
"Four growth strategies for individual contributors"
Below is an article originally written by Patrick Shields, Principal Software Engineer at PowerToFly Partner CircleCI, and published on March 3, 2020. Go to CircleCI's page on PowerToFly to see their open positions and learn more.
There's not a right or wrong career path for software engineers. Some find a natural niche as leaders and work into management positions where they end up leading teams and designing career paths for others. Conversely, some thrive and become leaders by developing their own paths as an individual contributor (IC). Pat Shields, CircleCI's chief architect, recently wrote about his experience growing as an individual contributor, including advice about how engineers on the IC route can succeed in their careers. We're reposting it here.
My first real job in programming started on July 5th, 2007, which means I have just over twelve years of experience as I write this. It's a lot more than nothing, but probably not much more than something. Ten years seems to be about the right amount of time to get good at something, though some amount of natural talent or sheer drive can make it go faster. But growth is not as simple as waiting it out and talent does not supersede the need for experience.
"Players get to that intermediate level where they can already play pretty good, and that's kind of a dangerous period because they tend to start playing only the things that they can play, rather than the things they can't." - Pat Metheny
In fifth grade, I went to a school where I was required to take a French class. I showed no particular aptitude or interest in the language, but was happy to pass through the lessons. After two years, my family moved and I started at a new school where I was able to choose Introductory French or Spanish. I chose French, effectively repeating the previous two years. I have little to no memory of these classes, but I believe I passed through them with ease. After those two years, we moved again and I started at a High School. I was offered a choice of languages to study and I elected for … a year of Introductory French. I was the star pupil of the class, having repeated "Je m'appelle Pat" and "Où est la discothèque" as required for the previous four years.
The following year I entered Intermediate French and the skill gap between myself and my peers immediately dwindled. Despite my five years of experience, I didn't advance much beyond a few simple phrases and a halfway decent accent. I muddled my way through the next two years, but squandered my experience and gave up learning the language after high school. Many of us make this same mistake in our careers. We optimize for a skillset that is easy to gain or stay within the confines of limited expertise. Quite a few folks just don't get the opportunities they need to grow. I have found a few strategies that have helped me grow, and I'd like to share them along with some ideas about how you might apply them.
Assume you are smart enough to understand
In my first job out of school, I worked with some of the most brilliant folks I've ever met. Most were affiliated with Yale via either its computer science department or its high performance computing lab. During my job interview, Nick Carriero asked me if I was familiar with Junit and I tried to pretend I knew what it was beyond a window in Eclipse. I was surrounded by very experienced, very educated, and very accomplished folks. The one benefit of this was learning that in those walls I would never, ever, be the smartest person in the room. To follow along alone was an accomplishment.
Those folks were much more than smart. They were mostly twice my age or more, had studied rigorously in academia or cut their teeth on hard industry problems, and all had a tremendous work ethic. I didn't have their innate talents or that experience, and I was in no danger of being able to do what they did. But that didn't mean I couldn't follow along and learn. So I tried to ask dumb questions and to restate things until I got them right. Being wrong or not knowing something hurt still, but it hurt a little less every time the light bulb finally went off.
Most of what you need to follow the work of those around you is just patience and curiosity. When you encounter things in your work that you don't understand, ask someone to help you figure it out. It could be a piece of code, a system design, or even a business concept like margin. You won't become a quick expert but you will gain a breadth of knowledge. More importantly, you'll learn how to ask questions and learn from those around you. Give yourself space to do good work
Real talk: everywhere you go there will be haunted forests, tech debt, and organizational challenges. Every opportunity comes with constraints. Often, those constraints lead us to choose the lesser of two evils or the best of a bad set of options. In my experience, it's easy to over-dramatize the evil or inherent bad-ness, but the point is that it feels bad. When you consistently do work that you don't take pride in, it's challenging to invest yourself in growth. Engineers in this situation often begin to imagine some panacea that would fix things. If only things were functionally pure or fully asynchronous or crash-only or written in Idris or Rust or actually Go would be preferable, then we could do things the right way. Or so the thinking goes. We convince ourselves that we are talented and great, if only we weren't limited by the things we cannot change.
