has recruited top talent for clients in a wide range of industries.

Jen is a UC Davis graduate with a degree in BioChemisty. She lives in San Jose, California, with her husband, Mark, three teenagers, and their ever-energetic labradoodle, Max. When Jen isn’t hard at work, you will likely find her running, teaching group fitness classes, or at the beach.

Significant Seven
Strengthscope Strengths

An icon of an open book with a brain above it, surrounded by rays, symbolizing knowledge or learning.

Common Sense

A hand holds a balanced scale with a checkmark on one side and an 'X' on the other, symbolizing decision-making or weighing options.

Decisiveness

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Efficiency

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Leadership

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Optimism

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Results-Focused

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Self-Confidence

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Kari Sleezer

Operations Project Manager

Kari determines and implements operations solutions for our internal team and external clients. She keeps the trains on the tracks while creating efficiencies and focusing on client care.

Before joining Bex, Kari was the Client Relationship Manager for a consultant company specializing in team development, where she worked with clients on organizational development, improving team dynamics, and talent optimization. Prior to working for consulting firms, Kari taught high school English for 6 years.

Kari graduated from Arizona State University with a Bachelor of Arts in English Literature and holds a Master of Arts from Northern Arizona University in Professional Writing. Outside of work, one of Kari’s guilty pleasures is binging Spanish telenovelas.

Significant Seven
Strengthscope Strengths

Two stylized human figures with a gear between them, representing collaboration or teamwork.

developing others

A bar graph with a trend line rising to a star icon, alongside a gear symbol, representing growth and progress.

Efficiency

Icon showing two faces on a scale: one smiling and one frowning, representing contrasting emotions.

Emotional control

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empathy

A simple smiley face with two dots for eyes and a curved line for a mouth, enclosed in a gold circle.

Optimism

Illustration of a raised fist surrounded by lines resembling clock ticks.

Resilience

Two hands holding separate pieces of a jigsaw puzzle, connecting them together, symbolizing collaboration and teamwork.

Collaboration

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Kim Larson

People Strategy Consultant

Kim guides clients in identifying and achieving their strategic priorities. Her responsibilities include delivering comprehensive people plans, fostering a performance culture, and laying the foundation for long-term growth.

Before joining Bex Partners, Kim led the Human Resources function for a $2 billion division of a global Fortune 500 company. In this capacity, she served as a strategic partner, coach, and leader. Her 21-year career included extensive experience in human resources, talent and culture management, operations, and leadership roles.

Kim received a BS in Business Administration from California Polytechnical State University, San Luis Obispo. She resides in Los Gatos, California, with her husband, Bryan, and their two daughters, Logan and Brooke. An avid hot sauce enthusiast, Kim is known for always having a go-to bottle or two of hot sauce in her purse for any situation.

Significant Seven
Strengthscope Strengths

An icon of an open book with a brain above it, surrounded by rays, symbolizing knowledge or learning.

Common Sense

Two outlined figures, one with an arm around the other, appear below speech bubbles—one with a smiling face and the other with a sad face.

Compassion

A bar chart with a line graph and a gear, indicating growth or success, with a star at the end of the upward trend.

Efficiency

Icon showing two faces on a scale: one smiling and one frowning, representing contrasting emotions.

Emotional control

Icon of two hands with a circle and a heart between them, symbolizing care and support.

Empathy

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Relationship bUILDING

Two hands holding separate pieces of a jigsaw puzzle, connecting them together, symbolizing collaboration and teamwork.

Collaboration

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Maggie Sugg

Talen Acquisition Partner

Maggie is responsible for partnering with clients to provide full-service recruiting. Known for her tenacity, Maggie excels at building strong relationships to understand client’s needs and culture while finding the right candidates. 

Prior to joining Bex, Maggie had a career in supply chain and order management with multiple Fortune 500 companies. In supply chain, she partnered with sourcing, planning, manufacturing, and logistics to meet dynamic production targets. As a Customer Service Manager, Maggie partnered with sales and international groups to achieve revenue goals. 

Maggie received a Bachelor of Science in Marketing & Human Resource Management from the University of Idaho. Maggie calls the Pacific Northwest home with her husband, children, and their small farm.

Significant Seven
Strengthscope Strengths

Two outlined figures, one with an arm around the other, appear below speech bubbles—one with a smiling face and the other with a sad face.

Compassion

A bar graph with a trend line rising to a star icon, alongside a gear symbol, representing growth and progress.

Efficiency

Icon of two abstract figures raising their arms with three stars above them, depicting a sense of celebration or achievement.

Enthusiasm

A simple smiley face with two dots for eyes and a curved line for a mouth, enclosed in a gold circle.

Optimism

Two simplified human figures high-fiving each other, with lines radiating from the join, indicating celebration or success.

Relationship Building

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Results-Focused

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Self-Confidence

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Nicole Britt

Talent Acquisition Coordinator

As a Talent Acquisition Coordinator, Nicole supports and collaborates with our Talent Acquisition Team to ensure the best experience for our clients and their candidates. She assists in building dynamic and engaging job descriptions, sourcing candidates and developing strong candidate pipelines. Nicole also finds creative solutions to effectively fill various roles for our clients.

Before joining the Bex Partners team, Nicole was a Sales Development Representative for a B2B SaaS company. In this role, she conducted cold outreach to C-suite and executive level contacts and worked towards weekly Key Performance Indicators and monthly targets.

Nicole graduated from Colorado State University with a degree in Health and Human Sciences, and a minor in Business Administration with a Certification in Business-to-Business Sales. A fun fact about Nicole is that she loves to dance and sing!

Significant Seven
Strengthscope Strengths

Two outlined figures, one with an arm around the other, appear below speech bubbles—one with a smiling face and the other with a sad face.

Compassion

Outline of a human head with two gears inside, symbolizing thinking or cognitive processes, reminiscent of Nicole Popup's intricate designs.

Critical Thinking

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Detail Oriented

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Efficiency

Icon of two hands with a circle and a heart between them, symbolizing care and support.

Empathy

Two outlined human figures, one larger and one smaller, are lifting their arms. Sparkling stars above them suggest joy or celebration, reminiscent of an Ashleigh Bechtel design.

Enthusiasm

Two simplified human figures high-fiving each other, with lines radiating from the join, indicating celebration or success.

Relationship Building