A tenured Amazon employee shares a message on charting your own path to success

Amazon is celebrating Women’s History Month by recognizing women who are embracing—and creating—equity. Our #SheIsAmazon series spotlights women who have pushed past barriers to achieve their dreams while lifting up others along the way.

In the second installment in the series, we introduce Brooke Davis-Bagley, a staffing coordinator at an Amazon fulfillment center in Jeffersonville, Indiana, and a board member of the Glamazon employee affinity group.

Tell us about yourself and your role at Amazon.

I’ve been with Amazon almost 10 years. I started out as a seasonal operations employee and was promoted two levels in my first three years. Two years later, I was offered an opportunity to move to the Workforce Staffing team and I’ve been here ever since. I’m now responsible for two sites. In this position, I work to ensure the site network is ready at all times and I spend a good bit of time mentoring, training, and helping my sites maintain operational excellence by tracking our staffing and organizing the candidate application portal. I also sit on the global Glamazon board and lead communications and engagement events for this team.

I learned about Glamazon while working on the floor, and once I started transitioning, I started to see where I could use my voice to advocate for and celebrate the entire LGBTQIA+ community. However, as I reflect on my time at Amazon, my time on the floor was extremely special, because this is where I met my husband. Nine years later, we’re now married, have two dogs, a cat, and purchased our first home.

The theme for International Women’s Day is #EmbraceEquity. What does that mean to you?

For me, embracing equity has several meanings. It means proudly representing and being seen as a Black trans person. It means coming to work every day to advocate for and help those in need of a job or support in the trans community. It means recognizing how much harder I have to fight compared to my cis-gender counterparts and beyond. It means that our bodies and minds matter, and we shouldn’t be seen as the weaker sex because of the choices we may have to make in life. As women, we should be embraced and praised for trying to be the person who wants it all, and we shouldn’t have to lose ourselves—our purpose or our identity—to get it.

What advice would like to share with women and other people reading this story?

My advice is for all people, really. We have to learn to communicate our wants and feelings, appreciate what the other brings to the table, and let no one stand in our way. Live your life with no regrets. You can do this at whatever age, but be who you need to be. Always speak your truth!

Who is the woman or person you look up to most?

I have to name a few people who have influenced me: My girl cousins, who encouraged me to be outgoing and be myself. My grandmothers, for loving me and teaching me how to love the world, and for being mothers when my mom had to work as a single mom. My mom, for taking care of three kids with no help from our dad. On a career level, it would have to be my manager. She has shown me how to be a strong, gay, Black, trans woman in Amazon. But also, as an upcoming manager, she makes me proud to be who I am. Having good leaders and attaching myself to those good leaders has been part of my success at Amazon.

How would you like the world to see you?

I’m driven—I go after whatever I want. I have no regrets—I live my life to the fullest. I’m loving and compassionate. I’m empathetic—I know I came from nothing and had to work my way up to earn everything I have in my life. I love to learn and to make new friends, but there is a shy person inside that is scared. I am a proud Black, trans woman!

Learn more about Glamazon and other employee affinity groups.