Don't get stuck thinking that you can't do good work unless something you can't control changes. Find opportunities large or small to try to do something in a way that you are proud of. This can be as small as writing a few methods or functions that you think are great or running a larger project in an exemplary way. When I've done this, I've found that some of my great ideas were great and some were pretty sketchy. If I hadn't put them into action, I'd have missed the opportunity to figure out which ideas had merit.
Focus on the outcomes
As programmers, we spend most of our time living deep in the "how?" Programming is quite literally the process of filling in all the details. Many of us experience frustration in our jobs because we are forced to reckon with ambiguity that our coworkers and peers can shrug off. Earlier in my career, I used to say that there was nothing more terrifying than a meeting that ended in agreement because that just meant you hadn't figured out the details yet. That's a pessimistic extreme, but it's also a fear born out of experience.
By and large, the conferences we go to, the blog posts we read, and the conversations we have focus on the "how?" We talk about programming languages, databases, agile methodology, distributed systems papers, or GraphQL. But for most of us, those are tools to help us do something else. Our stakeholders don't care about the tools, they care about the outcomes. The earlier you are able to focus on outcomes, the more you'll be able to connect with your stakeholders, learn from them, and then help them succeed.
This is a huge topic and a never-ending quest, but you can start by always knowing the answer to the following three questions:
- What problems am I trying to solve for my stakeholders?
- How do I know when I'm done?
- How do I know if it solved the problem?
No matter what process you use, or don't, and no matter who your stakeholders are or how big your organization is, if you know the answers to those questions, they will guide towards a path that is focused on generating outcomes rather than just generating more details.
Do whatever you want, but do it loudly
I was a year or two out of school when I first heard the phrase "It is better to beg for forgiveness than ask for permission." It's an old phrase, sometimes attributed to Grace Hopper, but variations have circulated for many years. There are some organizations where creative thinking and empowerment are still frowned upon, but I think this quote misses the mark nowadays. It's still true that asking for permission will likely get you stuck in the mud. The receiver of your request will likely feel the need to do due diligence on the request before passing judgement and, well, it's not likely their top priority or they would've been asking you for the ideas. It's the request that slows things down, not the knowledge of the approach.
I've taken to using a variation of this phrase: "do whatever you want, but do it loudly." If you feel confident that you have a great idea and know how to complete it, go ahead, but first announce it to anyone who will listen. You want to avoid surprise and rumor. By keeping everyone abreast of your actions, you are giving them the knowledge they need to provide you with feedback and a mechanism to do it. I often provide a little space for feedback even, by saying "Unless I hear from you by the end of your day tomorrow, I'll be proceeding." I'm not asking you to vet the approach for me, but if you know I'm headed towards dragons, let me know.
Stay focused on growth
No matter what strategy you choose, as soon as you have the security to do so you should start thinking about your growth. "Where do you want to be in 5 years" is a great question, but sometimes it's impossibly difficult to answer. These strategies won't help you pick a direction, but they'll help you get the most out of wherever you are right now. If you find you can't use these strategies, either because you don't have enough support from your peers and management chain, or because the work model is so inherently broken, it's probably time to look for another opportunity when you are able. Along the way, be proud of your growth and what you've achieved, but don't give up on challenging yourself.
Best Work-From-Home Companies 2022
Every year, PowerToFly creates a list of the best work-from-home companies. Now that over half of the U.S. workforce is remote, compiling that list was a bit more challenging.
This year, we prioritized selecting companies that are remote-friendly—meaning they have both remote and in-person roles—but they have made long-term commitments to hiring and supporting employees who choose to work from home; and we think they have the perks, values, and organizational framework to allow all employees to flourish in their careers, regardless of location.
Keep reading to see our top 15 work-from-home companies for 2022, along with a description of what they do, why we like them, and who they’re looking for.
