Kara Ortbal

Kara Ortbal, Head of HR at Quora

Kara Ortbal is the Head of HR at Quora, where she manages the company's remote-first culture initiatives and the expansion of its international workforce.13 She joined Quora in December 2020 shortly after the company announced it would become a permanently remote-first organization.1

Career Background

• Previously worked at Uber, driving employee programs at the Seattle Engineering office as it scaled from 30 to over 500 employees1
• Joined Quora in December 2020 as the Remote Work HR Specialist, and was recently promoted to Head of HR in April 202313
• Has diverse experience in HR and operations management3
• Holds a degree from the University of Southern California2

Quora's Remote-First Transition

As the Remote Work HR Specialist and now Head of HR, Kara has played a key role in Quora's transition to a remote-first culture.15 She discusses the requirements of a successful remote culture, the challenges faced, and the tools used to enable effective collaboration.1

Quora's remote-first policy allows employees to work from virtually anywhere in the world, with very few exceptions.1 The company has expanded its international workforce significantly since making this change.1

Kara's Expertise and Interests

Kara is passionate about building flexible, people-first cultures at scale.1 She shares exclusive commentary, tips, and takeaways to help organizations adapt to remote work.1

In her LinkedIn posts, Kara expresses interest in full-time senior management or senior individual contributor roles in HR Operations, Workplace Operations, and Chief of Staff positions.4