Out of the Office: Ashleigh Emerick on Relief, Anxiety, and the Market’s “Wild” Expectations
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Ashleigh Emerick served as Senior Director of Product Marketing at a tech-forward health insurer, leading subscriber engagement and retention. After multiple reorgs and shifting mandates, she was laid off on June 18. She talks about relief, anxiety, the market’s “wild” expectations, and why networking now matters more than ever.
Q: What was your role before the layoff? How long were you there, and what happened?
Ashleigh: I was a Senior Director of Product Marketing at a health insurance company—a newer insurer trying to operate like a tech company. I led a team focused on subscriber engagement and retention inside the product. Then, a new leader came in with a different vision, brought in their own people, and there was a change in management.
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For that reason, I wasn’t surprised by the layoff—teams kept being rebuilt, responsibilities were shuffled, and it felt like a foregone conclusion. I was officially let go on June 18 after about two and a half years at the company.
Q: You mentioned this wasn’t your first layoff. How did this one feel compared to the first?
Ashleigh: I went over 20 years without a layoff, then moved into health tech and had two layoffs two-and-a-half years apart. In both cases, executive-level uncertainty about how to organize the company was the theme—decisions without a holistic view and a lot of executive politics and land-grabbing. Salary level might have played a role, but it didn’t feel like a “me” issue.
Q: How long were you unemployed the first time? What about now?
Ashleigh: The first time, two months. This time, I picked up a contract; it’s been about four months without full-time employment. I didn’t really look for the first two months.
Q: What emotions have you felt during this layoff?
Ashleigh: Relief at first. It wasn’t a fulfilling experience, and the severance gave me a runway. I felt optimistic because the previous time I’d had real choices. But as time passed and I started actively applying, I became more concerned. The sheer volume of applicants is huge—hundreds within hours of a posting. Having worked in the career space, I know systems and ATS can’t really handle that well. It stops being about quality candidates and more about throughput.
I’m also seeing job descriptions with high titles (Senior Director, etc.) asking one person to do everything—lead at an executive level and tactically execute across media buying, SEO, content, lifecycle, etc. It’s unrealistic. And I’ve seen the opposite too: very senior titles with “5 years’ experience” requirements, which suggests they’re matching salary bands more than true scope.
Salaries are down overall, aside from a few outliers where the comp is so high it raises other red flags. Overall the market feels overrun, expectations are wild, and comp is falling. It’s strange and worrisome.
Q: Has this changed your relationship to work—what you value or want next?
Ashleigh: Not really in terms of what I want—I’ve always been flexible about titles, and of course money matters. What has changed is my anxiety. I think we’re in an early stage of companies overestimating what AI can replace. I use AI and like it, but in my world (marketing), what it produces often looks polished while lacking real strategic depth. If leaders assume AI fills every gap, they’ll hire one person to do five jobs and expect AI to backfill. That’s risky for outcomes. I’m concerned about a mismatch between job description, required experience, realistic outcomes, and an over-reliance on AI’s “intellectual capacity,” which just isn’t there.
Q: What are you doing to manage the anxiety? Any routines or tactics?
Ashleigh: Practically, I remind myself I can survive: I have savings, live modestly, and have backup if I truly needed it. I’m trying not to catastrophize and to stay present.
Tactically, I shifted from “apply and wait” to relationship-driven outreach. I identify companies I like, find people there, and ask for short conversations—often about their journey and the space I’m especially interested in mental health, women’s health, and neurodiverse pediatrics, given my healthcare background. It hasn’t yielded a role yet, but it’s more fruitful than blind applying and builds real connections. Several people have said, “Check back in a couple of months.” That’s my current path.
Q: How have recruiter interactions been this round?
Ashleigh: Mostly flaky. I’ve had multiple third-party recruiters pitch me the same job, say they’ll present me, and then I never hear back. In-house recruiting responses do come, but often after a long delay—sometimes months—with “not a fit for this, but maybe a coming role.” There’s also the experience of getting rejection emails so long after applying that I barely remember the posting. I have empathy—there are too many candidates—but it feels like an unregulated channel where basic “no thanks” mechanisms aren’t being used consistently.
Q: How hopeful do you feel about finding work right now?
Ashleigh: Honestly, not very. My current contract could save me if it converts, but it’s precarious. I don’t expect to land a full-time job by the end of this year. Maybe Q1, depending on the economy, which I feel pessimistic about. I’m trying not to panic.
Q: What advice would you give a friend who was just laid off?
Ashleigh: Start networking immediately. Identify companies you like, find connections (schools, communities, shared interests), ask for short conversations, and build relationships before roles open. That’s the best path I’m seeing right now.
Q: Anything else you want to share about this experience?
Ashleigh: These are scary, strange times. I have many working years ahead of me, and with the cost of living and the volatility of the job market, it feels like things could be taken away at any time. I’m considering what I can build for myself—owning my outcomes instead of absorbing the fallout from poor executive decisions. What I want is a small, focused team building something meaningful—less politics, more purpose. That’s when work feels good again
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If you’re inspired to share your own story, I’d love to hear it. You can send me a DM on LinkedIn or reach out here to arrange a time to talk.
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