PowerToFly's Best Work-From-Home Companies 2022:
Bumble—Create a world where all relationships are healthy and equitable
What they do:
Bumble is the parent company that operates Badoo and Bumble, two of the world’s largest dating and connection apps with millions of users globally.
Why we like them:
“We’re a diverse and international bunch, with over 600 employees working across four key offices in Austin, London, Moscow and Barcelona. We also have employees working in other parts of the world too, including Germany, Australia, Mexico and India.”
They believe the best way to create a more equitable and healthy world is by starting within. Uber offers a highly competitive benefits package with benefits that are designed to support you in your health and wellbeing, financial wellbeing, happiness, community, and learning and development.
Who they’re looking for:
Product Designers, Developers, Partnership Directors, and more!
Audible—Listen more
What they do:
Audible is an online audiobook and podcast service that allows users to purchase and stream audiobooks and other forms of spoken word content.
Why we like them:
“Audible's People Principles celebrate who we are and where we've been, and guide the way we work shoulder to shoulder to enhance the lives of our millions of customers.” This company offers exciting benefits include wellness reimbursement, fertility coverage, and childcare benefits.
Some of their other benefits include:
- Health: Dental and vision plans, life insurance, and the medical plan options that suit individual needs.
- Savings: Plan for your future with employer-matched savings accounts.
- Stock: We grant our employees Amazon restricted stock units, because we want them to think and act like owners.
- Time off: We love what we do but everyone needs the opportunity to hit the refresh button. Take advantage of vacation days, sick days, and personal days to rejuvenate.
- Social: From tickets to local events and exciting company-sponsored events, regular outings and team-building events foster our spirit of collaboration.
- Amazon discount: As part of the Amazon family, Audible employees are entitled to a discount on products on Amazon.
- Fitness: Discounted sports clubs or fitness reimbursements.
Who they’re looking for:
Software Engineers, Director of People Analytics, Strategic Advisors, and more!
ServiceNow—Making the world of work, work better for people
What they do:
ServiceNow is a cloud computing platform that delivers digital workflows that create great experiences and unlock productivity.
Why we like them:
“We strive for a fair system of opportunity and treatment for all. Competitive health, wellness benefits, zero-tolerance for any kind of discrimination, and protection from social stigmas such as mental health are core to our values and beliefs.”
Who they’re looking for:
Accounting Managers, Sales Representatives, Product Managers, and more!
OfferUp—Buy. Sell. Simple.
What they do:
OfferUp the largest mobile marketplace for local buyers and sellers in the U.S., that offers iOS and Android apps that make selling an item as easy as snapping a picture from your mobile device.
Why we like them:
“We’re a diverse team with diverse passions and skills, but we’re united by a shared commitment to helping people accomplish their goals through the power of peer-to-peer commerce.
Our company culture makes us unique. At the best companies in the world, work and life aren’t just balanced, they’re blended. Team outings, virtual celebrations and lunch-n-learns, informal gatherings, and family events keep our neighborly culture strong. We’re a diverse team with diverse passions and skills, but we’re united by a shared commitment to helping people accomplish their goals through the power of peer-to-peer commerce.”
Who they’re looking for:
Chief Technology Officer, Content Writers, Business Operations Analyst, and more!
Work & Co—Digital product design and development
What they do:
Work & Co is a digital product agency that defines and launches digital experiences people love using every day.
Why we like them:
Some of their benefits include:
- Zero Timesheets or expense reports
- 18 weeks paid parental leave
- 100% health, dental, vision coverage (they also pay your entire monthly premium and cover 70% for spouses, partners, and dependents)
- Nonelective 3% match (they contribute to every person’s retirement account regardless of their own contribution)
Who they’re looking for:
Designers, Technology Directors, Marketing and Communication Leads, and more!
Relativity—Organize data, discover the truth, and act on it
What they do:
“We create intuitive software that helps law firms, government agencies, financial institutions and other major corporations quickly find the truth in data.”
