Meet Our Team Series: Co-Creator, Kristen Harris

In the latest installment of our Meet Our Team series, we talk with Kristen Harris, one of our Co-Creators. Kristen, a CCAD alum, enjoys listening to podcasts, knitting, and of course spending time with her two dogs. 

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Hey there! I’m one of the founders of Portfolio Creative. Back in 2005 Catherine and I had this great idea to connect creative talent and companies who needed them and decided we were the people to do it. I’ve had a couple of different careers (so far) but always seem drawn to work that involves creativity and solving problems.

Where am I from? Here. I grew up just outside of Columbus; my family is originally from Van Wert in northwest Ohio. I came to CCAD for college and, despite big plans to move “somewhere exciting”, never left. I’ve watched Columbus become that “exciting” place to live. It has been really fun to see our city change over the years–I remember when people called it a “cowtown” but now we’re on every “cool city” list imaginable.

Morning:

My mornings usually start with a dog snuggled in bed, unless he’s whining for food because my husband is not already up. We have two dogs; Rusty’s a lab mix and Holly is a greyhound. I’m sure that you can see Rusty is not underfed, but he must have food before anything else can happen. After that, I get going with a little breakfast. I’ve been into matcha lattes lately or, when I’m feeling really ambitious, a scrambled egg and some fruit. If I’m meeting someone for breakfast that’s another story–bring on the yummy omelet or a Bizmark donut from DK Diner.

Afternoon: 

At work, every day is different which is part of what I love about my job. On any given day I might be meeting with internal team members, helping a client or one of our talent, connecting with someone in the community, or working on a new idea to make Portfolio Creative even better. I’m all about constant improvement and believe there’s always something we can make better! In general, I focus on the internal operations of our business; I love a good spreadsheet and get oddly excited about processes.

I’m mostly a tea drinker but do like to have a cup of coffee in the afternoon. I’ve been adding coconut milk instead of cream lately–it’s so delicious! When I need a brain break I put in earbuds and take a quick walk around Grandview Yard while listening to a podcast. Favorites include How I Built This, Revisionist History, Beautiful Anonymous, Balanced Bites, Boss Files, So Here’s My Story…okay, I listen to a LOT of podcasts.

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Evening: 

Unless I have the occasional work event, at the end of the day I head home to Clintonville and catch up with my hubby and aforementioned dogs. The dogs take us for a couple of walks every evening; they treat getting us outside like it’s their job. Beyond that, downtime is spent reading, crafty things like knitting, other creative projects, or conjuring up new ways to help our clients and talent. I seem to get the best ideas when I’m thinking about something else!