BES Team

Kento Ashton

Executive Search Advisor

Kento Ashton, Executive Search Advisor, is a thrice-deployed military veteran of 8 years who specialized in the field of radio transmissions communications. He had the chance to serve as the Executive Assistant to the Assistant Chief of Staff of Communications at the Command Element of Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune. Kento had his start at UC Berkeley serving the front desk of People and Culture in 2020 after shifting from Gas & Chemical specialist opportunities. He joined Berkeley Executive Search in 2021 as administrative and research support with growing responsibilities in advisory...

Arlene Bañaga

Executive Search Associate

Arlene Bañaga, Executive Search Associate, has over 15 years of experience in administrative and human resources positions. She joined UC Berkeley’s Division of Student Affairs in 2017, served clients in Berkeley Regional Services in 2019, and most recently partnered with UC Berkeley People & Culture Talent Acquisition staff in executing diverse tasks including the revamp of CALTalent. Arlene began supporting Berkeley Executive Search in May 2023 due to the success and expansion of the BES team. She is a proud alumna of San Diego State University with a degree in Journalism, emphasis...

Esha Bharati

Executive Search Advisor

Esha Bharati has an MBA in Human Resources Management and enjoys working in the Talent Acquisition space. As an Executive Search Advisor, she supports hiring for complex hard-to-fill executive-level roles as well as maintains a client portfolio, and advises various campus units on hiring best practices and processes.

Harrison Chan

Senior Executive Search Advisor

Harrison is a Cal grad who returned to his alma mater after some time in the technology sector. In his role as an Executive Search Advisor, he works with campus executives and leaders in support of recruitment efforts for senior-level staff roles across the university.

Tracey Frink

Executive Search Advisor

Tracey Frink, Executive Search Advisor, started working in the People & Culture department at UC Berkeley in 2019, shortly after she joined the Berkeley Executive Search team. She received her BA in Anthropology from UCLA. Tracey provides administrative and research support to the Executive Search Team. Prior to joining BES, Tracey worked for a labor employment law firm in the Bay Area providing administrative support to firm attorneys and the firm administrator.

Alex Gomez

Director of Talent Acquisition

Alex Gomez, Director of Talent Acquisition, is a Cal alum. He began as a student assistant at UC Berkeley to now leading talent acquisition and executive search functions within People & Culture. Alex received his BA in Anthropology, and since graduating has been working in the recruitment and talent acquisition space. Alex was the inaugural recruitment supervisor when Shared Services at Berkeley was established and built the team as well as processes from scratch. He sponsored the creation of BES in partnership with HR leadership. He is passionate about bringing in talent to support...

James Kao

Assistant Director, Berkeley Executive Search (BES)

James manages Berkeley Executive Search and is a Cal alum and possesses a Masters in Fine Art from Central Saint Martins in London. Currently, James manages BES where the team advises UC executives and recruits talented individuals for senior-level roles as an internal executive search "firm."

Elizabeth A. Mosley

Senior Executive Search Advisor

Elizabeth A. Mosley, Sr. Executive Search Advisor, joined us in 2021 from Covered California, the health insurance marketplace for the state. During her tenure, she led recruitment efforts for numerous senior leadership searches including finance, IT, EEO, external affairs, and program integrity roles, and served as the HR representative on the Statewide Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion committee. Prior to her time with Covered California, Elizabeth was part of the UC Davis Executive Recruitment team. She earned her Bachelor's degree in Psychology and Master's degree in Educational Policy...