Why we like them:
Relativity's software helps users organize data and quickly identify key issues during litigation, internal investigations, and compliance projects. They offer their employees great benefits like:
- Competitive healthcare, dental, vision, life insurance, and disability plans
- Hybrid work model: In-office once we re-open, fully remote, or a mixture of both
- Unlimited Time off
- 401k matching
- 12 weeks of 100% paid leave for the primary caregiver and 6 weeks of 100% paid leave for the secondary caregiver
- 2 week-long company breaks in the winter and summer
- Wellness perks such as virtual yoga classes, financial wellness sessions, access to meditation apps, etc.
Who they’re looking for:
Software Engineers, Marketing Managers, Customer Success Managers, and more!
GoTo—We live the work-from-anywhere life, too
What they do:
GoTo provides the most-comprehensive, secure, and flexible suite of products to help businesses embrace remote work, learning and customer engagement.
Why we like them:
“For bold and creative individuals, LogMeIn provides limitless growth opportunities. We hire extraordinary talent who continually seek opportunities to tackle challenges. We pride ourselves on an inclusive culture and collaborative spirit. Speaking up and listening to others is not just encouraged here, but expected.
We thrive together and champion each other’s successes, providing our employees with rich experiences to help them develop resiliency and skills; positioning them to grow into future roles either inside or outside GoTo.”
Who they’re looking for:
Technical Writers, Global Markets, Compliance Leads, and more!
Autodesk—We make software for people who make things
What they do:
Autodesk is a global leader in design and technology.
Why we like them:
“At Autodesk, we believe flexibility in where and how work gets done will better enable our people to thrive and realize their potential. While most roles may be required to be in the office, we also have roles that are home-based, and hybrid. From implementing virtual learning platforms to promote personal/professional development, to virtual marathons, DIY craft kits, scavenger hunts to virtual wine tasting and everything in between – we’re doing our best to champion for a workplace culture that spanning boundaries and borders. That’s #Autodesklife.”
Who they’re looking for:
Engineers, UX Designers, Business Analysts, and more!
Veracode—Keeping your business confidently secure
What they do:
Veracode delivers the application security solutions and services today’s software-driven world requires.
Why we like them:
“Veracoders are dedicated to creating a world where the software fueling our economic growth and solving some of society's greatest challenges is developed secure from the start.”
Here are some great reasons to join Veracode:
- PEOPLE & TEAM: Veracoders help their peers grow, achieve, and see the best in themselves.
- CHALLENGING & INTERESTING WORK: Veracoders are passionate about solving one of the most important challenges facing our digital world, securing the software changing our world.
- INDUSTRY-LEADING TECHNOLOGIES: We are the pioneer in the AppSec market and a continued leader in secure development innovations
Who they’re looking for:
Sales Leads, Talent Acquisition Partners, Product Managers, and more!
Unstoppable Domains—Building decentralized digital identities for the world
What they do:
Unstoppable Domains brings user-controlled identity to 3 billion+ internet users by issuing domain names on the blockchain.
Why we like them:
“Unstoppable Domains’ remote, international team is made up of a wide range of diverse experiences, languages, cultures, nationalities and backgrounds. We are proud to be an inclusive employer with team members in over 18 countries.”
They’ve also offer benefits:
- Equity in the company
- Annual work from home stipend
- Crypto education program
- Full medical, dental and vision coverage
Who they’re looking for:
Art Directors, Community Managers, Growth Marketers, and more!
Helm—A team of scientists, designers, engineers, and campaigners
What they do:
Helm is building a data and technology platform for organizers and issue advocates.
Why we like them:
“We are assembling a team who understands, shares values with, learns alongside, and stands with the people who are doing the work to change the nation. We are seeking team members who want to see a more equitable future in their lifetime, and who have the passion and skills to help us get there.”
They’ve also got incredible benefits like:
- Comprehensive health plans
- Unlimited PTO
- Paid parental leave
- Paid volunteer time
- 401K
- Stipend to enhance your home office
Who they’re looking for:
DevOps Engineers, Account Managers, Customer Support Analysts, and more!
Lattice—Making work meaningful
What they do:
Lattice is the people management platform that empowers people leaders to build engaged, high-performing teams that love coming to work.
Why we like them:
“We’re growing extremely quickly, hitting all of our financial targets for the last 2 years. We also have a negative net retention rate, meaning customers are staying and growing with us.”
They’ve also got incredible benefits like:
- 401(k) package
- Maternity & Paternity leave
- Medical / Dental / Vision insurance
- Flexible equity terms
- Commuter benefits
- Learning & Development reimbursement
- Flexible time off
Who they’re looking for:
UX Writers, Account Executives, Program Managers, and more!
MongoDB—Build faster. Build smarter.
What they do:
MongoDB transforms industries and empowers developers to build amazing apps that people use every day.
Why we like them:
At MongoDB, you can grow your career in the direction that you want it to, gain new skills, experiences, and relationships that will stay with you forever.
Some of their stand-out benefits include:
- Mental health counseling and resources, and complimentary Headspace (meditation app) access
- Rich health insurance coverage, including Transgender-inclusive coverage
- Fertility and adoption financial assistance
- 20 weeks of fully paid gender-neutral parental leave, parental counseling for new parents, and flexible work arrangements
- 4 weeks of emergency care leave
- Global and internal mobility opportunities
- Equity and Employee Stock Purchase Program
Who they’re looking for:
Sales and Technical Recruiters, Product Designers, Engineers, and more!
Uber—Move the way you want
What they do:
Uber is a mobility service provider that constantly reimagines how we can move better.
Why we like them:
“We welcome people from all backgrounds who seek the opportunity to help build a future where everyone and everything can move independently. We publicly support policies that drive diversity and inclusion in the countries where we operate so that people everywhere have the right to live, work, and be their authentic selves.”
They’ve also got incredible benefits like:
- Unlimited PTO policy
- Maternity and parental leave
- Monthly Uber credits
- Medical, dental and vision coverage
Who they’re looking for:
Marketing Leads, Account Representatives, Operations Specialists, and more!
Guru—Organize company information and access it anywhere
What they do:
Guru reinvents the way people connect with meaningful information at work by providing customer-facing teams access to expert-verified information where they work and when they need it most.
Why we like them:
“At Guru, our core values bind us together, influence how we work.”
They’ve got incredible benefits like:
- Competitive salary
- Employee Stock Option Plan
- Generous health and commuter benefits
- Dog Friendly Office
- 401k Program
- The chance to contribute to an upbeat, fully engaged culture
Who they’re looking for:
Marketing Leads, Sales Development Representatives, Web Designers, and more!
Don't see what you're looking for? Check out a fill list of 5,000+ open remote roles here!
Become An Impactful Salesperson - Top Tips!
💎 In order to be an impactful salesperson, the first thing to remember is that Sales is a people to people business. Watch the video to the end to learn some tips that’ll take your sales skills to a new level!
📼 What makes you an effective and impactful salesperson? Play this video to get three top tips to learn a different side of your clients, master the art of handling objections, and demonstrate value. You'll hear from Clara Sierra, Senior Director, Business Development, Global Sales at Moody's.
📼Top tips to become an impactful salesperson #1: Become an expert on your client. A lot of clients use LinkedIn and Twitter to promote their brands. Not only use their website or google them but make sure to go into their Twitter account, follow their teammates, and their executives, looking at what they post and what they comment on Twitter and LinkedIn. This will help you to know a different side of your clients you can use to get them excited about your product.
📼 Top tips to become an impactful salesperson #2: Master the art of handling objections. Clara uses the “Feel / Felt / Found” method: when a client presents her with objections, such as “your solution is too expensive”, or “I don't need it. I don't want it. It doesn't work for me”, she will typically say, “I see how can feel that way. I have other clients who have felt that way also, but here's what we've found in order to make this solution meaningful to their business.” When you approach them from this angle,, the client who's delivering the objection feels seen. Using the “Feel / Felt / Found” method really opens up the conversation and gets you to the next stage of selling!
Become An Impactful Salesperson - Tip #3: Add Value And Tell Stories
Adding value and telling stories is so important in the sales experience, not just for your client, but for you also. You don't want to be seen as only a transactional salesperson. You want to think about the client experience. What is your product or solution going to do for your client? You want to be able to wrap a story around, what some of your other clients have found and how your product has helped them in their business. The key is to continue to expand the conversation, adding value to your client's experience and telling stories.
📨 Are you interested in joining Moody’s? They have open positions! To learn more, click here.
Get to Know Clara
Throughout a distinctive career earning her executive management positions at some of the world's largest financial services institutions, Clara Sierra has always stood apart: for her extraordinary professional relationships, her remarkable passion for sales/marketing, her unique personal background, and, most of all, for her unrelenting drive to achieve the best possible results for her employees, employers, and her clients. If you are interested in a career at Moody’s, you can connect with Clara Sierra on LinkedIn. Don’t forget to mention this video!
More About Moody’s
Moody’s is a globally integrated risk assessment firm that empowers organizations to make better decisions. Their data, analytical solutions, and insights help decision-makers identify opportunities and manage the risks of doing business with others. They believe that greater transparency, more informed decisions, and fair access to information open the door to shared progress. With over 11,000 employees in more than 40 countries, Moody’s combines international presence with local expertise and over a century of experience in financial markets.
Careers in Web Development: Which One's For You?
We all have our favorite websites– the ones we frequent, bookmark, and recommend to others. You might even enjoy some website features so much that you’ve found yourself wondering why they aren’t more popular. Or maybe you’ve experienced times where you were frustrated with a website and wished you could add features or even design your own!
If you’ve ever found yourself intrigued at the prospect of designing and developing your own websites, then a career as a web developer might be just for you!
As a web developer you would be responsible for coding, designing, optimizing, and maintaining websites. Today, there are over 1.7 billion websites in the world and, in turn, the demand for web developers is on the rise. In order to figure out what kind of web development work best suits you let’s start with an introduction to the three main roles in web development that you can choose from.
The Three Types of Web Development Jobs
Front-End Web Development: The Creative Side
Think of front-end development as the décor of a house. The color scheme, furniture, manicured lawns, and overall aesthetic. In terms of a website, front-end development is laser-focused on the appearance of a website and its presentation on different devices. If you’re considering a role in front-end development, it’s important to learn programming languages such as HTML, CSS, and JavaScript. These three languages go hand-in-hand. HTML allows you to create user interface elements, CSS helps you with stylistic elements, and JavaScript allows you to incorporate online tools and connect your website to back-end functions.
In addition to programming skills, front-end developers need to be detail oriented, creative, willing to keep up with the latest trends in web development, cyber security conscious, and geared toward user-friendly designs. The median salary for a front-end developer can reach well into the $90,000 to $100,000 range.
Back-End Web Development: The Logical Counterpart
While a house can be beautifully decorated, it’s incomplete without a solid foundation and efficient infrastructure. Similarly, a well-designed website depends on logical and functional code to power the features of that website. Back-end web development is code-heavy and focused on the specifics of how a website works. If you enjoy the analytical challenge of creating the behind-the-scenes code that powers a website, then back-end development is for you.
Since this role is more code-heavy, it’s important that you learn numerous programming languages and understand algorithms and data structures. Some languages that are essential to back-end development are Ruby, Python, SQL, and JavaScript. Back-end developers also ensure that users can successfully retrieve and access data. This requires creating and using APIs (Application Programming Interfaces) which act as messengers that relay data related requests. Additionally, developing the code for the inner workings of a website also requires back-end developers to be conscious of the user interface features designed by front-end developers and to internally mitigate potential security risks. Due to the increased technical aspect of this position, back-end developers normally earn higher salaries than front-end developers. The average median salary for this role is around $118,000 per year.
Full-Stack Web Development: A Little Bit of Everything
A full-stack developer is essentially the Jack (or Jill)-of-all-trades in web development. Full-stack developers need to be knowledgeable about both front-end and back-end roles. This does not necessarily imply that you would need to be an expert in both roles, but you should fully understand the different applications and synergies they each imply. In order to work in this position, you will need to know the programming languages used by front-end and back-end developers. In addition to these languages, full-stack developers also specialize in databases, storage, HTTP, REST, and web architecture.
Full-stack developers are often required to act as liaisons between front-end and back-end developers. Full-stack developers need to be both problem solvers and great communicators. The end goal for a full-stack developer is to ensure that the user’s experience is seamless, both on the front-end and on the back-end. In return, you can expect to earn a median salary of $100,000 – $115,000 a year for this role.
Taking the Next Step
Web development is both in-demand and lucrative! All three roles described above contribute to specific aspects of web development and the scope of each one can be customized to the industries and positions you feel best suit you. Regardless of which role you choose, all of them need a foundation in programming.
To gain the programming skills needed in each role, you can enroll in courses or learn independently. Coding bootcamps are a great way to boost your skillset quickly and efficiently.
Click here for some of our highly rated programming bootcamp options! Make sure to check out the discounts available to PowerToFly members.
How CHG Healthcare's Aurelia Redd Challenges Her Team to Get Out of Their Comfort Zone
Born and raised in the suburbs of Salt Lake City, Aurelia Redd is a wife, mom, and major fan of building meaningful connections. “I love to get to know other people — it’s one of my favorite things in the whole world,” Aurelia explains. “I could sit there for hours and listen to somebody who's had a different life than me. I get so excited about that and learn so much.”
And as the Director of Product Delivery at CHG Healthcare, she makes it a priority to fortify connections with those on her team so she can understand how they want to grow and challenge them to step out of their comfort zone. Keep reading to hear her unique story and advice on fostering growth on her team.
Experience Will Open the Door
Nowadays, it’s easy to get caught up with degrees and certificates to gain qualifications for a role. But Aurelia’s career proves that experience in a field is invaluable for opening doors. “I'm a unique case. I was a young mom and I didn't have an opportunity to pursue a college education,” says Aurelia. “I built my career on experience and (hopefully) good wit.”
But not having a degree has not deterred her from forging her own path and steadily moving up the career ladder to multiple positions of leadership. “I'm so thankful that it hasn’t stopped me from the roles that I've wanted to pursue,” she elaborates. “The companies that I’ve worked for see me as a person and appreciate my experience.”
She considers herself a life learner and has earned a number of certifications and trade classes throughout her career. “I love to learn and I never want to stop learning,” she says. And she’s excited to make it official. “My goal is to have my bachelor's degree by the time I'm 47 years old, she says. “It's never too late.”
Jumping Into Opportunities
Healthcare and business first sparked Aurelia’s interest in high school when she joined the Health Occupational Students for America and Future Business Leaders of Americas clubs. So when it was time to join the workforce, she looked for an opportunity where she could pursue both fields. That led her to a role as a customer service representative at a major health insurance company.
Over her 20 years at the company, she worked her way into many roles in various departments, including operations, claims processing, and supervisory roles. “After a while, I wanted to move up to a manager position.” In a timely manner, a woman director from another department nudged Aurelia to apply for an open position as configuration supervisor.
“I knew nothing about configuration, like zero,” says Aurelia. “But she told me, ‘I'm not looking for somebody who knows configuration. I need a supervisor. You really should consider it.’ And that changed my whole career — her stopping me and telling me I should consider something different.”
This growth mindset led Aurelia to pursue multiple leadership roles and opportunities, eventually leading her to CHG Healthcare. CHG is a leader in healthcare staffing and the nation's largest provider of locum tenens services. They stand out because of their Putting People First value, which instantly attracted Aurelia. Frustrated with some things about her previous company, she wanted to find a place where her values aligned with her work place.
“I realized I was at the point in my career where culture, core values, and inclusion were so important to me.” Aurelia says she interviewed with amazing people at the company, which convinced her to accept an offer soon after. “I’ve never looked back.”
Culture Is Crucial
The mission at CHG Healthcare is to “make a difference in the lives of those we serve.” They’re committed to implementing benefits and strategies to “increase employee happiness and engagement.” Some of these benefits include flexible schedules, onsite health clinics and gyms, tuition assistance, paid volunteer time, family-friendly benefits, rewards, and more. What really stands out about CHG, though, is its culture.
“Everyone pulls their weight. There is a willingness to help, and because we are pretty much all high achievers — every person brings their best self to work every day,” elaborates Aurelia. The emphasis on servant leadership gives people the space to try new things and grow. Aurelia facilitates this growth mindset through her own leadership.
“As an individual, I play a role on so many different teams. So my days look different depending on which priority is coming up that week,” she explains. Aurelia has several responsibilities, including meeting with individuals on a one-on-one basis and cultivating relationships across the organization. She also collaborates with product teams on strategic initiatives, coaches and directs the delivery leadership team, and works to build functional maturity on delivery.
As the company has grown, so has the technology they’ve released. And Aurelia leads a team of people who make sure those releases are well adopted on other teams. “I started on the project implementation team to help with change management and business readiness, so that we have high adoption and long-term sustainment,” she explains. She built that team and led them through reorganizations, and has recently been able to transfer responsibilities to her delivery leadership team. . “They don't need me in the day to day operations anymore. They’re doing a great job,” says Aurelia. “I now get to be a servant leader to my leaders that are leading the individual contributors. And that allows me to work across the digital organization on other things like growth and development for our employees and leadership development opportunities. The growth and new opportunities have been so much fun!”
Apart from her daily responsibilities, Aurelia is constantly trying new things, such as creating and leading a coalition for women in tech leadership in 2020, where women got together to talk through different issues and provided each other with support. She encourages this kind of outside-of-the-box mindset by encouraging her teammates to be creative and find opportunities to serve others.
Fostering Growth
“I do believe that one person can make a difference in the world,” says Aurelia. Because of this, she strives to find practical ways to challenge others to get out of their comfort zone. She gives us three tips:
1. Invest in your relationships. “Don’t make assumptions about people. Ask questions, clarify their intent, and give the opportunity to answer and self-assess. This helps save so much time and unnecessary miscommunication, especially in our fast-paced virtual world,” says Aurelia. “Having really good relationships with people is a great way to grow through a network, because you learn through other people's learnings and mentorship."
2. Let curiosity fuel you. “Eleanor Roosevelt said one of my favorite quotes of all time, ‘Do one thing every day that scares you,’” she says. “Whether that’s reaching out or asking a hard question, it’s really important.” To remind her to do this, Aurelia has a sign on her computer that says, ‘Do one thing that makes a difference.’ “If you're doing the same thing every single day, you're going to stay where you are and things are gonna keep going where they go,” she elaborates. “You don’t have to change up your whole world, but you can do one thing that you’ve never done before.”
3. Always be open to opportunity. “You don’t know when the next opportunity will come from, what space it has, or what shape it has,” says Aurelia. “It’s so fun to be open to opportunity and explore. You can always say no, but what if you say yes? Our world is made up of all these possibilities and experiences that you would’ve never had before if you hadn’t explored.”
CHG continuously gives its employees chances to grow, just like Aurelia. If you’re interested, check out their current job openings here.
Nestlé HR Virtual Recruiting Event: Creating a Nourishing Employee Culture
Nestlé would like to invite you to their HR virtual recruiting info session on May 25th from 4-5PM EST. Sign up for this event with leaders from our HR team to learn more about how Nestlé is creating a culture that nourishes our employees!
Register here!